RuAviation

Cargo aircraft IL-96-400T (RA-96103) of Sky Gates Airlines has started to transport commercial cargo after the procedure of airworthiness restoration. This was reported in the press service of the United Aircraft Corporation.

On 10 December, an aircraft of the airline’s subsidiary Red Wings delivered a large shipment of goods from a friendly country to Zhukovsky Airport, including passenger cars, on its first commercial flight.

The airworthiness certificate for the restored wide-body airliner was issued in September 2023. The company-owner Ilyushin Finance and Co. has carried out a number of measures to restore the aircraft. The Voronezh aircraft factory has performed a substantial amount of work to bring the machine out of long-term storage, carried out calendar maintenance and all current service bulletins. The transfer of the airliner to the carrier took place in mid-November in Zhukovsky.

According to Red Wings CEO Evgeny Solodilin, Red Wings sees good prospects for the development of the cargo market on domestic routes and in export-import operations with friendly countries with the start of operation of the IL-96-400T as part of its subsidiary airline.

“The return of Sky Gates Airlines to the cargo market as an operator of Russian aircraft is an ambitious task that pursues several goals. This is both a business direction and part of the plan to transform Red Wings from a regional carrier into a full-fledged aviation holding, the work of which is aimed, among other things, at the future development of the domestic aviation industry and flight school: the project requires a systematic approach to the training and retraining of flight personnel to pilot this type of aircraft,” commented Evgeny Solodilin.

IFC General Director Mikhail Podkhvatilin noted that the flight of IL-96-400T is the result of joint work of many parties. The government made a decision to restore the airworthiness of several aircraft, all the necessary components were delivered to VASO and the manufacturer carried out the required work to bring the aircraft back into service. Taking into account the high demand for air cargo operations, Sky Gates Airlines will occupy its niche in this market, and the IL-96-400T will be of great help to it.

The IL-96-400T is a cargo version of the IL-96 family of wide-body aircraft. Its maximum commercial load is 92 tonnes, and its range at maximum load is 5000 kilometres. With a load of 40 tonnes, the aircraft is capable of covering a distance of 12,000 kilometres.

The return of the IL-96-400T to service provides an opportunity for more efficient and reliable cargo transportation on international routes – a Russian aircraft owned by a Russian leasing company can freely fly to foreign airports without risk of arrest. With its high cargo capacity and long range, the machine is an attractive choice for cargo airlines.