Antonov Company is set to close down its Antonov An-124-100 joint venture company Ruslan International by 31 December.

Established in 2006 along with Russia’s Volga-Dnepr Airlines, Ruslan International is involved in the extra-large and heavyweight cargo market.

Antonov Company president Oleksandr Kotsiuba said: "Antonov Airlines’ activities are supported by Antonov Company’s in-house design and development capabilities, providing unrivalled expertise for the most challenging logistic projects.

"We will continue to offer these proven and reliable airframes to the market for many years to come.”

“As the maintenance authority and life extension authority, we will continue to offer these proven and reliable airframes to the market for many years to come.”

The company also noted that its new UK-based Antonov Airlines team would lead the global sales and operations of the Antonov An-124-100 cargo aircraft.

Developed on the basis of AN-124 Ruslan heavy military transport aircraft, Antonov An-124-100 is the biggest heavy lifter in the world.

Designed to transport heavy and oversized cargo and various special-purpose vehicles, the aircraft features a double-deck fuselage layout.

The upper deck of an Antonov An-124-100 comprises the cockpit, relief crew compartment and cargo attendants’ cabin, while the lower deck includes a pressurised cargo compartment.

 Antonov Airlines currently operates seven Ruslan aircraft.

A specialist in oversized and super-heavy cargo transportation market, Volga-Dnepr Airlines currently operates a fleet of ten Antonov-124-100 Ruslan and five Ilyushin-76 freighter aircraft.

The company annually transports more than 60,000t of cargo to over 80 countries worldwide.