Volga Dnepr to buy 34 Boeing freighter aircraft

Yesterday, at the Farnborough International Airshow, Russian airline conglomerate Volga-Dnepr Group and U.K.-based affiliate Cargo Logic Holding signed a massive agreement with Boeing, which included a letter of intent to order twenty-nine 777Fs and firm-ordered five 747-8 Fs. The deal is valued at approximately US$2 billion.

Alexey Isaykin, president of Volga-Dnepr Group and chairman of Cargo Logic Holding said the move will “open new market opportunities” with the 777F and stated that the company also plans to partner with Boeing to develop new freighter solutions, such as the production 767F, or converted cargo jets like the 737-800 Boeing-converted freighter, according to a statement from Boeing.

The addition of the long-range 777s, the world’s longest-range twin-engine cargo jet, would be a change of pace for the Volga-Dnepr Group, which currently has a fleet comprised mainly of four-engine freighters.

In a recent report, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said that May 2018 marked the fourth month in a row that airfreight capacity growth exceeded demand growth, but that doesn’t seem to be slowing carriers down from bolstering their fleets. Boeing said its freighter demand grew by 10 percent last year, which it tallies at more than 100 orders.

As part of the agreement, Boeing Global Services said it will provide Volga-Dnepr Group’s subsidiary, AirBridgeCargo Airlines, with a crew-pairing solution to optimize the efficiency of the airline’s 300-crew-member operation.