More main deck capacity for Canada

Emirates SkyCargo has launched a weekly cargo flight to Toronto Pearson Airport to strengthen air freight connections between Canada and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This new route aims to expand cargo capacities for Canadian businesses and support the growing bilateral trade flows.

Badr Abbas, Divisional Senior Vice President of Emirates SkyCargo, stated that the new cargo service to Toronto represents an important step in the strategic expansion of the cargo fleet and network. He emphasized that exports from Canada to the UAE have steadily increased in recent years, with a 24% rise in 2024 compared to the previous year, facilitated by the direct air link and strong trade relations. The weekly cargo flight to Toronto provides Canadian companies with an additional 100 tons of export capacity per week, exceeding the cargo capacity available on Emirates passenger flights. Furthermore, the connection between Canada and one of its largest trading partners, the EU, is strengthened by a stopover in Amsterdam.

Kurush Minocher, Chief Commercial Officer of Toronto Pearson Airports, described the launch of the cargo service as a significant step for the airport. Toronto Pearson is Canada’s largest air freight hub, processing about 45% of the country’s total air freight volume. Minocher highlighted that the new service offers shippers direct and reliable access to one of the world’s most extensive cargo networks, reflecting confidence in Toronto Pearson as a strategic gateway for global trade.

Flight EK9943 departs on Fridays at 07:10 local time from Dubai World Central (DWC) and arrives in Amsterdam (AMS) at 12:15. From there, it continues to Toronto, arriving at 16:55. The return flight EK9944 leaves Toronto on Fridays at 19:15 and lands back in Dubai on Saturday at 16:15.

The cargo connection from Toronto will particularly promote the export of goods such as pharmaceuticals, fresh products, electronics, and other general cargo that are vital for Canada’s valuable and time- and temperature-sensitive export sectors to Dubai and other parts of the Emirates network. Between Amsterdam and Toronto, the cargo flight supports the main decks for transporting pharmaceuticals, perishable goods, and other industrial products from the EU to Canada.

Since the launch of passenger flights to Toronto in 2007, Emirates SkyCargo has played a significant role in trade between Canada and the UAE. Since 2023, over 11,000 tons of export cargo from Canada have been transported. The cargo service to Toronto complements the capacities of passenger flights between Dubai and Toronto and reaffirms Emirates‘ long-term commitment to the Canadian market. In July 2023, cargo capacity was also introduced on passenger flights to and from Montreal.

www.skycargo.com