The largest private airline in Russia, with dual hubs at Novosibirsk Tolmachevo and Moscow Domodedovo, a fleet of about 105 narrowbody aircraft and two Boeing 737-800BCF freighters. Freight is managed centrally by S7 Cargo, covering belly-hold cargo across eleven time zones inside Russia and scheduled freighter routes between China and Russia.
S7 Airlines (Russian brand Эс Севен, legal entity JSC Siberia Airlines) is the largest private airline in Russia, headquartered in Ob, Novosibirsk Oblast, with its operating base next to Tolmachevo International Airport. Its origins go back to the Tolmachevo united air detachment, which flew the first civil flight at Tolmachevo airport in 1957; Siberia Airlines was formed on that base in May 1992, was privatised in 1994 and took the IATA code S7, and was renamed S7 Airlines across 2005 and 2006. The callsign is SIBERIAN AIRLINES and the airline belongs to the S7 Group holding.
S7 operates dual hubs at Moscow Domodedovo (DME) and Novosibirsk Tolmachevo (OVB), with Irkutsk (IKT) and Vladivostok (VVO) as key bases. Its network covers the main cities across eleven time zones in Russia and reaches Central Asia, the Caucasus, the Middle East and South-East Asia. In 2025 the airline carried about 12.8 million passengers at a load factor of roughly ninety percent and earned more than RUB 6.8 billion in freight revenue, with the freight business sold and run centrally by S7 Cargo.
For Chinese shippers the core value of S7 is its position across Eurasia. Novosibirsk sits at the junction of Asia and Europe, so Chinese export cargo leaving an East China gateway can reach Novosibirsk on S7 belly and freighter services and then distribute through the dense domestic network towards Siberia, the Urals and Moscow, forming a stable China-Russia air corridor that does not depend on European airspace.
The S7 Group has built a full set of support businesses around the airline. S7 Technics is one of the leading aircraft maintenance companies in the CIS and handles line maintenance and heavy checks, S7 Training trains flight and cabin crew, and S7 Cargo specializes in freight sales, load planning and customs declaration. The airline was the first carrier in Eastern Europe and the CIS to obtain IEnvA environmental assessment certification from IATA, and its safety system has passed the IATA operational safety audit. Those support capabilities give Chinese cargo a high degree of certainty in transit and ground handling inside Russia.
From February 2022 the European Union, the United Kingdom, Canada and other economies closed their airspace to Russian aircraft. S7 stopped flying all European destinations from 25 February that year and suspended all international flights on 5 March; in April the oneworld alliance suspended its membership. The airline then shifted its focus back to domestic Russia, Central Asia and Asia and progressively restored scheduled routes to permitted directions including Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Thailand and China. Western export controls have restricted engine spares and maintenance channels for its Airbus new-generation types, some A320neo and A321neo aircraft have gone into long-term storage, and the airline has signed a memorandum for one hundred Tupolev Tu-214 aircraft to replace its Western widebody and narrowbody fleet over the medium term.
Those changes affect Chinese shippers in three ways. First, S7 does not currently operate direct passenger or freighter routes from China to Western Europe, so routing through the S7 network into Europe is not available. Second, China-Russia capacity is concentrated on the China to Novosibirsk and Moscow directions, offered as both belly space and freighter capacity. Third, because lease and spares arrangements have changed, sellable capacity on the narrowbody fleet fluctuates with the season, so the carrier's confirmation on the day governs any booking.
Public developments across 2025 and 2026 show S7 shifting international freight resources towards China: the winter freighter programme adds Chinese origin cities, and on the passenger side the scheduled Shanghai Pudong to Novosibirsk service has returned. That pace matches the recovery in China-Russia trade and growth in exports of e-commerce and higher-value products, so Chinese shippers setting an annual air freight budget for Russia can treat the S7 network as one of the stable capacity options and lock peak-season space early through a forwarder.
The S7 fleet is built around Airbus A320 family narrowbodies, supported by Boeing 737-800 and Embraer E170 regional aircraft, with two converted Boeing 737-800BCF freighters for dedicated cargo work. Passenger belly space is released across thousands of daily flights, while the freighters run to the scheduled China-Russia cargo programme.
| Aircraft type | Approximate count | Freight positioning | Belly-hold characteristics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boeing 737-800BCF freighter | 2 aircraft | Mainstay of scheduled China-Russia freight | Payload of about 20 tonnes per aircraft, taking both ULDs and loose palletised cargo |
| Airbus A320neo / A321neo | About 39 aircraft | Belly capacity on domestic and Asian routes | Some aircraft in long-term storage because of engine spares arrangements, with capacity fluctuating by season |
| Airbus A320-200 / A321-200 | About 27 aircraft | Belly capacity on domestic mainlines | Narrowbody belly space, suited to medium lots of general cargo and higher-value products |
| Boeing 737-800 passenger aircraft | 17 aircraft | Belly capacity on China-Russia routes | Belly capacity for the Shanghai Pudong to Novosibirsk passenger service |
| Embraer E170 | 17 aircraft | Regional belly capacity in Siberia | A 78-seat regional aircraft with limited payload, serving point-to-point distribution |
In 2025 S7 Cargo carried belly-hold freight on 54,617 passenger flights and flew 542 dedicated cargo flights with its two freighters, at an average commercial load factor of about 85 percent. Fleet composition shifts with aircraft going into and out of storage, so the types the carrier lists as sellable on the day of booking govern. Capacity to China is provided mainly by Boeing 737-800 family passenger aircraft and the 737-800BCF freighters, and the weight and dimension limits of a narrowbody belly hold must be checked item by item in the booking declaration.
