Lufthansa Cargo has increased its freighter services to Japan by adding two weekly freighters to Osaka. The MD-11 flights come in addition to existing daily freighter flights from and to Tokyo-Narita as well as the Lufthansa passenger flights to Osaka-Kansai, Tokyo-Haneda, and Nagoya. The new route is operated from Frankfurt via Novosibirsk to Osaka on Wednesdays and Fridays, and adds to a total of 80 weekly flights into and out of the country – including the belly capacity o

Aeronautical Engineers, Inc has redelivered a B737-400SF freighter to ASL Aviation – the company’s one hundredth conversion of this aircraft type. The delivery represents the thirteenth AEI B737-400 converted freighter that has been re-delivered to ASL over the last few years. ASL currently has an additional four B737-400SF freighters, either undergoing conversion or scheduled for modification in 2018, at partner Commercial Jet’s Dothan, Alabama facility. AEI president Roy Sa

Strike action by ground handlers at Frankfurt airport contributed to a 4.5% decline in December's cargo volumes to 180,186 tonnes. Despite this setback, Germany’s number one freight hub saw total 2017 volumes increase by 3.6% year-on-year to just over 2.2m tonnes, according to the latest figures from airport company Fraport. The full-year 2017 cargo growth for Europe's top airfreight hub appears to be at the lower end its European peer group, with third placed Amsterdam-Schip

Michael Kerkloh Munich Airport's dynamic cargo growth continued in 2017 with a record total turnover of 379,000 tons – a 7% gain over the previous year. Passenger traffic at the southern Germany hub increased by 2.3m to a new all-time high of 44.6m, a 5.5% gain over the 2016 figure. "These are outstanding traffic figures, especially when we consider the turbulence the aviation industry is currently experiencing. The massive increases once again underscore our airport's impor

London-Heathrow and the three UK airports owned by the MAG group all saw bumper cargo volumes in 2017. Heathrow became one of the fastest growing major European hubs for cargo in 2017, handling 1.7m tonnes – a full year increase of 10.2% over 2016 - with key markets the US, East Asia, and Europe. By comparison, Belgium's Liege and Brussels airports saw increases of 8.5% and 8.3% respectively in 2017 while Amsterdam Schiphol, one place above Heathrow in the 'league table' of E

Amazon adds more land to Cincinnati hub Online retail giant Amazon has added extra land to the $1.5bn air hub it is building at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Airport (CVG). Dave Clark, Amazon senior vice president of worldwide operations, tweeted that the company had "just added 210 acres of land as part of the future CVG air hub". "Excited for Amazon, Customers, and Kentucky," Clark added. The news was welcomed by CVG, which said: "More great news for our region; further inve

EVA Air has appointed Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminals Ltd (Hactl) as its handling agent. Hactl will provide all cargo handling services for the airline’s operations from Hong Kong, which include over 60 passenger and eight wide-body freighter flights per week. EVA Air also plans to use the SuperLink China Direct road feeder services provided by Hactl subsidiary Hacis, to extend its catchment to include the Pearl River Delta (PRD) region. The Hacis network will shortly be extend

Belgium's Liege Airport set an all-time record of 717,000 tonnes of goods handled in 2017, a growth of 8.5% compared with cargo volumes in 2016. An airport spokesperson said: "Cargo business worldwide saw overall growth, driven by strong economic performances in Europe, but also by the emergence of new e-commerce opportunities. "All the Liege-based operators have made progress. In addition, two new airlines – Air China Cargo and AirBridgeCargo – joined Liege Airport." Luc Par

Picture supplied by Airbus: photo by P.Masclet, master films Planemaker Airbus has rolled out the first structurally complete airframe for the new BelugaXL freighter aircraft from its assembly hangar in Toulouse. Once operational, a fleet of five next-generation Beluga XLs will be used to transport completed sections of Airbus aircraft among the company’s European production sites and to its final assembly lines in France, Germany and Spain. The aircraft, replacing the curren

Historic Bristol Type 170 Freighter makes the voyage home One of the last remaining Bristol Type 170 freighter aircraft has been transported from New Zealand to a museum in the UK where it will eventually go on display. The freighter was designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company, had a 108ft wingspan and featured distinctive clamshell doors that allowed cargo – including vehicles and large animals - to be loaded via its nose. A total of 214 freighters and Wayfarers