Patent ID: 11891191
Assignee: BOREALIS TECHNICAL LIMITED
Field: Transport (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC B  Y | IPC B

Claim 0:
1. An airport freight transfer system that directly transfers freight in unit load device (ULD) containers between dedicated freight aircraft and a dedicated airport freight terminal separate from said airport's main or passenger terminal, comprising:
a. freight aircraft dedicated to transporting only freight and having within a fuselage of said freight aircraft cargo holds with upper and lower levels accessed by a plurality of cargo doors, including a main cargo door;
b. a freight terminal separate from said airport's main or passenger terminal dedicated to holding and transferring freight to be transported by said freight aircraft, said freight terminal having a freight staging area located a distance above a ground surface where said dedicated freight aircraft park at said freight terminal;
c. one or more enclosed freight transfer bridges connected to said freight staging area at heights above said ground surface corresponding to heights of said cargo doors above said ground surface, each said enclosed freight transfer bridge having a first end connected to said freight staging area and a second end removably connectable to one of said cargo doors to provide an enclosed direct freight transfer connection between said freight aircraft cargo holds and said freight staging area, and an interior of each said freight transfer bridge being sized and configured to accommodate and transfer ULD containers with a ULD container conveyance system supported by a floor portion of said enclosed freight transfer bridge and a ULD container transfer system supported by a ceiling portion of said enclosed freight transfer bridge; and
d. a plurality of ULD containers holding freight and cargo to be transferred directly between said freight staging area and said freight aircraft cargo holds through said enclosed freight transfer bridges with said ULD container conveyance system and said ULD container transfer system, said ULD containers being constructed with a contoured configuration to have a maximum volume that fits within said freight aircraft cargo holds.