newstodate.aero

May 05, 2020 (newstodate): With the first flight on May 9, 2020, the Danish transport and logistics company Blue Water is introducing a new temporary air cargo service between Denmark and China.
   Blue Water has contracted SAS to operate an Airbus A330 passenger aircraft for a series of initially eight all-cargo rotations between Copenhagen and Shanghai, with two rotations per week during the period.
   -In contrast to other seemingly similar projects by other providers, Blue Water is not focussing specifically on the medical relief segment but on the air cargo market as such, and with equal emphasis on imports and exports, says Ole Haahr Hansen, Blue Water Head of Airfreight.  
   -The aircraft will lift up to some 20-30 tonnes of palletized shipments in the belly cargo compartment and the only limitation is on dimensions as the aircraft does not, of course, have a large cargo door.
   -We have seen strong needs among our customers for uplift capacity from China to bring import shipments into Denmark and Scandinavia. At the same time there is also a big and unsaturated demand for capacity among exporters of notably pharmaceuticals, general cargo and perishables including fresh seafood in our markets, warranting the set up of this project in times when belly cargo on passenger aircraft has become virtually non-existent.
   -We have scheduled eight rotations, and depending on the market situation by the end of May we will consider adding more flights. However, once the market reopens rates will drop, making the charter operations unprofitable. The project rests on finely balanced calculations to be economically viable.
   -The charter operations with SAS are primarily aiming at serving our existing customer portfolio but excess capacity will be available to other parties on set terms, says Mr Haahr Hansen.
   Selecting SAS as provider of the flights, Blue Water benefits from the carrier's existing traffic rights and slots at Shanghai Airport, even acknowledging the congested airport environment during the current COVID-19 crisis.
   At Shanghai Airport, the all-cargo flights are handled by Blue Water's long-time partner, Cargo Services Group with 17 offices in China and a strong network of warehouses.