Aviastar has appointed Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminals (Hactl) to handle its new freighter services from Eastern Russia to Hong Kong.
The Moscow-based carrier has started operations from Novosibirsk’s Tolmachevo Airport utilising a Tupolev Tu-204C with a 28.5 tonne payload and 14 pallet positions.
It plans to increase services to four times a week by the end of 2017 by adding an extra frequency from Tolmachevo and twice weekly flights from Vladivostok, all operated for Russian Post.
Hactl is providing a full ramp and terminal handling service for Aviastar, along with all documentation.
Aviastar chief executive officer, Dmitri Kovalenko says: “The contract for which we are operating these new flights is an important win for Aviastar-Tu. We are confident that Hactl’s considerable experience in mail handling, and their dedicated Express facilities, will enable us to provide our customer with the highest possible service standards.”
Hactl chief executive, Mark Whitehead says: “We are very pleased to welcome Aviastar-Tu to Hong Kong, and to the Hactl carrier community. This is an interesting new contract, as we believe it marks the Tu-204C’s first appearance in Hong Kong.”
Aviastar was founded in 2000, and has operated the Tu-204C for a number of major express parcel companies and postal authorities both in Europe and between Asia and Russia.