Let’s do launch: Volga-Dnepr takes to the water with patrol boat logistics

Volga-Dnepr Airlines has delivered four Mangust patrol boats to Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk in Far East Russia and also launched the vessels at the port of Korsakov as part of a last mile logistics service.
The boats, built at the Vympel Shipyard in Rybinsk for the Border Guard Service, were carried onboard two An-124-100 ‘Ruslan’ flights from Tunoshna airport near Yaroslavl.
They were loaded onto the aircraft using a ramp, rail system and a crane.  Each patrol boat measured 19 m in length and weighed 32 tonnes.  
Alexander Kartashov, key account executive at Volga-Dnepr Airlines, said: “These An-124 flights were operated for our customer, Vympel Shipyard, with the addition of a broad range of logistics services provided by Volga-Dnepr.
“These included arranging crane-lift at the departure and arrival airports, the ground transportation of the boats to the port of Korsakov as well as their launch in Korsakov, another first in the history of Volga-Dnepr.”
He added: “It was necessary to consider various different factors in completing this operation, including the typhoon conditions in Sakhalin and the challenging sea conditions. We did this successfully and, as a result, the boats were delivered, launched and provided on-time to the Border Guard Service of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation.”
Over the past 26 years, Volga-Dnepr has gained experience of moving seagoing vessels, transporting yachts, submarines, submersibles, rescue vessels and patrol boats.