With a view to meeting growing demand and avoiding congestion at European airports, the airline has expanded its freighter service from two destinations previously to four cities.
Brussels was selected to absorb the high volume of pharmaceutical products and for its IATA CEIV Pharma certification. The dedicated pharma service here, coupled with the direct freighter routes to South America ensure shorter transportation time for sensitive items. The company also plans to carry other kinds of merchandise on its two weekly flights towards the region.
Madrid, meanwhile, has seen an increase in the transportation of traditional industrial products, as well as other services like parcel delivery, e-commerce and textiles, all of which require expanded capacity and just-in-time logistics. A freighter-only weekly service was launched from Madrid to Sao Paulo, Brazil, and Santiago, Chile, to bolster the company’s schedule with greater capacity.
“Our strategy in Europe seeks to strengthen our network and position us as the leader in air freight service to South America. We are very optimistic about our new direct freighter routes from Brussels and Madrid. And our customers' enthusiastic response has led us to consider the possibility of increasing our current schedule,” said Guido Henke, Commercial Director – Europe.
Claudio Torres, International Commercial Director – South-America, impressed the benefits of these new routes. “By expanding our network, we are in a position to offer more and better alternatives to our customers. This is particularly important for the South American market, where we export fresh, temperature-sensitive products that require shorter transportation periods.”