Volga-Dnepr An-124-100 delivers 130 tonnes of equipment to the polar region for ‘Yamal-LNG’ project

Volga-Dnepr Airlines has performed two flights from Novy Urengoy to Sabetta in Russia delivering 130 tonnes of industrial equipment for ‘Yamal-LNG’, one of the world’s largest gas recovery projects.

Carried out in harsh climatic conditions, the transportation solution was provided at the request of AeroTransCargo, a Russian logistics company which has already managed the air transportation of over 3,500 tonnes of equipment, mostly using the unique IL-76TD-90VD and An-124-100 freighters and expertise of Volga-Dnepr Airlines.

For these latest shipments, Volga-Dnepr transported a 30-tonne high-pressure pump and other gas recovery cargo weighing a total of approximately 130 tonnes onboard two An-124-100 flights. The equipment is being installed at a liquefied natural gas plant being built on the Yamal Peninsula. The flights were carried out under the most challenging conditions of the polar region in temperatures of -35° Celsius.

Alexander Supichenko, Director of AeroTransCargo LLC, pointed out: “Taking into consideration such difficult operating conditions, we could only turn to real professionals. We have been working with Volga-Dnepr Airlines since 2015 and have witnessed the vast capabilities of their aircraft and experienced specialists. Our company is the contractor to one of the world’s largest oil and gas projects so it is essential for us to meet the terms of our responsibilities and provide continuous equipment supplies to the production site of the ‘Yamal-LNG’ plant.”

The equipment was delivered to Volga-Dnepr’s An-124-100 from the customer’s warehouse in Novy Urengoy before being loaded into the aircraft using a ramp extension and the freighter’s onboard cranes. The first flight delivered 70 tonnes of equipment to Sabetta International Airport and a timely unloading enabled the ‘Ruslan’ aircraft to return to Novy Urengoy to collect the remaining 60 tonnes of cargo for delivery the next day.

Mikhail Smirnykh, General Director, Volga-Dnepr Airlines, noted: “In the course of such deliveries, every single detail is of high importance: loading equipment, qualified crew members, full coordination with the customer regarding provision of the cargo to the airport, the arrangement of powerful cranes, low bed trailers and the performing of loading/offloading by the airline’s certified staff. Volga-Dnepr Airlines is widely experienced in providing transportation services under the conditions of the polar and permafrost regions. For example, last year we carried out 20 flights to Baffinland, Canada. This year, in cooperation with AeroTransCargo, we are proud to be continuing our support of the major infrastructure project for the new gas processing plant on the Yamal Peninsula.”