From 29 March 2026 S7 has restored scheduled passenger service from Novosibirsk Tolmachevo to Shanghai Pudong, twice weekly with Wednesday and Sunday as the planned pattern and the Boeing 737-800 as the aircraft; the lower-deck hold on that flight takes general cargo belly bookings. Times are local, schedules change with the season and the carrier's confirmation on the day of booking governs.
S7 Cargo freighters depart from Wuhu Xuanzhou Airport in China, with the first cargo charter flown in early September 2025; the 2025-2026 winter cargo programme expands Chinese origin cities to three, Wuhu among them, with flows connecting through Novosibirsk towards Moscow. No fixed public timetable for the specific schedules and capacity is available, and the carrier's winter cargo programme governs.
Before the sanctions S7 served Chinese destinations including Beijing, Urumqi, Guangzhou and Hong Kong; after the 2022 changes no current schedules are published for those scheduled passenger points. Export cargo from South and North China that needs the S7 network is usually consolidated by domestic truck or domestic flight to Shanghai Pudong or Wuhu and then connected to the S7 China-Russia sectors.
S7 and S7 Cargo publish no office or sales organisation of their own in China. Chinese shippers and forwarders can work through an authorised general sales agent, or ask Goodhope Logistics (China) Limited to handle capacity and documents, with commercial contacts as published on the carrier's official channels.
S7 freight products from Chinese gateways use Novosibirsk Tolmachevo as the distribution centre and connect to three downstream markets. The first is the Russian domestic market: from Novosibirsk cargo connects to domestic sectors serving Moscow Domodedovo, St Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, Omsk, Krasnoyarsk, Irkutsk and Vladivostok, covering the main industrial and commercial centres of Siberia, the Urals and European Russia. The second is Central Asia: S7 keeps scheduled flights to Tashkent, Almaty and Bishkek, so Chinese cargo connecting at Novosibirsk or Moscow can reach Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. The third is the Middle East and South-East Asia: Antalya, Istanbul, Dubai and Bangkok form the outer ring of the remaining S7 international network and can serve as connections for some re-export cargo.
To be clear, airspace bans and the EU aviation safety list mean S7 currently operates no direct route from China to EU countries and does not overfly European airspace; no public information supports a path to Western Europe with S7 as the mainline. Where the destination is in Western Europe, a China to Europe freighter service or a China-Europe block train should be used instead, and the S7 network is best treated as a dedicated channel for Russia, Central Asia and the resource-based markets of Siberia. For Chinese cargo leaving an East China gateway and connecting at Novosibirsk towards Moscow, plan two to three working days end to end, subject to flight connections and customs progress.
In cargo mix, Chinese exports over this corridor are dominated by consumer electronics accessories, communications equipment components, auto parts, textiles and garments and small e-commerce parcels, with resource-based products from Russia forming a smaller return flow. Novosibirsk is one of the largest industrial and commercial centres in Siberia and the Russian Far East, surrounded by machine building, metalworking and agricultural processing industries with steady demand for Chinese industrial spares and consumer goods, while Moscow Domodedovo handles secondary distribution for European Russia, moving cargo on by truck or domestic flight to St Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Rostov-on-Don and other cities. When setting an annual logistics budget, shippers should treat the S7 China-Russia belly and freighter products as a standing capacity pool for Russia trade and lock space early in peak season.
The dual hub structure at Novosibirsk and Moscow lets Chinese cargo be unloaded and sorted on the Asian side, avoiding a detour through European airspace, with short sectors and tight connections.
Belly space on thousands of daily passenger flights provides high-frequency capacity, while two 737-800BCF freighters take higher-value and larger consignments, the two capacity streams complementing each other.
The network covers the main cities across eleven time zones in Russia and connects towards the five Central Asian states, giving manufacturers and e-commerce shippers in Russia trade a stable channel.
S7 Cargo holds a customs broker licence and can clear import cargo at Domodedovo and Tolmachevo airports, cutting out coordination steps at destination.
Cargo schedules are adjusted for the winter and summer seasons, and the 2025-2026 winter programme already expands Chinese origin cities to three, matching the peak rhythm of Russia trade.
The two freighters ran at an average commercial load factor of about 85 percent in 2025, so utilisation is high and booking ahead of peak season avoids cargo being rolled at short notice.
