Volga-Dnepr Group’s revenue soars

Volga-Dnepr Group’s revenue soars Russia’s Volga-Dnepr Group, parent company of Volga-Dnepr Airlines and scheduled cargo airline AirBridge Cargo, Wednesday reported a 55 percent revenue increase to $725 million for 2006, and said it expects to reach $1 billion this year.
   In 2006, the group’s airlines transported more than 155,000 tons of cargo, of which 98 percent was transported on international routes, making Volga-Dnepr the largest cargo carrier in Russia.
   AirBridge Cargo’s revenue increased 79 percent to $227.4 million after lifting 78,400 tons. During 2006, AirBridge Cargo’ fleet grew to four Boeing 747 freighters, and its network expanded with new services to and from Hong Kong, the reintroduction of flights from Luxemburg to Moscow Domodedovo Airport, increased frequencies to Nagoya and Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk and the launch of its first domestic route between Moscow and Krasnoyarsk.
   This year, the airline will take delivery of the first of three B747-400ER Freighters, and last month a contract was signed with Boeing for five new long-haul Boeing 747-8 Freighters by 2013. The contract also has an option for five additional aircraft with a total contract value of $1.4 billion.
   “One of Volga-Dnepr’s strategic goals is to enter the top 20 of the world’s largest airlines by 2015,” said Alexey Isaikin, Volga-Dnepr’s president. “We have already reached a significant position in terms of unique cargo transport services with AN-124 ramp aircraft. In this segment, the group occupies more than half of the total international market.
   “As for the air cargo transport market in general, we will increase our presence through the further development of scheduled cargo services, complementing our already-strong position in the worldwide charter market. The dynamic nature of the scheduled cargo industry gives us great confidence that our goal is quite possible to reach.”