More Freighters for Aeroflot

The A350s are scheduled for delivery starting in 2015, a year later than earlier reports that indicated it would begin taking the aircraft in 2014. Air Transport World reports the airline would also acquire 10 A330s, though it was not clear whether those would be purchased or leased aircraft. The company lost its Boeing 787 delivery positions last November.

Aeroflot currently operates four DC-10 freighters and has announced it will eventually operate six MD-11s and will order six IL-96-400-Ts for its new Aeroflot Cargo subsidiary. Those deliveries are expected to begin towards the end of 2008.

In other news, an Antonov 225 recently landed at the French airport of Vatry outside Paris. The world’s largest cargo aircraft, the AN225 can handle 250 metric tons of freight and requires a runway of 3,000 to 3,500 meters (9,850-11,500 feet). Vatry has a 3,860 meter runway (12,664 feet). But in addition to operating a runway long enough for the AN225 to land, the runways, as with the new A380, must be capable of handling the heavier weight of the aircraft. The maximum take-off weight of the AN225 is 600 metric tons.