A delivery of sports equipment for the final stage of the 2014-2015 Biathlon World Cup organised in the Russian city of Khanty-Mansiysk was accompanied by a very important passenger – Germany’s World Champion biathlete, Erik Lesser. Erik joined the crew onboard Volga-Dnepr’s IL-76TD-90VD freighter from Helsinki, Finland, which was carrying 19 tons of sports clothing and equipment. The cargo was used to support more than 230 biathletes competing in Russia in the last of the World Cup’s nine stages. Erik Lesser is a double World Champion in 2015 in the pursuit and relay events, and a two-time silver medal winner in the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympic Games in the individual and relay competitions. “The most unusual part of this delivery was, of course, the presence of the famous German biathlete, Erik Lesser, as a flight attendant onboard the IL-76TD-90VD aircraft,” commented Maxim Prokhorov, Sales Executive of Volga-Dnepr Airlines. He added: “This is the third time UgraMegaSport, which organised the final stages of the 2014-2015 Biathlon World Cup, has requested us to organize flights in support of the event, following our previous involvement in 2012 and 2013. Punctuality was very important to the customer as the organisers were working to a very tight competition schedule, as is always the case with such major international events. This year we also managed the road transportation of cargo from Kontiolahti Stadium, located 15km north of Joensuu, where the competition was held, to the international airport of Helsinki.” As in previous years, Volga-Dnepr also took care of customs clearance and cargo handling services on behalf of the customer. At the end of the competition, equipment was returned to both Finland and Munich, Germany.