Friday, 8 March 2019

ANTONOV Airlines transports mining equipment to Gabon for Bolloré Logistics





ANTONOV Airlines has completed a project transporting mining equipment from East Midlands Airport (EMA) in the UK to Franceville Airport (MVB) in Gabon in just nine days, facilitated by in-house ANTONOV Airlines loading technology.
    
Ground staff at EMA used ANTONOV Airline’s purpose-built ramp positioned at an angle of only three degrees to load two tracked crushing machines, and the entire process was completed using remote control.     
“One of our AN-124-100 ‘Ruslan’ aircraft flew two 18m-long crushing machines to be used in mining operations in Gabon, on behalf of our long-standing customer, BollorĂ© Logistics,” said Paul Bingley, commercial manager of ANTONOV Airlines.  
“The project turn-around was only nine days and in that timeframe, we managed to deliver a cost-effective solution by securing special permission for landing in Gabon’s second city, Franceville, which is 600km closer to the mine than the capital, Libreville.”
The total combined weight of the two machines was nearly 70 tonnes, and precision was vital during the loading process.
“We only required one flight for this project as the hold length of the AN-124-100 measures in at just over 36m, making it the perfect fit for two vehicles which are 18.68m in length,” said Chris Grigentin, BollorĂ© Logistics director of industrial projects, France.   
“We partner regularly with ANTONOV Airlines whose aircraft provide more than sufficient space for carrying oversized equipment, and this is yet another job completed in excellent time.    
“We look forward to working with ANTONOV on future projects.”

Qatar Airways to increase flights to South African destinations



Qatar Airways will be increasing the number of weekly flights on its popular routes to South Africa from July 2019.

Weekly flight frequencies to Johannesburg, South Africa’s largest metropolis, will increase from 14 to 18 from July, rising to 19 in August. A further two flights will be added to the airline’s winter schedule, taking the total number of weekly frequencies to 21 by the end of October 2019.
In addition, passengers hoping to soak up some sun on some of South Africa’s most beautiful scenic beaches will be able to take advantage of the addition of three extra flights on the Cape Town route, taking the total from seven to 10, from 27 October 2019.
Qatar Airways Group chief executive,  Akbar Al Baker, said: “The latest additional services to both Johannesburg and Cape Town reflect the growing demand for travel to and from these popular South African destinations. As the largest city in South Africa, Johannesburg has emerged as one of our key regional destinations for both leisure and business travellers alike since its introduction in 2005. With its mix of nature, culture and wildlife, Cape Town is another hugely popular regional destination, offering a unique and memorable experience for our passengers.
“We are pleased to be increasing our frequencies to these fantastic cities, and once again confirm our commitment to providing Qatar Airways’ passengers with an even greater choice of travel options to key global destinations.”

Turkish Cargo delivers circus lions to their natural habitat



Turkish Cargo delivered three young lionesses Luca, Charlie, Kai and the young lion Nathan to South Africa, their natural habitat, from Kiev with a connection flight from Istanbul.

The young lion Nathan and the three young lionesses Luca, Charlie and Kai had been used as circus animals and had been placed in a concrete and steel cage of 35 square meters in Ukraine under harsh conditions without direct sunlight and clean air, far away from their natural habitat

The lions were saved by the Lawrence Anthony World Organization (LAEO), an organisation that acts with the mission of defending animal rights, and were transported to their natural habitat in South Africa under the sponsorship by the global air cargo brand Turkish Cargo.

The lions were transported in specially-designed containers, where their nutritional needs were met, and they were accompanied by their keepers, specially-assigned veterinarians, an authorised person from the Lawrence Anthony World Organization and IATA LAR (IATA Live Animals Regulations) certificated Turkish Cargo personnel during the flight

After a long flight covering almost nine thousand kilometers, the lions were set free at Kragga Kamma Natural Park, a natural habitat embracing huge animal populations of Africa and offering all-green coastal forest and meadows extending along 14 thousand square meters. Initially having some difficulties to get used to their own habitat as they got used to the conditions of the circus, the lions will discover their real habitat and freedom with their new friends from now on.

Qatar Airways launches more African destinations to its network



Qatar Airways announced today it is launching services to Rabat, Morocco, Izmir in Turkey; and Mogadishu, Somalia.

Qatar Airways chief executive officer, Akbar Al Baker, said: “We are tremendously excited to be adding these new destinations to our rapidly expanding global route network later this year, and to be able to connect our passengers to anywhere in the world they wish to go.”

African airlines saw January traffic rise 5.1%, up from 3.8% in December.

“2019 has started on a positive note, with healthy passenger demand in line with the 10-year trend line. However, market signals are mixed, with indications of weakening business confidence in developed economies and a more nuanced picture across the developing world,” said Alexandre de Juniac, IATA’s Director General and CEO.

International passenger demand rose 6.0% in January compared to the same month last year, which was up from a 5.3% rise in December year-over-year. All regions recorded growth, led by Europe for a fourth consecutive month. Capacity increased 5.8% and load factor climbed 0.2 percentage point to 79.8%.

African airlines saw January traffic rise 5.1%, up from 3.8% in December. Concerns continue about the region’s largest economies, South Africa and Nigeria, however. The region’s capacity rose 2.9%, and load factor jumped 1.5 percentage points to 70.9%.  

Monday, 10 September 2018

17 dead as plane plunges into river in South Sudan

        
        Passengers were travelling from the Juba International Airport to the city of Yirol in Eastern Lakes State on Sunday, September 9 when disaster struck. Local sources in the region confirmed the accident which is believed to only have three survivors 
Wreckage of the plane that crashed into River
Several other passengers are still missing from the wreckage which was thoroughly quelled by water after the plane came into contact with the river. An Italian doctor and a bishop were among those who were on board the ill-fated plane. The cause of the crash is yet to be determined. 

Tuesday, 7 August 2018

Airborne 08.06.18: OSH18 'Near Perfect', Stratos 716, New NASA Crews

“A ‘perfect’ event may be unattainable, but AirVenture 2018 came about as close as one could imagine," said EAA chairman Jack Pelton. The event drew approximately 601,000, nearly two percent above of 2017’s record total. Stratos Aircraft has introduced an update on its VLJ program and introduced the Stratos 716 model. The Stratos 716 is an evolution of the 714 Proof of Concept (PoC) aircraft. "When we introduced the Proof of Concept aircraft last year the marketplace feedback was tremendous," said Stratos CTO, Carsten Sundin. "It was clear that the market is looking for the performance and comfort we were offering, but in a true 6-place aircraft. We have achieved this with the 716." The Stratos 716 has a 31" longer and 3.5" wider cabin than the 714 PoC aircraft introduced at Oshkosh in 2017. The Stratos 716 is a "multi-role" VLJ designed to comfortably seat 6 people to support personal, business and air taxi use. NASA introduced to the world on Friday the first U.S. astronauts who will fly on American-made, commercial spacecraft to and from the International Space Station – an endeavor that will return astronaut launches to U.S. soil for the first time since the space shuttle’s retirement in 2011. All this -- and MORE in today's episode of Airborne!!!
Airborne 08.06.18 is chock full of info in this Daily News Episode, Monday, August 6th, 2018... Presented by Aero-TV veteran videographer and Airborne Hosts Laura Hutson, Brianne Cross, and Christopher Odom, and is supported by ANN CEO/Editor-In-Chief Jim Campbell, Chief Videographer Nathan Cremisino, and Aero-Journalist Tom Patton, this episode covers:

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