First government-approved drone deliveries in Indonesia 
China's retail giant JD.com considers Indonesia’s first government-approved drone flight it performed earlier this month as "a breakthrough for drone delivery in Southeast Asia". The successful trial, which took place on 8 January in West Java, where the drone... more
Precision begins B757 conversion for Asia Pacific Airlines
Arranged by Aerolease Aviation, Hawaii (USA)-based Asia Pacific Airlines has acquired a B757-200 that is being converted at Flightstar Aviation in Jacksonville FL (USA). Re-delivery is expected in 120 days. The aircraft will return to service after conversion and will join two... more
WFS achieves Iata CEIV Pharma certification in Amsterdam
Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) has gained Iata CEIV Pharma certification for its pharmaceutical handling facilities at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, one of Europe’s leading air cargo hubs for healthcare and life science products. Handling more than 220,000 t of cargo a year at... more
Central Asia after Central America
Qatar Airways Cargo has commenced freighter operations to Almaty, its second new destination in 2019. The carrier now offers more than 200 t of capacity each week to the largest metropolis in Kazakhstan. Arriving directly from Doha, the twice-weekly B777Fs return to their hub... more
Aercaribe revives Ecuadorian airport
Hard times came to an end for Latacunga Airport (LTX) when a first charter flight, operated by the Colombian airline Aercaribe Cargo, landed there last week. The facility, which has the second longest runway in Ecuador, had had no commercial flight operations since 2017.... more
Transatlantic partners moving to new LHR premises
Virgin Atlantic Cargo and Delta Cargo are to move into the new purpose-built Dnata City East at London Heathrow airport. Scheduled for H2/2019, the move supports the airlines’ growing cargo businesses, enhances their transatlantic partnership for customers and future-proofs the... more
Stability in western Med
Marseille Airport handled 56700 t of freight in 2018, 1% more than in 2017. The increase demonstrated Marseille’s position as the leading regional airport for express freight at home in France and in the Western Mediterranean. Sources in southern France said that “thanks to... more
Panalpina's transatlantic service happy and Brexit-ready
Mexico-based Querétaro airport (QRO), which was added to the Panalpina charter network (see page 14 of ITJ 23-26/2018) last May, is performing very well. Matthias Frey, global head of the charter network: "We closed 2018 with 37 regular flights into QRO, 71 into Mexico... more
10% more airfreight in Indian Ocean
A month before Air Cargo Africa, which is taking place in Johannesburg (South Africa) from 19 - 21 February, the airport that serves Réunion Island, a French department in the Indian Ocean, reported that it had noted a double digit increase in its airfreight volume in 2018. In... more
ACG introduces fresh operation between Oslo and China
The Slovakian airfreight company Air Cargo Global (ACG) has started a twice-weekly B747-400F route between Oslo, Norway’s main airport, and Tianjin, a city around 100 km east of Beijing. ACG's CCO Peter Scholten: "We aim to step up to three weekly departures from March,... more