Gallery: Airbus Beluga Super Transporters To Serve Outsized-Cargo Demand

The launch of the BelugaST service took place during the last week of December 2021, when Beluga “No. 3” delivered a new helicopter from Airbus Helicopters’ manufacturing site in Marignane, France to Kobe in Japan. Along the way, the Beluga stopped to refuel at various transit points—including Warsaw (in Poland), Novosibirsk (in Russia) and Seoul (in Korea). Notably, the whole helicopter could be accommodated inside the Beluga without any prior disassembly—only needing its long rotor blades to be folded back.

Beluga #3 takes off from Novosibirsk Airport in Russia on its final destination to Kobe, Japan.

Airbus advertises the aircraft as having the biggest cross-section in the market at a width of 6.7 m (22 ft.), height of 7.1 m and a length of 39 m. The maximum payload is 40 tons. The new airline will also have access to one of the BelugaXLs should a piece of cargo be too large for the smaller variant. The XL’s freight compartment is 8.1 m by 7.1 m by 46 m.

To maximize the BelugaST’s reactivity and short turnaround capability required by its targeted international customer base, new loading techniques and equipment are being developed for the operation. To this end, an automated on-board cargo loader (OBCL) will enable missions from/to airports that do not have available any suitable loading/unloading platform, and for payloads weighing up to 20t. This OBCL—available from 2022—will be transportable inside the aircraft (stored in front of the internal payload hold area) and be able to load and unload the payload autonomously.

The third loading innovation is the new Multi-Purpose-Pallet (MPP) recently developed and produced by Airbus at its sites in St Eloi and Nantes. Compatible with a range of payloads, the MPP, when it is already carrying the cargo, is raised by around five meters above the apron level and loaded through the Beluga’s nose opening using either the OBCL or OB described above. The MPP’s underside subsequently interfaces securely to the Beluga’s load-bearing floor attachment points. Notably, this inaugural mission to Kobe is another first in that it marks the very first time that the MPP has been used for an operational mission—following its recently completed successful development-testing stage.

Beluga #3 stopped off at Novosibirsk Airport in Russia to refuel before heading to its final destination in Kobe, Japan.