Maintenance, training and cargo businesses within the group work together, and ground handling and recovery have in-house resources inside Russia.
Provide the commodity, pieces, weight and dimensions, departure gateway and destination city, and confirm whether the cargo is general or special.
Capacity is requested from S7 Cargo through an IATA agent, confirming rate, flight numbers and documentation cut-off.
Cargo is delivered to the Pudong or Wuhu terminal, built up to the carrier's standard and export declared at the same time.
Cargo is loaded on the nominated flight and the waybill is issued under the S7 Airlines prefix as the tracking reference.
Transit is sorted at Tolmachevo or Domodedovo and connected to the domestic sector to destination.
S7 Cargo or its agent clears customs at destination and delivers to the consignee as agreed.
Export documents normally include a commercial invoice, packing list, export declaration authorisation and shipper's letter of instruction. Cargo containing batteries, powders, liquids or pharmaceuticals also needs a transport test report and composition statement. Chinese shippers can also ask Goodhope Logistics (China) Limited to coordinate the whole operation, from pickup and booking through customs declaration to handover at destination, with a dedicated contact for S7 Cargo capacity and document requirements.
The cargo classes S7 Cargo lists publicly include general cargo, dangerous goods, temperature-controlled cargo and pharmaceutical products. Temperature-controlled work requires set temperature and humidity ranges to be held in storage and in transit, which suits vaccines, biologicals and pharmaceutical intermediates; dangerous goods must comply with the ICAO technical instructions and the carrier's specific requirements and are accepted on complete declaration documents. The airline has also flown live shipments including birds of prey and zoo animals, which must be declared in advance with the aircraft type confirmed as suitable. Heavy pieces of 80 to 250 kilograms can be handled through the special cargo channel, and freighter routes accept long and heavy pieces better than a narrowbody belly hold.
On value-added services, S7 Cargo offers express and standard product levels, with express aimed at high-priority cargo with round-the-clock operational support and standard for routine trade cargo. It also provides customs brokerage, customs-bonded transit and charter solutions; charters use the two 737-800BCF aircraft, with about 20 tonnes maximum payload per aircraft and routes planned to the shipper's requirement. All special cargo must have its nature and packaging declared at booking and is accepted only after the carrier's review.
A few further points matter in operation for Chinese forwarders and shippers. First, winters in the Russia direction are long and cold, so temperature-controlled and lithium battery cargo need better insulated packaging than on ordinary routes and must be built up to the low-temperature operating guidance the carrier provides. Second, some of the newer Airbus types in the S7 fleet are in storage, so the aircraft actually flying China-Russia sectors are mainly narrowbodies and freighters, and long or wide pieces must have door and ULD compatibility confirmed in advance. Third, because payment and settlement channels are affected by the international payments environment, the settlement cycle and currency should be agreed before booking. Goodhope Logistics (China) Limited folds these operating points into the booking confirmation, reducing rebooking and amendment costs after cargo has been received.
Yes. S7 combines passenger belly holds with a small number of dedicated freighters. The lower-deck holds on thousands of daily passenger flights provide the base capacity, while two Boeing 737-800BCF freighters fly scheduled dedicated cargo between China and Russia. For Chinese shippers that means stable schedules and direct point-to-point connections, which suits higher-value products such as electronic parts, machinery components and auto parts.
Because of the European Union airspace ban and the aviation safety list in force since 2022, S7 currently operates no direct route from China to EU countries and does not overfly European airspace. Cargo exported from China to Western Europe should use another carrier; the S7 network focuses on Russia, Central Asia and Siberia, distributing through the Novosibirsk and Moscow hubs.
Public information currently shows the Chinese departure points as Shanghai Pudong International Airport and Wuhu Xuanzhou Airport. Shippers in East China can use them directly; shippers in South and North China should first consolidate by domestic truck or domestic flight to those points and then connect to the S7 China-Russia sectors. The exact departure points and capacity are subject to the carrier's confirmation on the day of booking.
S7 and S7 Cargo publish no office of their own in China. Chinese shippers can book through an authorised general sales agent or an IATA agent, or ask Goodhope Logistics (China) Limited to handle capacity, rates and documents.
Standard export documents include a commercial invoice, packing list and customs declaration authorisation. On the Russian import side some products need import qualification documents such as EAC conformity certification. Dangerous goods, battery-powered goods and powders must come with transport test reports and composition statements. The full document list should be checked item by item with the destination agent at the booking stage.
After departure, the flight milestones can be checked against the S7 Airlines prefix waybill number on the S7 Cargo website or through the tracking channel its agent provides. Goodhope Logistics (China) Limited also reports key connection and arrival points to the shipper after taking the instruction, and flags any irregularity immediately.
Goodhope Logistics (China) Limited (Goodhope Freight) arranges belly and freighter capacity over the S7 network to Russia and Central Asia, and coordinates pickup, customs declaration and handover at destination.
Official website https://goodhope86.com