Current news

Air Charter Service was called into action less than an hour after a devastating earthquake in Haiti.

Just before 10pm UK time (5pm local time) on Tuesday evening a massive earthquake measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale struck less than ten miles from the centre of Port-au-Prince - the capital of Haiti. It is the largest earthquake to hit the country in two centuries. It is estimated that upwards of 50,000 people may have died as a result of the initial earthquake and the 13 subsequent aftershocks, and more than half a million homes have been affected.

As a result, millions of pounds worth of aid has been pledged by the British Government and various charities. Despite the snowy conditions in southern England on Wednesday, Air Charter Service managed to work with Gatwick Airport to clear a runway so that the chartered Boeing 757 could depart with the UK search and rescue teams.

Matthew Purton, Passenger Sales Manager at ACS’s London office, said: “We started receiving calls at about 11pm from the British Government for an aircraft to carry an assembled team of approximately 80 firefighters, aid workers and journalists to the affected area as soon as possible. We were working throughout the night contacting the appropriate airlines and handling agents to organise the UK’s response to the disaster.”

ACS had three representatives at Gatwick first thing on Wednesday morning coordinating the aid teams and arranging check in. James Leach of ACS travelled on board the aircraft: “We flew into Santa Domingo in the neighbouring Dominican Republic as when we left the UK the control tower at Port au Prince was not operational. From what I have seen so far, the devastation appears to be on a par with when I was in Banda Aceh following the tsunami in December 2004.” James Leach is remaining on site to coordinate further relief flights.

ACS's London office has chartered further passenger and cargo aircraft, ACS also has additional aircraft operating from Scandinavia, and flights organised by the company’s Spanish and U.S. offices are also currently underway.

To find out more about ACS's relief efforts, or any aircraft charter at all, please contact us: cargo.sales@aircharter.co.uk

Air Charter Service was recently called into action after a ship ran aground close to the town of Lagoa, the Azores, in the Atlantic Ocean.

The 8,000 ton German cargo ship fortunately had a double hull, which meant that only the outer shell had been penetrated. So there was no spillage, and the vessel was in no immediate danger of sinking, but still needed to be treated by a specialist chemical system in order to minimize the potential corrosive damage caused by seawater before being towed for repair.

This is when Dan Morgan-Evans, Cargo Manager ACS London, received a call. The treatment had to be flown out to Ponta Delgado Airport – also on São Miguel Island in the Azores – but was located in the UK and mainland Europe. For maximum effect the treatment must be applied within a matter of days, so urgent charters were needed. Dan sourced two Antonov 12 aircraft to carry 8 tons of kit each – one departing from East Midlands Airport and one from Amsterdam.

Within a couple of days of the ship reporting the problem the necessary equipment was in Lagoa and ready to be used. After the process was completed, the ship was refloated and towed to its base port in Hamburg, Germany for full repair.

For any aircraft charter requirement please contact our team: cargo.sales@aircharter.co.uk

Air Charter Service has been heavily involved in getting aid to the victims of the recent disasters in Indonesia and the South Pacific Ocean.

An earthquake measuring 8.3 on the Richter Scale occurred just 100 miles off the coasts of both Samoa and American Samoa in the South Pacific causing a tsunami to crash against their shores. More than 100 people are known to have perished on the islands with many more still missing after the devastating tidal wave.

Less than 24 hours later an earthquake registering 7.9 hit just offshore of Padang in Sumatra, Indonesia. Claiming more than 1,000 lives, leaving hundreds of thousands homeless and with 3,000 still missing international aid was needed fast.

Air Charter Service, with a proud history in humanitarian aircraft charter relief efforts, was called into action by various aid agencies and governments across Europe and the World. Richard Thompson, senior cargo charter analyst said: “Having aided thousands that have been affected in previous disasters, ACS was well equipped to help rush the vital supplies out there. Amongst other necessary items, blankets, water kits, medical packs and tents were hurried to the affected areas.” Utilising aircraft such as IL-76s, aid was sent into Padang airport itself, Manila, and other airports nearby.

For any aircraft charter requirement please contact our team: cargo.sales@aircharter.co.uk

Thomas Howe, cargo charter account manager ACS London, recently helped with the fighter jet trials for the Indian Air Force. Jets from all over the World flew to India for the project which aims to acquire 126 medium multirole combat aircraft (MMRCA) for the IAF. The various fighters are to be put through their paces in two sets of trials to be conducted in summer and winter, ranging from the snow-capped peaks of Leh to the extreme heat of the Rajasthan deserts and humid conditions of southern India.

Thomas helped by sending ground support equipment on four IL-76 aircraft. “Each set of trials lasts for a few weeks, so the aircraft needed GPUs, air conditioning units, ladders, etc”, he said. ”We transported everything they needed over to India, so that they were not without anything whilst there.”The operation, as far as our part was concerned, was a great success – the results of the trials however, will not be know for months”.

Air Charter Service is delighted to announce that it has signed an exclusive contract with Evergreen International Aviation of Oregon, USA to become the European agent for its Boeing 747 Supertanker.

Since 2002, Evergreen International Aviation has been developing the Supertanker - an advanced aerial firefighting aircraft converted from a Boeing 747. The aircraft won certification for operation this season after receiving its interim approval letter from the Interagency Air Tanker Board. The aircraft also received its Supplemental Type Certificate from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in November 2008. It is now available to assist world firefighting agencies during the 2009 season and beyond. The award is unique because the Supertanker has an 8:1 drop ratio compared to that of all other current firefighting aircraft, meaning the Supertanker will forever change the way wildland fires are fought. The plane is the first of a fleet designed to accommodate the needs of U.S. and International private and public agencies.

The aircraft’s drop capabilities, effectiveness, safety standards and operational flexibility are all revolutionary.  It is the most advanced, targeted and largest capacity firefighting jet in the world. With a 77,600 litre (20,500 gallons) capacity, it is able of carrying  almost twice the amount of retardant than any other firefighting aircraft. It is also the only aircraft to have a variable pressure delivery system, and is able to perform segmented drops, meaning it can fight more than one fire in a single mission. It also has loiter capability enabling ground control to direct it to specific areas. The Supertanker also has the ability to respond quickly to a variety of environmental and homeland security threats.  Wide area decontamination, soil stabilization, oil spill response, and radiation knockdown are all within the response capability of the Supertanker, making it the most versatile aerial application vehicle in the World.   

Tony Bauckham, Managing Director of ACS, was formerly Executive Vice President of Evergreen International Airlines, and was involved from the early stages in the development of the Supertanker. He commented: “After so much hard work from the Evergreen team it is exciting to see this project completed. ACS feels privileged to be able to offer this aircraft within Europe to reduce the damage caused by costly forest fires. Europe has experienced several notable forest fires in the last few years, and the Supertanker is a major addition to the continent’s fire fighting capabilities.”

Since its inception in 1990, Air Charter Service has always been available 24/7, which will prove essential when the Supertanker is required. ACS currently works alongside many European governments when humanitarian aid is urgently needed after natural disasters, and is very pleased to have added the Boeing 747 Supertanker to its portfolio of services to those same governments.

For all supertanker enquiries please email matthew.purton@aircharter.co.uk

On Friday 13th March the staff at ACS London, got into the spirit of Red Nose Day to raise some money and arrived at work all determined to win the coveted prize of best costume.

Throughout the day there were fun activities, including Ben Dinsdale dying his beard red when donations smashed through the minimum of £150, a cake sale and an ACS master chef competition all of which raised money for this amazing charity.

With the donations and pledges that went on throughout the day the staff at ACS London raised an amazing £704.80, which was matched by ACS making the total up to £1409.60.