Volga-Dnepr confirms capacity-increasing An-124 upgrade

Volga-Dnepr has confirmed the upgrade of one of its An-124 aircraft to increase capacity. 

The upgrade has increased the aircraft’s capacity by 20 tonnes, allowing a maximum total cargo payload of up to 150 tonnes. The upgrade now enables a single piece of cargo, weighing up to 120 tonnes, to be transported. 

The aircraft’s flight range has also been increased.

The dimensions of the cargo cabin are: 36.5m x 6.4m x 4.4m, while its crane capacity is 20 tonnes.

On October 25, Air Cargo News shed light on a report from the Russian Aviation Insider (RIA), which revealed that Volga-Dnepr was planning to carry out upgrades to four of its An-124s to increase their capacity to 150 tonnes from the standard 130 tonnes.

In addition, the RIA report revealed that the airline was planning to make 100 job cuts, as well as taking one or two of its An-124 aircraft out of action.

On October 16, Air Cargo News revealed that that Volga-Dnepr Group had initiated an optimisation plan to meet tough market conditions.

Meanwhile, a report in Russian publication Ulnovosti claimed that the company was not immediately able to pay employees for September and that it is $200m in debt.

The report also claimed that workers in Ulanovsk had been asked to accept no pay until January and that lenders will consider their options if the situation does not improve by the end of the year.

In response, Volga-Dnepr said that salaries for September had been paid and that it is able to meet contractual obligations with customers and suppliers.