AirBridgeCargo
AirBridgeCargo Airlines, LLC (Russian: ООО Авиакомпания «ЭйрБриджКарго»), part of Volga-Dnepr Group, is the largest Russian cargo airline with its head office in Moscow. It operates scheduled cargo services on routes between Russia, Asia, Europe and North America, covering more than 30 destinations worldwide. All flights connect to their hub at Sheremetyevo International Airport in Moscow and Krasnoyarsk. It was forced to suspend all operations in the wake of sanctions against Russia as of March 2022.[1]
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| Founded | 2003 | ||||||
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| Ceased operations | March 2022 (suspended)[1] | ||||||
| Hubs | |||||||
| Fleet size | 16 | ||||||
| Destinations | 37[2] | ||||||
| Parent company | Volga-Dnepr Group | ||||||
| Headquarters | Moscow, Russia | ||||||
| Employees | more than 1300 | ||||||
| Website | airbridgecargo.com | ||||||
History
The company entered the scheduled cargo market on 1 April 2004, when the first AirBridgeCargo branded Boeing 747 made its inaugural commercial flight on route from Beijing to Luxembourg.
As of March 2022, AirBridgeCargo was forced to suspend all operations due to sanctions against Russia which rendered the entire fleet unusable.[1] In July 2022, the airline announced it will comply with sanctions and prepare to return 14 leased aircraft - which make out the majority of its fleet - to its lessors.[3]
In March 2023, it became known that the company plans to resume flights using Il-96 aircraft. Volga-Dnepr has already begun searching for pilots with appropriate training.[4]
Destinations
Prior to the suspension of all services, ABC had been present in Asia, Europe and North America. It operates a scheduled freighter route network of 37 destinations as of November 2019 focused on Europe, Asia and the United States.[2]
Fleet
Current fleet
As of December 2022, the AirBridgeCargo fleet consists of the following aircraft:[5]
| Aircraft | In Service | Orders | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boeing 747-400ERF | 3 | — | |
| Boeing 747-8F | 12 | — | |
| Boeing 777F | 1 | — | [6] |
| Ilyushin Il-96 | — | 2 | — |
| Total | 16 | 2 | — |
Former fleet
AirBridgeCargo formerly operated the following aircraft:
| Aircraft | Total | Introduced | Retired | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boeing 737-400SF | 1 | 2015 | 2017 | Transferred to ATRAN |
| Boeing 747-200F | 4 | 2004 | 2012 | |
| Boeing 747-200SF | 1 | 2004 | 2008 | Transferred to Southern Air |
| Boeing 747-300SF | 1 | 2005 | 2012 | |
| Boeing 747-400F | 3 | 2010 | 2020 | |
Accidents and incidents
- On September 11, 2012, an AirBridgeCargo Boeing 747-8F experienced a major engine malfunction that spread a significant amount of metallic debris on the runway. Like in a similar event during pre-flight taxi tests, the low pressure turbine shaft separated and moved the low pressure turbine (by design to avoid turbine overspeed) backwards braking on surrounding hardware.[7]
- On July 31, 2013, an AirBridgeCargo Boeing 747-8F experienced core engine icing that caused engine malfunctions and damage to three engines near Chengdu, China, while en route to Hong Kong; the aircraft landed safely at its destination. Boeing and General Electric are working on software changes to mitigate the effects of core engine icing.[8][9][10]
References
- aircargonews.net - VDG confirms suspension of AirBridgeCargo and Atran operations 21 March 2022
- airbridgecargo.com - Our network retrieved 27 February 2021
- aircargonews.net - AirBridgeCargo applies to return freighters to lessors 1 July 2022
- "Крупнейшая грузовая компания России возобновит полеты после года простоя". rbc.ru (in Russian). 2023-03-28.
- "AirBridgeCargo Fleet Details and History". Planespotters.net. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
- Derrick, Emily (6 August 2020). "Volga-Dnepr Takes Delivery Of Its First 777F Despite Order Dispute". Simple Flying. Retrieved 16 November 2020.
- Simon Hradecky. "Incident: Air Bridge Cargo B748 at Shanghai on Sep 11th 2012, rejected takeoff".
- Guy Norris (September 2, 2013). "Core Engine Icing Strikes Russian 747-8F". Aviation Week. Archived from the original on December 13, 2013. Retrieved September 2, 2013.
- Simon Hradecky (n.d.). "Incident: Air Bridhe Cargo B748 near Hong Kong on Jul 31st 2013, both left hand engines surged at same time, one right hand engine damaged too". Retrieved September 2, 2013.
- Polina Borodina (n.d.). "Russia to investigate AirBridgeCargo 747-8F engine incident with Boeing, GE". Retrieved September 2, 2013.
External links
Media related to AirBridgeCargo Airlines at Wikimedia Commons- Official website
- Official website (in Russian)