Air France-KLM Cargo has announced it has begun scheduled services between Amsterdam Schiphol and Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport in China from 8 May saying it is the first to offer direct service between Hangzhou and Europe. Flights are being operated with a Boeing 777-200ER, three times a week. Hangzhou, with close to seven million inhabitants, has developed into a major commercial and tourist centre in China, according to AF-KLM. “This fast-growing market offers interesting cargo … [Read more...] about EUROPE & CIS: Four new routes for AF-KLM Cargo

Leather, silk, garments, tools, flowers, fruit, fish, plants and telecoms equipment were among the cargo being loaded aboard Emirates’ first passenger flight from Dubai to Amsterdam earlier this month. Reflecting the broad mix of nationalities onboard the Boeing 777-200LR serving the daily Dubai- Amsterdam route is a similar international representation in the cargo hold with commodities from around the Indian sub-continent, Africa, the Far East and Australasia, the carrier … [Read more...] about INDIA/MIDDLE EAST:Emirates begins new Amsterdam pax service

The cargo division of Israel’s El Al has begun operating a leased 747-400 Freighter which arrived in Israel in late April from Bangkok with 88 tonnes of cargo. The aircraft has been leased from an Irish firm for a period of 24 months with an option for additional 12 months. … [Read more...] about INDIA/MIDDLE EAST: El Al begins service with leased 747-400F

Etihad Crystal Cargo, a division of Etihad Airways, has launched a weekly service from its hub at Abu Dhabi International Airport to Erbil in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. The service operates an A300-600F freighter to Erbil with a payload of 42 tonnes on the route. Flights commenced on 26 March and will operate twice weekly. Cargo flights to Erbil are Etihad’s second cargo service to Iraq, following a twice weekly service to Baghdad which commenced on 11 September 2009. … [Read more...] about INDIA/MIDDLE EAST: Etihad begins second Iraq cargo route

A judge ordered the chief executive of Iraqi Airways to remain in the UK after seizing his passport and impounding his aircraft at Gatwick Airport after the re-borne carrier’s first commercial flight from Baghdad to London ended in a legal nightmare as a result of a two-decade-long dispute with Kuwait Airways. The Kuwaiti airline claimed in court that Iraqi Airways owes it US$1.2 billion as a result of Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990, when, according to the … [Read more...] about INDIA/MIDDLE EAST: Heavy turbulence for Iraqi Air’s first flight

Citizens and companies from other Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC) can now launch joint ventures with foreign partners provided they retain majority ownership of 51 per cent in a joint entity, according to a new law passed recently in Qatar. Existing operators have been warned to comply with its provisions within six months or face action, The Peninsula reported. The Qatar-based daily noted this was the first time citizens and companies from other GCC countries have … [Read more...] about INDIA/MIDDLE EAST: GCC citizens can run air freight firms in Qatar