Polet Airlines reports that it increased cargo traffic by 2.3 times and passenger flow by 22.5% in the past year of 2010.

Since transportation of cargo remains the main business for the Voronezh-based airline, the most important figures in the 2010 statistics are to do with it. The number of ton*kilometers made past year amounted to 259,350. This is 2.3 times above respective figure for 2009. The total weight of cargoes carried came to 49,421 tons, giving a rise of 165.5% to the previous year.

The Antonov An-124-100 Ruslan ramp freighter, Polet’s flagship, carried 16,931 tons of various cargoes, mostly heavy weight and outsized. Among very special items carried there were 186 tons of space hardware carried under orders by Roscosmos, Russia’s Federal Space Agency. Past year a total of 17 space hardware items were transported aboard Polet An-124-100s.

Another type in the Polet fleet, the Ilyushin Il-96-400T side-door freighter, carried 32,182 tons of general cargo. This marks 2.5-time rise over the volumes for the previous year. The airline makes a point that its specialists acquired valuable experience in transportation of unique cargoes aboard the Il-96-400T.

The Il-96-400T revenue charter flights on regular basis commenced in the second half of 2009, after completion of the operations trials on the type. Having attested and mastered the new aircraft, Polet crews commenced scheduled cargo flights, carrying general cargo from Central Russia to Siberia and Far East. There were also flights to destinations in Western Europe and Asia-Pacific.

Developing its passenger business, Polet achieved a rise of 22.5% by the number of passenger * kilometers. The absolute figure is 143,857 thousand pkm. The number of passengers carried in 2010 came to 179,746 or 24% more than in the year of 2009. The international sector scored a modest increase of 3.1%, while the domestic travel rose by 33.8% by air traffic and 28% by number of passengers carried.