Airbus launches air cargo service using its Beluga aircraft fleet

Airbus has launched a new service that will use its BelugaST fleet to offer freight companies a new solution to outsized cargo needs.

The new service, called Airbus Beluga Transport, will provide commercially-contracted customers in a variety of sectors, including space, energy, military, aeronautic, maritime and humanitarian sectors.

The first mission took place at the end of last year with a delivery from Airbus Helicopters’ manufacturing site in Marignane, France, to Kobe in Japan for an undisclosed customer. The Beluga stopped to refuel at Warsaw (Poland), Novosibirsk (Russia) and Seoul (Korea).

Phillippe Sabo, head of Airbus Transport International (ATI) and Air Oversize Transport at Airbus, said: “The Beluga’s wider cross-section will open up new markets and new logistical possibilities for customers. In the case of loading helicopters, not having to dismantle them first really is a plus. Similarly, the largest commercial aircraft engines can be accommodated in a fully-dressed configuration.”

Based on the A300-600 design, the five-strong BelugaST fleet, which has until now been the backbone of Airbus’ inter-site transportation of large aircraft sections, is being replaced by six new-generation BelugaXLs to support Airbus’s ramp-up of its airliner production.

The new Airbus Beluga Transport service can accommodate outsized cargo of up to 7.1m in width and 6.7m in height.

In the near future, once Airbus has commissioned all six new BelugaXLs, the fully-released BelugaST fleet will be handed over to a newly-created, subsidiary airline with its own Air Operator Certificate (AOC) and staff.

Sabo added: “The new airline will be flexible and agile to address the needs of external worldwide markets.”

To maximise the BelugaST’s turnaround capability for its targeted international customer base, new loading techniques and equipment are being developed for the operation. These solutions include an automated On-Board Cargo Loader (OBCL) for missions where a loading/unloading platform is not available at the origin or destination airport.

www.airbus.com