Posted by Thelma Etim | May 12, 2020 | Air Cargo Newsdesk, air charters, Airlines, Asia, business news, Coronavirus, COVID-19, Editor’s choice, Europe, Financial news, medical supplies, passenger aircraft, PPE, supply chain, The Americas, USA, WHO | 0
AMERICAN Airlines has expanded its cargo-only schedule from 80 weekly flights up to 140 across 15 cities in the Asia Pacific, European and the Caribbean regions in mid-May, writes Thelma Etim.
The new destinations include daily services between Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) and Hong Kong, along with weekly flights from DFW and Beijing; DFW and Chicago and Paris; Chicago and London Heathrow; Philadelphia and Rome; Philadelphia and San Juan; and Philadelphia and Zurich, reveals a statement.
American normally airfreights two billion pounds of goods annually in the bellies of its passenger aircraft. “And now, more than ever before, air cargo plays a significant role in connecting the world with critical goods – transporting fresh produce, shipping temperature-controlled drug trials for Coronavirus (COVID-19) and filling aircraft full of personal protective equipment (PPE),” the statement adds.
Rick Elieson, president of cargo and vice-president of international operations at American Airlines, admits: “Why we fly hasn’t changed, but out of necessity how we care for people on life’s journey has had to change. Cargo-only fights have allowed us to transport medical equipment, communications and technology tools, pharmaceuticals and food supplies.
“Air cargo is uniquely positioned to connect the world at a time when barriers and distance threaten to separate us,” Elieson observes. “I’m immensely proud of our teams and business partners who have come together to make these flights possible.”
