The base is an expansion of the group’s sales office, which was established in Houston in 2001. The move will ensure the airline’s customers in the Americas, including those in the oil and gas, heavy machinery, energy and aerospace sectors, will now benefit from immediate local expertise and faster and more economical specialist logistics requirements.
Konstantin Vekshin, Executive President, Charter Cargo Operations of Volga-Dnepr Group, commented: “With the inauguration of the new operations base, the Group will dedicate one of its 12 Antonov An-124-100 freighter aircraft as well as crews, technical support teams and special loading equipment for unique cargoes to the Houston facility.
“The base will be staffed by load planning engineers and loadmasters, operations, navigation and ground handling specialists, and provide unique and specialised on-site engineering and delivery solutions to enable the safe and secure transportation of heavy and outsize cargoes. The commitment brings us even closer to our customers geographically and enhances our ability to provide special ‘out of the box’ solutions which make our customers’ lives easier.”
Houston Aviation Director Mario Diaz said that the new operations base will create 30 to 40 new jobs in the local area. “Houston Airports remains committed to developing and improving intermodal connectivity, and new service offerings such as Volga-Dnepr’s operations base help us achieve our mission by further connecting the people, business, cultures, and economies of the world to Houston,” he commented.
