AirBridgeCargo Airlines (ABC), the scheduled cargo services arm of Volga- Dnepr Group, has transported nine rare Akhal-Teke horses for breeding from Russia to China. The horses were carried onboard one of ABC’s Boeing 747 freighters from Moscow to Beijing for a customer in Beijing planning to raise the elite bloodstock.

Three special bays, each divided into three pens, were manufactured for the journey. The horses were monitored by bloodstock and veterinary specialists throughout the seven-hour flight and the temperature inside the cargo cabin was carefully controlled throughout the journey.

The Akhal-Teke horses’ origin can be traced back 2,500-3,500 years to when they were used by tribesmen in ancient Turkmenistan. These ‘golden horses’ have adapted to severe climatic conditions and are thought to be one of the world’s oldest surviving horse breeds, influencing many other breeds such as Arab, English and Russian thoroughbreds. There are currently about 3,500 Akhal-Tekes in the world, mostly in Turkmenistan and Russia, although they are also found throughout Europe, Australia and North America.

In previous years the Volga-Dnepr Group has transported the animals of Prague Zoo, including walruses and dolphins, brown and polar bears, elephants and whales.