Жүк тасымалдауға арналған ұшақтар

Aircraft configured specifically to transport cargo

A cargo aircraft (also known as freight aircraft, freighter, airlifter or cargo jet) is a fixed wing aircraft that is designed or converted for the carriage of cargo rather than passengers. Such aircraft generally feature one or more large doors for loading cargo. Passenger amenities are removed or not installed, although there are usually basic comfort facilities for the crew such as a galley, lavatory, and bunks in larger planes. Freighters may be operated by civil passenger or cargo airlines, by private individuals, or by government agencies of individual countries such as the armed forces. Aircraft designed for cargo flight usually have features that distinguish them from conventional passenger aircraft: a wide/tall fuselage cross section, a high wing to allow the cargo area to sit near the ground, numerous wheels to allow it to land at unprepared locations, and a high mounted tail to allow cargo to be driven directly into and off the aircraft. By 2015, dedicated freighters represent 43% of the 700 billion ATK (available tonne kilometer) capacity, while 57% is carried in airliner's cargo holds. Also in 2015, Boeing forecast belly freight to rise to 63% while specialised cargoes would represent 37% of a 1,200 billion ATKs in 2035. The Cargo Facts Consulting firm forecasts that the global freighter fleet will rise from 1,782 to 2,920 cargo aircraft from 2019 to 2039.

Aircraft were put to use carrying cargo in the form of air mail as early as 1911. Although the earliest aircraft were not designed primarily as cargo carriers, by the mid 1920s aircraft manufacturers were designing and building dedicated cargo aircraft. In the UK during the early 1920s, the need was recognized for a freighter aircraft to transport troops and material quickly to pacify tribal revolts in the newly occupied territories of the Middle East. The Vickers Vernon, a development of the Vickers Vimy Commercial, entered service with the Royal Air Force as the first dedicated troop transport in 1921. In February 1923 this was put to use by the RAF's Iraq Command who flew nearly 500 Sikh troops from Kingarban to Kirkuk in the first ever strategic airlift of troops. Vickers Victorias played an important part in the Kabul Airlift of November 1928 – February 1929, when they evacuated diplomatic staff and their dependents together with members of the Afghan royal family endangered by a civil war. The Victorias also helped to pioneer air routes for Imperial Airways' Handley Page HP.42 airliners. The World War II German design, the Arado Ar 232 was the first purpose built cargo aircraft. The Ar 232 was intended to supplant the earlier Junkers Ju 52 freighter conversions, but only a few were built. Most other forces used freighter versions of airliners in the cargo role as well, most notably the C 47 Skytrain version of the Douglas DC 3, which served with practically every Allied nation. One important innovation for future cargo aircraft design was introduced in 1939, with the fifth and sixth prototypes of the Junkers Ju 90 four engined military transport aircraft, with the earliest known example of a rear loading ramp. This aircraft, like most of its era, used tail dragger landing gear which caused the aircraft to have a decided rearward tilt when landed. These aircraft introduced the Trapoklappe, a powerful ramp/hydraulic lift with a personnel stairway centered between the vehicle trackway ramps, that raised the rear of the aircraft into the air and allowed easy loading. A similar rear loading ramp even appeared in a somewhat different form on the nosewheel gear equipped, late WW II era American Budd RB 1 Conestoga twin engined cargo aircraft. Postwar Europe also served to play a major role in the development of the modern air cargo and air freight industry. It is during the Berlin Airlift at the height of the Cold War, when a massive mobilization of aircraft was undertaken by the West to supply West Berlin with food and supplies, in a virtual around the clock air bridge, after the Soviet Union closed and blockaded Berlin's land links to the west. To rapidly supply the needed numbers of aircraft, many older types, especially the Douglas C 47 Skytrain, were pressed into service. In operation it was found that it took as long or longer to unload these older designs as the much larger tricycle landing gear Douglas C 54 Skymaster which was easier to move about in when landed. The C 47s were quickly removed from service, and from then on flat decks were a requirement of all new cargo designs. In the years following the war era a number of new custom built cargo aircraft were introduced, often including some "experimental" features. For instance, the US's C 82 Packet featured a removable cargo area, while the C 123 Provider introduced the now common rear fuselage/upswept tail shaping to allow for a much larger rear loading ramp. But it was the introduction of the turboprop that allowed the class to mature, and even one of its earliest examples, the C 130 Hercules, in the 21st century as the Lockheed Martin C 130J, is still the yardstick against which newer military transport aircraft designs are measured. Although larger, smaller and faster designs have been proposed for many years, the C 130 continues to improve at a rate that keeps it in production. "Strategic" cargo aircraft became an important class of their own starting with the Lockheed C 5 Galaxy in the 1960s and a number of similar Soviet designs from the 70s and 80s, and culminating in the Antonov An 225, the world's largest aircraft. These designs offer the ability to carry the heaviest loads, even main battle tanks, at global ranges. The Boeing 747 was originally designed to the same specification as the C 5, but later modified as a design that could be offered as either passenger or all freight versions. The "bump" on the top of the fuselage allows the crew area to be clear of the cargo containers sliding out of the front in the event of an accident. When the Airbus A380 was announced, the maker originally accepted orders for the freighter version A380F, offering the second largest payload capacity of any cargo aircraft, exceeded only by the An 225. An aerospace consultant has estimated that the A380F would have 7% better payload and better range than the 747 8F, but also higher trip costs. Starting May 2020 Portuguese Hi Fly started charting cargo flights with an A380, carrying medical supplies from China to different parts of the world in the response to the COVID 19 outbreak. It allows almost 320 of cargo between the three decks. In November 2020 Emirates started offering an A380 mini freighter, which allows for 50 tons of cargo in the belly of the plane.

