Arabian airspace closure lifted 
The International Civil Aviation Organisation (Icao) welcomed the announcement last week on the easing of Gulf airspace restrictions. Council president Salvatore Sciacchitano: "This resolution to the airspace restrictions will help assure that the important socio-economic... more
Mabkargo's first charter flight of 2021
Mabkargo (Maskargo), the logistics division of Malaysia Airlines, performed its first charter flight for the year transporting approximately 20 t of Covid-19 test kits from Seoul Incheon to Jakarta. Utilising its A330-200F, flight MH 6431 departed South Korea on 4 January... more
Hyderabad-Dubai Covid-19 vaccines corridor
Dubai Airports, operator of Dubai International (DXB) and Dubai World Central (DWC), and GMR Hyderabad (GMR-HYD) have joined forces to create a Covid-19 vaccine distribution corridor connecting major vaccine manufacturers in India with markets around the world. Home to 88... more
Large-scale testing in Frankfurt
Despite the cancellation of the majority of passenger flights, Frankfurt airport recently reported more goods throughput than in the previous year, with FCS Frankfurt Cargo Services and LUG Aircargo Handling moving up to three times more volumes. In order to ensure better... more
BAI: air freight volatility remains rife
There are few signs of abating pressure on global air freight rates. The overall Baltic Exchange Air Freight Index (BAI) rose to 3,155 this week. The last few weeks recorded the highest absolute readings since the air freight capacity trough in Q2/2020, even as the traditional... more
Covid-19 crisis makes Liège a millionaire
Specialisation in goods transport has moved Liège airport (LGG) up to the top of the table as an essential link in the fight against the pandemic. The Belgian airport saw a 24% increase in the tonnage passing through the airport compared to 2019, going from 902,480 to... more
1,000 charter flights since March 2020
IAG Cargo ended 2020 with the departure of its 1,000th charter flight since March that year. The new service was introduced during the Covid-19 pandemic and utilises aircraft from the group that would, in normal times, not be available. This offering continues to be managed by a... more
Connecting Silicon Valleys
From tomorrow, 9 January 2021, Air India will operate the first-ever nonstop flights between San Francisco airport (SFO) and Bangalore (Bengaluru), India. The twice weekly B777-200LR service also represents the only nonstop flights between the "Silicon Valley of... more
Sinovac vaccine arrives in Turkey
As part of its continuing healthcare, medical equipment and vaccine shipments across the globe, Turkish Cargo last week carried the first batch of Sinovac, Covid-19 vaccines procured from China by the ministry of health, to Turkey. Loaded inside 17 containers equipped... more
Amazon buys aircraft
Continuing its fleet expansion, the US e-commerce giant Amazon completed its first-ever purchase of eleven B767-300. The four aircraft purchased from WestJet in March are currently undergoing passenger to cargo conversion and will join Amazon Air’s network in 2021, and the seven... more