Outsize cargo for stricken ship

A large shipping company was spared an operational headache last month when Air Charter Service assisted a freight forwarder in organising the transportation of an urgent spare part weighing 40,000 KG from Norway to Japan.

The vessel belonging to the firm was damaged in heavy seas off the coast of Japan, resulting in the loss of the main thrusters which power the ship and allow for its manoeuvrability.

As the ship limped back to port, the freight forwarder called Air Charter Service to help with the urgent air transportation of replacement thrusters that were located in Norway.

Lloyd Robinson quickly arranged an Antonov-124 aircraft for the charter to Japan. The AN-124 was ideally suited to the outsize dimensions of the giant piece as it allowed for the careful loading to be conducted through the nose of the aircraft with the help of a crane (see picture).

The piece was delivered on an impressive timescale, helping the engineers to get the ship back to sea in a matter of days.

Urgent charters for gas equipment

Air Charter Service’s New York team were last month requested to arrange the air transportation of technical equipment to Port of Spain (POS), Trinidad, after a strong earthquake (6.1 magnitude) hit the island and damaged a natural gas production plant.

Fortunately there were no reports of serious injuries caused by the quake. There was however damage to infrastructure, and as a major supplier of natural gas to the United States and other countries the operators of damaged production plant urgently required technical equipment and spare parts for repairs.

The team in New York arranged four urgent cargo charters into Port of Spain in the days after the earthquake. Ruan Courtney arranged a DC-10 and a DC-8 aircraft from the UK, followed by the charters of two Falcon 20 aircraft from Texas.

These successful time-critical aircraft charters allowed repairs to be made and output restored in the shortest time possible.

Modernised IL-76 a welcome addition to charter market

Air Charter Service’s Gary Hopkins has been the first at the company to take advantage of the all new Chapter 4 certified IL-76TD-90VD aircraft, with a charter of 40 tonnes of urgent oil equipment from Italy to Hassi Messaoud, Algeria.

It is likely to be first of many charters on this new build cargo aircraft which can freely operate across Europe and the USA as it is designed to meet International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) noise and emissions requirements.

The long running success of the IL-76 is based on its unique capabilities as well as its economic efficiency. Not requiring any additional airport loading equipment, the self-sufficient IL-76 is able to fly charters to remote locations including humanitarian aid flights.

The new model has a an improved MTOW of 195 tonnes, an increased payload of 50 tonnes, and a reduced fuel consumption rate making it more efficient.

Giant aircraft carry bridges for Lebanon reconstruction

Three large Bailey bridges - developed during World War II – have been transported to the region via giant Antonov-124 freighters. The bridges are part of an initial £12.7m aid package arranged by the British Government’s Department For International Development (DFID).

DFID has announced it may send up to 14 bridges to Lebanon to aid in the reconstruction of key routes destroyed by bombing. In total the damage caused to infrastructure during the conflict is estimated to be in the region of £1.25 billion.

The two Antonov-124 aircraft, arranged by London based Air Charter Service, flew from RAF Brize Norton to RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus. The bridges were successfully unloaded and are currently in the process of being taken on a UN ship to Lebanon from the port of Limassol.

The Antonov-124, designed by the Soviet Union, is regularly used to transport heavy and outsize cargo around the world.

In addition to the bridges, ACS arranged 31 relief aid charters to the region on Antonov-12 and Airbus-310 aircraft during the crisis – and the passenger department also provided MD-82 aircraft to evacuate over 600 foreign nations from Lebanon.

Air Charter Service never tyre of flying

Air Charter Service’s London office have had the pleasure of arranging Antonov-26 and Antonov-12 aircraft to transport Michelin’s Formula One racing tyres to both the Hungarian and Italian Grand Prix events.

To help keep the Hungaoring F1 event firmly on track James Cristofoli, cargo charter analyst at Air Charter Service, arranged two Antonov-26’s to move tyres from France to Budapest.

In a separate charter Air Charter Service provided an Antonov-12 aircraft to fly more tyres from Turkey to Milan for the Monza Grand Prix.

