Chapman Freeborn Airchartering and Volga-Dnepr Airlines have helped Argentina’s aerospace industry deliver a piece of history by transporting the first-ever space satellite manufactured in the country from San Carlos de Bariloche Airport to its launch site in French Guiana.
The ARSAT-1 satellite and its special transport container, together weighing around 40 tons, were carried onboard an An-124-100 freighter under the Ruslan International joint venture. The flight was performed by Volga-Dnepr on behalf of the Brazil office of global aircraft charter specialists Chapman Freeborn.
Speaking on behalf of Chapman Freeborn in Brazil, country manager Maria Faria said:
“We’re delighted to have managed this high-profile charter operation on behalf of our client. I would also like to thank Volga-Dnepr for its support in making this operation a huge success. The customer was very happy with the professionalism demonstrated.”
John Meehleder, Sales Executive of Volga-Dnepr Unique Air Cargo, said:
“We have served customers in Argentina for some 22 years and over this period have carried over 7,000 tons of import and export cargo. We are proud to have helped Argentina make history by carrying the country’s first-ever satellite and look forward to being part of its ongoing growth in the global aerospace market.”
ARSAT-1 is a geostationary communications satellite manufactured in Argentina by the INVAP S.E. company. It is scheduled to be launched in October 2014 and will provide a wide range of telecommunications, data transmission, telephone and television services mainly across all of Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Paraguay.
Photo Accreditation: Images appear courtesy of ESA-CNES-ARIANESPACE