Air transport of international cargo in Maranhão reached a milestone this Saturday (3). São Luís International Airport (SLZ), managed by CCR Airports, received the landing of a giant freighter, the Boeing 747/400 – jumbo, from the North American company National Airlines, bringing on board valuable cargo for science and the Brazilian space market.
Coming from Seoul, the capital of South Korea, the freighter brought parts of the HANBIT-TLV to Maranhão, a 15-tonne hybrid rocket with single-stage impulse, measuring 16,3 meters in height, one meter in diameter and weighing 9,2 tons, owned by INNOSPACE – the first private aerospace company to operate at the Alcântara Launch Center (CLA).
The entire shipment nationalization process was carried out at the Cargo Terminal at São Luís Airport, which has the capacity to handle different types of cargo; segregated area for storing restricted (dangerous) products; cold room for storing frozen and chilled products.
Cargo handling began immediately after the giant freighter was buoyed in the SLZ yard, which about a month ago received another rare aircraft to see in operation in the Northeast, the Boeing 757-200. The cargo clearance relied on a special task force, set up by CCR Aeroportos, which worked in partnership with the logistics operator activated by INNOSPACE to transport the parts to Alcântara, AGS Global Logistics.
Jaison Mello, Executive Manager of CCR Airports in the Northeast, points out that the operation took place after months of planning that guided all the logistical points so that the cargo could be transported from South Korea to Maranhão without any complications. In addition, it reinforced CCR Aeroportos' commitment to work to strengthen the mobility of people and the transport of national and international cargo in Maranhão, as well as in all its units across the country.
“This is an operation that took several months of planning, where CCR Aeroportos prepared the structure, trained the team and made other necessary adjustments, including approvals from the regulatory body, so that the operation could be carried out with all the necessary security”, highlights Mello . “The success of this operation endorses São Luís Airport as an important base for the transport of international cargo, of great value and heavy weight, through an aircraft that had not yet operated in Maranhão”.
HANBIT-TLV rocket
The importation of the HANBIT-TLV for a future launch from the space base of Alcântara (MA) is the result of a contract signed by the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) with INNOSPACE, which expressed the provision of goods and services for launching space vehicles from area 1, known as the SISPLAT/VLS area of the CLA.
The contract is a result of Public Call Notice No. 02/2020 of the Brazilian Space Agency (AEB), of May 22, 2020, and is valid for five years, which may be extended for up to the same period. The first suborbital test flight must validate the first stage engine of the HANBIT-Nano, the smallest launch vehicle of the South Korean company, capable of carrying a payload of 50 kg. The plan is for the rocket to reach an altitude of 100 km and fall into the open sea.
Élcio Jeronimo de Oliveira, Business Director at INNOSPACE do Brasil, declares that the operation is historic for the company. “INNOSPACE is very proud and hopeful to start commercial space exploration activities from the Brazilian territory, specifically from Alcântara-Maranhão. The arrival of our rocket, the HANBIT-TLV, is the indelible mark of the numerous logistical and technological challenges overcome in carrying out this historic operation. We thank all our partners and, in particular, CCR Aeroportos de São Luís, which has always been with us in formatting this complex process”.
Boeing 747-400 in Maranhão
According to historical records, this is the first time that a Boeing 747-400 lands on the runway at São Luís International Airport (SLZ). It is a jet aircraft used in both civil and military scope for transporting engers and cargo, often referred to as Jumbo jet ou Queen of the Skies (Queen of Heaven). Its hump on the upper front part of the fuselage makes it one of the most recognizable aircraft in the world, as well as being the first mass-produced aircraft of its kind.
Manufactured by Boeing in the United States, the original version of the 747 has two and a half times more enger capacity than the Boeing 707, one of the great commercial aircraft of the 1960s. Making its first commercial flight in 1970, the 747 held the record for enger capacity (which can reach an average of 400 per flight) for 37 years. As for its capacity for carrying loads, the giant can carry around 130 tons per trip.
Street: CCR Airports
