An An124-100 of Antonov Airlines has been used by the French military to transport two specially equipped Gazelle helicopters to Chad to boost its rotorcraft detachment there.
The Gazelle helicopters, part of the 3rd Helicopter Regiment, are fitted with special reconnaissance and command and control capabilities, according to the French Ministry of Defence.
After arriving in N’Djamena the Gazelles have joined the multinational army aviation battalion based in Abeche. The unit supports EUFOR peacekeepers in the eastern part of Chad.
The French detachment now includes four Pumas and four Gazelles. EUFOR also can draw on three Polish Mil Mi-17s and two Ukrainian Mi-8s on lease to the Irish military.
When helicopters are deployed in this way the An124 is almost invariably the method of transport as it allows the machines to be left fully assembled and ready for work with minimum delay after arrival.
Abu Dhabi based Maximus Air Cargo, which operates An124-100 registration 6A-ZYD as flagship of its fleet reports a growth in tonne kilometres flown of 5.5 times with gross revenues 43 per cent ahead of target for the first half of 2008.
Operating a mix of eight cargo aircraft, ranging from the An124-100, through Airbus A300-600RF, Ilyushin IL-76TD, and Lockheed Hercules L382G aircraft the company is able to offer a mix of capabilities to cover all cargo charter needs in the region as well as in the difficult operating areas of Africa.
Read more about Maximus first half results.
Just for fun among the heavy guys, here's a model An124-100
Wingspan 2,95m, 4x JePe Spider (Ducted) Fan engines of 660 Watt each powered by 12 Lipo-cels, retractable undercarriage with 24 wheels, 6x fowler flaps, weight 12,2 Kg.
Designer, builder and owner : Grad Kuipers 0031-735031947
Pilot : Willy Elsen / Grad Kuipers
It would be nice to see a modeler build one with turbine engines and over the 20kg weight so as to get a more representative flight behaviour of the An124.
There is an extensive discussion of the Canadian military procurement of strategic airlift capacity over on the Canadian American Strategic Review Site with Herman Kuparov contributing an extensive summary of the costing of An124-100 aircraft for military use.
The argument follows much the same course as that used when Air Foyle bid the An124-100 for the UK Ministry of Defence requirement for Short Term Strategic Airlift (STSA). Despite the An124 meeting the specified requirement, being about half the price of the Boeing C17 and carrying more cargo the Secretary of State for Defence at the time told the UK House of Commons that the C17 was selected due to it's greater tactical manoeuvrability – a requirement never specified in the bid documentation. In other words, it was smaller.Â
As Canada appears to be well down the same route, now everyone knows that to build and sell a strategic airlifter you have to build them small.
An225 Mriya seen on finals approaching Amsterdam Schipol airport yesterday 6 July.
Obviously, enough to stop the traffic!
And the movie:
Operating this morning from Berlin (SXF) to Farnborough is one of Volga Dnepr's An124-100s registration RA-82078. The flight is carrying support equipment for the Indian helicopter display planned for the Farnborough Air Show starting shortly.
This is the second of a three legged journey for the Indian display team with 2 x An124s being required to carry the helicopters and all the support equipment from Bangalore into Berlin for the ILA show. This second, shorter, leg to Farnborough the helicopters will accomplish under their own power.
Photo credit: David Gray
After completion of the Farnborough show the entire complement of helicopters and support equipment will be loaded into 2 An124s again for the long return journey to their base in Bangalore.