Air Charter Service work extensively in the motor sports industry, arranging both cargo charters for the various teams, and passenger charters on private jets for sponsors and fans.

Relief for civilians in Middle East crisis

Air Charter Service have played an important role in both evacuating foreign nationals and transporting aid cargo to Lebanon as the crisis in the Middle East unfolds. Large scale operations continue in order to help alleviate the suffering of civilians caught up in the conflict.

Air Charter Service’s passenger department arranged four MD-82 charters from Larnaca carrying a total of 646 Scandinavian evacuees back to their homeland. The flights were completed within 24 hours of receiving the request.

In the first three weeks of the crisis Air Charter Service’s cargo department have also been involved in flying relief aid to the region. As the aid effort got underway ACS arranged five AN-12 charters with cargo of food and essential goods into Larnaca (LCA).

With new aid routes now opening up ACS are also working on charters into other airports including Damascus (DAM) - where an ACS chartered DC-8 has delivered a consignment of relief goods from Copenhagen (CPH).

ACS sign two year contract with Save the Children (UK)

Air Charter Service have signed a new two year contract to act as the official air charter provider for Save the Children (UK). ACS will use their expertise in the relief field to help Save the Children in their work reacting to disasters across the globe.

Save the Children is the UK's leading international children's charity, working to create a better world for children. They are active in the UK, as well as around 65 countries world wide.

They are part of the International Save the Children Alliance, the world's leading child rights organisation with members in 29 countries and operational programs in over 100 more.

The account will be managed by Gary Hopkins, who has experience working with several other major aid organisations. Gary has arranged aid flights for humanitarian disasters including the Asian tsunami, the Pakistan earthquake, and most recently the unfolding crisis in Lebanon.

Automotive parts charters on the rise

Air Charter Service’s New York office continues to go from strength to strength, reporting a very busy few months in the charter market. This has included various movements of oil equipment from the U.S. to Africa, and most recently a boom in the number of automotive parts charters.

In one of several key deals, Chuck Hoffken secured the contracts for 16 charters for flying auto parts up and down the East Coast for a client seeing a rise in trade.

He sourced Falcon 20, Lear 25 and Embraer 140 aircraft to successfully move urgent consignments between locations to keep key manufacturing sites running on schedule.

Chuck was able to draw upon Air Charter Service’s expertise in supplying aircraft at short notice and arranging for the delivery of freight within hours. This includes light jet and turboprop aircraft for small loads, as well as larger aircraft for heavy and outsize freight.

For more information please visit www.aircharterserviceusa.com

Aid for Indonesian earthquake survivors

The number of people killed in the earthquake which hit the island of Java on Saturday is estimated to be over 6000, Indonesian authorities say. Hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced by the disaster, meaning there is an urgent need to provide food, shelter and medical supplies to the region.

Charters arranged on AN-12 aircraft by Air Charter Service were among the first to reach the earthquake struck region of Java.

Air Charter Service was contacted by the Spanish Government who pledged support as soon as news of the disaster broke. They confirmed an initial charter on an Antonov-12 aircraft to fly from Madrid (TOJ) to Yogyakarta (JOG), carrying almost 12 tonnes of blankets, tarpaulin, tents and medical supplies. The load filled every available space of the AN-12’s 90 cbm capacity.

A second AN-12 charter promptly followed the first, delivering aid to Yogyakarta (JOG) and Solo City (SOC). The aid was received by a specialist Spanish medical team who have been deployed to the region to assist with the relief effort.

For more information on relief charters please see http://www.aircharter.co.uk/relief_flights.htm

Land mine clearance vehicles for Sudan

Air Charter Service’s Richard Thompson has arranged the charter of a IL-76 loaded with land mine clearance machinery for southern Sudan where large humanitarian and regeneration programmes are currently underway.

An organisation involved in the project contacted Air Charter Service to organise the transportation of a land mine clearance vehicle, Land Rovers and trailers from the north of France to Juba, Sudan.

