newstodate.aero
Oct 14, 2010 (newstodate): The re-opening of new long-haul routes by SAS is good news for the airline's air cargo business as well.
The carrier has announced the coming winter program to contain the re-opening of direct flights from Copenhagen to Shanghai with Airbus A340-300 aircraft, and from end of March 2011, from Oslo to New York, using Airbus A330-300 aircraft.
-This is good new for SAS Cargo, and it reflects the success from our efforts to rein in costs and streamlining the airline, says Leif Rasmussen, SAS Cargo CEO.
-Both the Airbus A340 and the A330 has a cargo capacity of some 16.4 tonnes, depending on passenger booking figures, and this is a vital asset for both routes. The cargo contributions are definitively vital for sustaining even successful passenger operations.
-Shanghai is of course a booming market, and while imports will naturally be dominating the figures, exports from the Scandinavian markets to China, including Shanghai are significant as well. Hopefully the current positive world economic trends will continue, and if so I see great prospects for this route.
-The Norwegian market has long been longing for the return of SAS flights to North America, and we are seeing a huge demand for uplift of Norwegian seafood to the US market. SAS Cargo will definitely be poised to achieve a significant slice of this with daily flights to New York from spring 2011.
-Despite the early recovery of world trade and economy, airfreight rates are still rock-bottom low - actually at the lowest levels ever. The demand for airfreight is increasing, but the rates are still not following suit, leaving operators with a large deficit from earlier years to cover. At least we are fighting to grow the airfreight rates - but is remains an uphill battle, says Mr Rasmussen.
The carrier has announced the coming winter program to contain the re-opening of direct flights from Copenhagen to Shanghai with Airbus A340-300 aircraft, and from end of March 2011, from Oslo to New York, using Airbus A330-300 aircraft.
-This is good new for SAS Cargo, and it reflects the success from our efforts to rein in costs and streamlining the airline, says Leif Rasmussen, SAS Cargo CEO.
-Both the Airbus A340 and the A330 has a cargo capacity of some 16.4 tonnes, depending on passenger booking figures, and this is a vital asset for both routes. The cargo contributions are definitively vital for sustaining even successful passenger operations.
-Shanghai is of course a booming market, and while imports will naturally be dominating the figures, exports from the Scandinavian markets to China, including Shanghai are significant as well. Hopefully the current positive world economic trends will continue, and if so I see great prospects for this route.
-The Norwegian market has long been longing for the return of SAS flights to North America, and we are seeing a huge demand for uplift of Norwegian seafood to the US market. SAS Cargo will definitely be poised to achieve a significant slice of this with daily flights to New York from spring 2011.
-Despite the early recovery of world trade and economy, airfreight rates are still rock-bottom low - actually at the lowest levels ever. The demand for airfreight is increasing, but the rates are still not following suit, leaving operators with a large deficit from earlier years to cover. At least we are fighting to grow the airfreight rates - but is remains an uphill battle, says Mr Rasmussen.