Houston, we have a solution. Piped spooling flown to US on B747-400F cargo charter

Chapman Freeborn Airchartering oversaw the time-critical delivery of 60 tons of pipe spooling from Sharjah to Houston for an equipment upgrade at a gas-to-liquids processing plant.

The air cargo charter specialist’s Dubai office coordinated the movement, on behalf of a freight forwarder, with the assistance of Magma Aviation, which repositioned a nose-loading B747-400F aircraft to the Middle East for the operation.

In May this year, Chapman Freeborn increased its minority holding to a 75% stake in UK-based Magma Aviation, an aircraft management firm. At the same time as the increase shareyholding, Magma took operational control of a second B747-400F from Air Atlanta Icelandic.

Chapman Freeborn’s cargo team was able to make a detailed loadability assessment of the pipe spooling and provide packaging advice for the urgent consignment — which included six crates of pipes of varying weights and dimensions, with the largest of the pieces measuring over 13 metres in length.

Under the supervision of specialist loadmasters, the outsize equipment was carefully transferred from flatbed trucks and onto high loaders using an external crane brought in for the project.

Following the successful loading of the complex cargo in Sharjah, the Magma aircraft departed on schedule and flew to the US via a short refuelling stop in Liege, Belgium.

The equipment was cleared quickly in Houston for onward transit to its final destination for installation.

Vikas Chaturvedi, Chapman Freeborn’s commercial manager for India and Middle East, said:  “Time-critical shipments of this kind can be challenging when the load consists of multiple outsize pieces – but with the help of Magma Aviation and the other parties involved we’re pleased to have ensured a smooth operation.”