Richard Thompson arranged for the 30 tonne load to be flown on an IL-76 aircraft which is well suited for the transportation of vehicles and outsize machinery. The charter ran smoothly, taking 10 hours to reach its destination including a fuel stop in Libya.

The equipment will be put to immediate use clearing agricultural land littered with mines which are a major problem for the local population.

The US-based agency, Human Rights Watch estimate that there are 110 million mines are spread in 64 counties world wide. Landmines maim or kill between 1,000 to 2,000 people per month, most of whom are innocent civilians.

For more information on transporting machinery please visit http://www.aircharter.co.uk/cargo_uk.htm

Air Charter Service move to new offices in Moscow

Air Charter Service’s Moscow office has relocated to larger new offices in the city to further facilitate the growth that the company has experienced in recent years. The new office will allow for the addition of further brokers to the team.

The new office is situated in a prestigious complex on the carriageway dubbed ‘Putin Road’ due to the fact many of Russia’s business elite and ministers use the road to travel to work each day from the west of the city.

The office is also conveniently located on the blue metro line, between Krylaskoe and Molodezhnaya stations.

For the full address and contact details visit www.aircharter.ru

Sculpting the perfect AN-124 charter

Air Charter Service’s Vladimir Romanenko was recently delighted to provide the flight from St Petersburg to Tblisi for a statue created by the great sculptor Zurab Tsereteli. The contract for this charter was signed by Zurab himself in his gallery in the center of Moscow.

The statue was specially commissioned to be the centerpiece of 30m high monument to the “History of Georgia” in the centre of Tblisi.

The initial enquiry was placed in March, at which time the ornate statue was still in the early stages of construction. Vladimir Romanenko was able to show his own attention to detail and worked to create the perfect charter for this unusual cargo.

At 6 metres wide and 3.8 metres high the dimensions of statue and paddock meant that an AN-124 aircraft would need to be utilized for the charter.

On the day of the charter the load arriving by truck proved so wide that the old airport gates were opened for the first time in years to allow the statue through.

The delivery and loading process took less than 3 hours due to the advance preparations made. The charter was conducted without any delay and was met in Tbilisi by the sculptor himself.

The statue is due to be unveiled in Tblisi’s Freedom Square at a ceremony on the 29th May (Georgia’s Independence Day).

Visit www.aircharter.ru for more information on outsize charters.

Drilling equipment to Ethiopia

Air Charter Service Moscow has assisted an Italian construction company with an IL-76 charter for two heavy duty drilling vehicles for a works project in East Africa.

The equipment had been produced on the Adriatic coast and was urgently required by the construction team based out of Addis Ababa. No western aircraft was able to carry the vehicles each measuring over 3 metres in both height and width, and weighing around 16 tonnes.

Vladimir Romanenko identified the IL-76 as the most suitable for transporting the drilling equipment and immediately bore his way into getting the permissions needed to make the charter happen to schedule.

Noise restrictions eliminated the possibility of Italian departure and time was too tight to carry the cargo to Bratislava. However, Vladimir negotiated the use of Pula airport, receiving the necessary permissions from the CAA of Croatia.

The successful operation was completed in less than 24 hours, including trucking to Pula, customs clearance and the charter flight.

See http://www.aircharter.co.uk/heavy_outsize_air_cargo.htm for details of outsize charters.

Air Charter Service continue pivotal aid flight role

Air Charter Service are a company with a long and proud history in providing humanitarian aid relief charters for disasters around the globe. The first months of 2006 have seen both the continuation of ongoing work in areas such as Pakistan well as the addition of other aid flight projects.

Most recently Richard Thompson of Air Charter Service had been able to provide charter flights to flood hit Algeria on behalf of Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional (AECI).

Richard was able to quickly arrange two AN-12 charters to transport temporary shelter and emergency food rations to victims of the torrential which has brought devastation to large areas. The flights flew from the Madrid Torrejon military base to Tindouf Military airport in Algeria.

More information on humanitarian charters can be found at http://www.aircharter.co.uk/relief_flights.htm