Asia/Pacific

AirBridgeCargo to resume services using Ilyushin Il-96 aircraft

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AirBridgeCargo to resume services using Ilyushin Il-96 aircraft

Russia’s AirBridgeCargo is all set to resume operations almost a year after temporary halting all its flights post Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and imposing of western sanctions on Russia. The airline is planning to restart its operations using an Ilyushin Il-96 aircraft instead of its former Boeing 747 and 777.

Prior to Russia-Ukraine war, AirBridgeCargo operated on an extensive network across Asia, Europe and North America on Boeign747F and Boeing777F, accounting for over 40% of the air cargo market in Russia.

Various social media posts have posted a picture of the aircraft with the airline livery.

The Il-96 is nearly 14 years old. It was first delivered in November 2009 and was operated until 2014 by Polet, a now out-of-business airline that operated out of Voronezh Chertovitskoye Airport (VOZ). There are 33 Ilyushin 96 aircraft worldwide out of which only 13 are active.

Volga-Dnepr Group, parent company of AirBridgeCargo halted all operations of its two subsidiaries AirBridgeCargo and Atran. Both the cargo carriers operated using Boeing aircraft and had registrations with the Bermuda Civil Aviation Authority (BCAA), which terminated the safety certificates.