Qatar Airways Cargo announced in January the launch of freighter operations to four new destinations in the Americas, starting Feb. 2. The Boeing 777 freighter flies twice weekly from Doha via Luxembourg, the cargo carrier’s European hub, to stops at Sao Paulo in Brazil, Buenos Aires in Argentina and Quito in Ecuador. On the return leg, the freighter stops in Miami, Florida, and then on to Luxembourg before arriving in Doha.

These new freighter services aim to meet the growing demand for import and export trade in the region and will supplement the belly-hold cargo capacity on Qatar Airways’ daily flights to Sao Paulo, Buenos Aires and Miami.

CAROTRANS
INITIATES
FIRST,
DIRECT
LCL
SERVICE
FROM
POLAND
TO
U.S. 

CaroTrans, a global non-vessel operating common carrier (NVOCC) and ocean freight consolidator, announced in December its first direct, weekly LCL service between Poland and New York. The transit time from Gdynia to New York is 22 days, and the first sailing was Dec. 12.

CaroTrans is partnering with Euroconsol in Poland to offer this direct connection for imports into the U.S. Euroconsol is a neutral global NVO providing comprehensive local market coverage from six container freight stations (CFS) throughout Poland.

“Expansion of our direct LCL European service network will continue,” says Greg Howard, CEO of CaroTrans. “Our aim is to provide our customers with the most efficient, timely and secure LCL services in the market. Flexible and reliable ocean transportation services are critical to the integrity of today’s global supply chains.”

KERRY
LOGISTICS
CONTINUES
EUROPEAN
EXPANSION
WITH
GERMAN
ACQUISITION

Asian logistics provider Kerry Logistics Network Limited in January expanded its European operations by acquiring Multi Logistics GmbH, a specialist film and media logistics provider that has been in the market for more than 30 years.

The acquisition has Kerry Logistics operating seven offices in Germany, including its regional headquarters in Frankfurt as well as in Bremen, Hamburg, Munich and Berlin. Each offers Kerry’s local and multinational customers international freight forwarding (ocean/air/road), warehousing and distribution, Customs brokerage and customized supply-chain solutions.

“The expansion is in line with our strategy to accelerate the business development of the European market, and we are pleased to be able to provide our clients with enhanced network coverage, additional service offerings across Europe, and a further optimized local customer service in Germany,” says Thomas Blank, managing director of Europe, Kerry Logistics.

BDP
INTERNATIONAL
EXPANDS
TO
PERU

Global logistics and transportation services company BDP International announced in December the opening of its new office in Lima, Peru, continuing BDP’s efforts to grow its Latin America presence.

“Historically, Latin America has always been a crucial hub for international trade, and with the expansion of the Panama Canal and increase in nearshoring, growth rates will only continue to flourish,” says Hector Midolo, BDP’s managing director, Latin America. “Our customers have a large presence in Latin America, so BDP must grow with our customers.”

This opening adds to the Philadelphia-based global logistics firm’s growing global footprint, spanning 143 offices worldwide. BDP’s Lima office offers chemical, petroleum, mining, energy, retail and fishing customers with a wide array of services, including ocean and air export and imports, Customs clearance, project logistics, ground transport and warehousing and distribution.

AMERICAN
AIRLINES
CARGO
ADDS
DAILY
WIDEBODY
SERVICE

American Airlines announced in January a daily, nonstop widebody service between San Juan Luis Muñoz Marín Airport (SJU) and Philadelphia International Airport (PHL), home of American Airlines Cargo’s dedicated 25,000-square-foot pharmaceutical facility. The daily Airbus A330-200 widebody route begins April 4, joining two existing daily narrow-body flights.

The daily service provides added capacity for shippers across the world transporting goods to and from SJU, including pharmaceuticals, cell phones, medical instruments and aircraft parts. The widebody route also connects seamlessly to American’s significant widebody network in North America, Asia and Europe.

Adding a daily widebody flight connects American’s recently enhanced cold-chain infrastructure at SJU with its state-of-the-art pharma facility at PHL, allowing for the direct movement of sensitive cold chain pharmaceutical shipments.

MADAGASCAR
TO
JOIN
ETHIOPIAN’S
VAST
INTRA-AFRICAN
NETWORK

Africa’s largest airline group, Ethiopian Airlines, announces that Antananarivo, Madagascar, will be added to its network as of March. Madagascar joins the Ethiopian network of 95 worldwide destinations.

Antananarivo is the capital and largest city of Madagascar, the island nation known as a “biodiversity hot-spot.” because more than 90 percent of its wildlife can be found nowhere else on earth.

Ethiopian’s new nonstop flight will operate three times weekly to and from its hub in Addis Ababa, where passengers can connect to and from cities throughout the world, including Washington, London, Frankfurt, Paris, Rome, Beirut, Jeddah, Cairo, Dubai, Delhi, Mumbai, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing.

“Ethiopian, as a flagship carrier of Africa, is pleased to add Madagascar to its wide route network,” says Tewolde GebreMariam, Group CEO of Ethiopian Airlines. “As air connectivity is an essential cause and driver of a nation’s socio-economic integration, our new service will certainly contribute for a growing business and bilateral cooperation with other sisterly African cities.” n