Antonov Airlines, in cooperation with Bollore Logistics Space, has transported Turkey’s Turksat 5B telecommunications satellite aboard one of its AN-124-100 aircraft.
The satellite was flown from Toulouse, France, to Florida, USA, and later launched by the USA-based SpaceX.
The cargo weighed 60 tonnes including a special container measuring 14.69 m in length, 5.45 m in width, and 4.36 m in height, designed by Airbus Defence and Space specifically for moving these types of satellites on AN-124-100 aircraft.
“The expertise of the Antonov Airlines technical crew and engineers guarantees the smooth and efficient transport of this delicate and unique cargo,” said Sergii Bilozerov, commercial executive, Antonov Airlines.
“An external crane in conjunction with the onboard crane and winch of the AN-124-100 was used to load and unload the container, as well as special loading equipment designed and manufactured by Antonov’s in-house engineers.”
SpaceX launched the Turksat 5B satellite on December 18 from Cape Canaveral, USA.
