The scope of cargo transportation by «Antonov Airlines» is predicted to fall by 25% in 2012 YoY.
According to estimates, reduction in freight volume will make 25% in 2012 – at the level of forecasted drop of OOG and heavy-lift air freight. This collapse is mainly brought about by sinking transport of military cargoes.
At the present time carriage of loads ordered by military authorities, such as NATO, and transported for the benefit of International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan and Iraq, constitute 60% in the total freight activity of «Antonov Airlines».
Dropping figures of heavy-lift air carriage in 2012 will be followed by overall falldown of global air freight market. According to IATA (International Air Transport Association), the air freight market will be twice as low. In 2011 AA managed to keep the set level of 2010: reduction amounted to just 4%.
The Ukrainian airline and «Volga-Dnepr» of Russia are the world’s leading operators of heavy-duty freight plane An-124-100 Ruslan with a lifting capacity of 130 tons. At the end of 2005 the partners and NATO Maintenance & Supply Agency approved of a EUR 600 mln three-year renewable contract for carriage of cargoes on behalf of NATO and EU. The contract was extended for two more years in 2008.
Ruslan International Ltd (RI, Stansted, UK), established by «Antonov Airlines» and «Volga-Dnepr» in 2006, is a sole marketing agent of both Ukrainian and Russian operators. Strategic carriage within the framework of NATO SALIS in the interest of 18 NATO and EU countries is performed by Ruslan SALIS (RS, Leipzig, Germany) as well.