Aerotranscargo (F5, Chisinau International) plans to expand its operations to the United States, according to its application to the US Department of Transportation (DOT) for an exemption and a foreign air carrier permit to conduct charter flights of property and mail to the full extent permitted under the two countries' bilateral air service agreement.
The disclosure said Moldova had not yet been assessed under the Federal Aviation Administration’s International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) programme. Aerotranscargo said its application is aimed at accelerating its IASA assessment, consistent with FAA policy.
The Moldovan all-cargo carrier operates a fleet of five B747 freighters and has been conducting worldwide cargo flights since 2015. It operates ad-hoc charter flights and scheduled flights on pre-determined routes under ACMI agreements. According to its application, it does not foresee wet-leasing in aircraft for the US operation.
According to its application, the fleet includes one B747-400(BCF), ER-BAG (msn 24459); three B747-400(BDSF)s; and one B747-400FSCD. The ch-aviation fleets module reveals it also has another stored B747-400(BCF), ER-BBF (msn 25205). All aircraft are company-owned and have operated for Emirates SkyCargo, providing the UAE carrier additional flexibility for its freighter network. Aerotranscargo also wet-leases in one Saab 340A(F) from Airest.
The company's shareholders are majority Moldovan, with a 49% stake held by Indian national Guneet Mirchandani.