Cargo aircraft has had many uses throughout the years, but the current importance of cargo aircraft is not highly talked about. Cargo planes today can carry almost everything ranging from perishables and supplies to fully built cars and livestock. The most use of cargo aircraft comes from the increase in online shopping through retailers like Amazon and eBay. Since most of these items are made all over the world, air cargo is used to get it from point A to point B as fast as possible. Air cargo significantly adds to the world trade value, Air cargo transports over US$6 trillion worth of goods, accounting for approximately 35% of world trade by value. This helps producers keep the costs of goods down, allows consumers to be able to purchase more items, and allows stores to remain with goods on the shelf. Not only is air cargo important in the delivery and shipping aspect, it is also highly important in the job industry. Air cargo companies around the United States employ over 250,000 workers, U. S. cargo airlines employed 268,730 workers in August 2023, 34% of the industry total.

Nearly all commercial cargo aircraft presently in the fleet are derivatives or transformations of passenger aircraft. However, there are three other methods to the development of cargo aircraft.

Many types can be converted from airliner to freighter by installing a main deck cargo door with its control systems; upgrading floor beams for cargo loads and replacing passenger equipment and furnishings with new linings, ceilings, lighting, floors, drains and smoke detectors. Garuda Indonesia will test three of them initially from September 2019, before operations in the fourth quarter. Garuda plans up to 100 cargo UAVs to connect remote regions with limited airports in Maluku, Papua, and Sulawesi.

+ Comparison of cargo aircraft capabilities Aircraft Volume(m3) Payload Cruise Range Usage Airbus A400M 270 780 km/h (420 kn) 6,390 km (3,450 nmi) Military Airbus A300 600F 391.4 – 7,400 km (4,000 nmi) Commercial Airbus A330 200F 475 7,400 km (4,000 nmi) Commercial Airbus A380 342 14,800 km (8,000 nmi) Commercial Airbus Beluga 1210 – 4,632 km (2,500 nmi) Commercial Airbus BelugaXL 2615 – 4,074 km (2,200 nmi) Commercial Antonov An 124 1028 800 km/h (430 kn) 5,400 km (2,900 nmi) Both Antonov An 22 639 740 km/h (400 kn) 10,950 km (5,910 nmi) Both Antonov An 225 1300 800 km/h (430 kn) 15,400 km (8,316 nmi) Commercial Boeing C 17 830 km/h (450 kn) 4,482 km (2,420 nmi) Military Boeing 737 700C 107.6 931 km/h (503 kn) 5,330 km (2,880 nmi) Commercial Boeing 757 200F 239 955 km/h (516 kn) 5,834 km (3,150 nmi) Commercial Boeing 747 8F 854.5 908 km/h (490 kn) 8,288 km (4,475 nmi) Commercial Boeing 747 LCF 1840 878 km/h (474 kn) 7,800 km (4,200 nmi) Commercial Boeing 767 300F 438.2 850 km/h (461 kn) 6,025 km (3,225 nmi) Commercial Boeing 777F 653 896 km/h (484 kn) 9,070 km (4,900 nmi) Commercial Bombardier Dash 8 100 39 491 km/h (265 kn) 2,039 km (1,100 nmi) Commercial Lockheed C 5 919 km/h 4,440 km (2,400 nmi) Military Lockheed C 130 540 km/h (292 kn) 3,800 km (2,050 nmi) Military Douglas DC 10 30 908 km/h (490 kn) 5,790 km (3,127 nmi) Commercial McDonnell Douglas MD 11 440 945 km/h (520 kn) 7,320 km (3,950 nmi) Commercial