Heavy-lift charter: AN-124, IL-76, B747F at MTOW
Heavy-lift charter (Volga-Dnepr, Antonov Airlines, Cargolux, ASL, Atlas Air, Silk Way West, National Air Cargo) represents the most operationally complex cargo work LFS handles. AN-124 and IL-76 movements need PCN-105-rated aprons (OMDW, OBBI, OERK cargo, OEJN cargo, HECA cargo village, OJAI cargo, DNMM, DNAA, FZAA), Russian-language ground crew coordination, and oversized-load customs documentation. B747F and B777F operations into the UAE concentrate on OMDW (where the long runway and uncongested apron favour heavy departures) over OMDB; LFS routinely re-routes heavy departures from OMDB to OMDW when the GCAA permit is filed. Ad-hoc heavy-lift permits at most regulators across the coverage area run to 48–72 hours; LFS holds standing operator files for the major heavy-lift carriers that compress this to 12–24 hours.
Express, e-commerce and integrator cargo
FedEx, UPS, DHL, Aramex, SF Express and the major Chinese e-commerce-affiliated carriers run scheduled freighter networks through the LFS coverage area with their own ground operations at hub fields. LFS supports the long-tail of these networks — ad-hoc extra sectors, AOG ferry, charter overflow, and operations into smaller fields where the integrator does not have a permanent station. Cool-chain pharma (IATA CEIV Pharma certified) is handled at dnata OMDW, dnata OMDB, Etihad Cargo OMAA, QAS OTHH, BAS OBBI, SGS OEJN cargo and Ethiopian Cargo at HAAB; LFS routes pharma overflow to the certified handler at each field. Live-animal handling (horse charter for racing, breeding bloodstock, and live-animal export) routes through dnata OMDW, EAGS HECA, RJGS OJAI and SGS OEJN.
Project cargo: oil and gas, defence, infrastructure
Project cargo — outsized turbines, oilfield equipment, defence systems, infrastructure components — is the highest-value segment of cargo aviation and the segment most sensitive to permit lead-time and ramp coordination. LFS supports project cargo into the Saudi NEOM corridor (OEJN, OEDF, OERK), the UAE energy sector (OMDW, OMAA cargo, OMAL), Iraq oil and gas (ORBI, ORER, ORAA — Basra, Erbil, Najaf), Egypt LNG and oil (HECA cargo, HEAX, HEBA), and the West African oil basin (DNMM, DNAA, DGAA, FOOL, FZAA, FCBB). Outsized-load customs documentation, defence-class clearance (where applicable), and ramp engineering coordination (crane positioning, K-loader sequencing, oversized-cargo airside transport) are part of the LFS project-cargo workflow. We hold direct relationships with the project-cargo desks at Volga-Dnepr, Antonov Airlines, Atlas Air and Silk Way West.
Cargo permits, customs and dangerous goods
Cargo-specific permit nuances exist at every regulator on the LFS coverage map. UAE GCAA cargo permits require a cargo manifest at file time and apply different customs treatment for transit cargo vs import cargo. Saudi GACA cargo permits intersect with SASO product-conformity requirements for any imported cargo (a recurring issue for ad-hoc carriers landing into OERK or OEJN). Egyptian ECAA cargo permits run longer than passenger permits — typically 72 hours — and require an in-country agent of record. Across sub-Saharan Africa (NCAA Nigeria, AAC DRC, ANAC Congo, CCAA Cameroon, ACAA Angola), cargo permits often involve a separate fee schedule and a regulator-mandated local handler. Dangerous-goods (DGR) declarations are filed by LFS against the operator's IATA DGR training certification and the receiving state's DGR-acceptance list.
Fuel and turnaround economics for freighters
Freighter operators run tight on into-plane fuel cost and turnaround time. LFS publishes per-airport Jet A-1 indicative pricing (USD per US gallon, ex-taxes) and confirms the exact uplift price per trip with a transparent invoice — no Platts spread hidden in the freight desk. We hold supply credit with ENOC Aviation, ADNOC Distribution, Aramco Aviation, BAPCO Aviation, KPI, QJet, Misr Petroleum, TotalEnergies Aviation, Shell Aviation, NNPC Retail Aviation and Engen Aviation across the coverage area. Turnaround targets — 90 minutes wide-body at OMDW, 100 minutes at OERK cargo, 110 minutes at HECA — are protected by pre-positioned ground equipment and pre-confirmed customs clearance. Where the freighter requires an overnight stop, LFS arranges crew hotac at vetted cargo-crew hotels (Premier Inn DWC, Aerotel DXB, Holiday Inn Cairo Airport) with airside transport.
Humanitarian cargo and treaty-organisation flows
Humanitarian cargo into the LFS coverage area — World Food Programme (UNHAS), UNICEF, WHO emergency response, ICRC relief flights — concentrates at OJAI (the regional humanitarian hub for Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Gaza), OBBI (Bahrain forward staging), and major African staging fields (HAAB Addis Ababa, HKNA Nairobi, HSSS Khartoum). LFS files humanitarian permits under UN/ICRC neutrality protocols and clears customs exemption against the receiving state's humanitarian-import list. For cross-border movements into closed or restricted airspace (Yemen, Syria, Sudan, Libya), LFS coordinates the corridor approval with the relevant ATC authority and the on-ground military or political authority at the receiving field.
Engagement model for cargo and freighter operators
Cargo and freighter operators engage LFS either per-trip (request via /request with the cargo manifest, DGR declaration if applicable, and turnaround target) or under a standing operational agreement (preferred for scheduled freighter networks and project-cargo carriers running 50+ sectors a year through the coverage area). The standing agreement holds the operator's AOC, fleet, IATA DGR certification, insurance and standing fuel credit on file, and every sector opens against the operator profile with permits, handling, fuel and cargo customs filed in parallel. Cool-chain pharma and live-animal cargo operators receive a dedicated LFS cargo dispatcher with the relevant CEIV/CITES certifications. Heavy-lift carriers receive a Russian-language dispatcher pre-allocated to every AN-124 and IL-76 movement.