After a year of furious capacity cutbacks, airlines are again beginning to deploy freighters in Asia-Pacific.
Having taken delivery of its third and fourth Boeing 777 freighters in December, Aerologic, the joint venture cargo airline of Lufthansa Cargo and DHL, announced in late January the start of four weekly flights from its hub in Leipzig, Germany to Hong Kong and back. At the same time, the carrier began weekend flights between Leipzig and Chicago.
"Aerologic's new routes offer excellent opportunities for DHL Express. Trade between Europe and Asia remained at a high level during the recent crisis, indicating a structural demand in both regions for the other's products and commodities," according to Ken Allen, chief executive officer of DHL Express.
Triple-seven freighters are also headed for Asia across the Pacific. FedEx deployed its first 777F in mid-January on the route to Shanghai. "Mainland China is one of the fastest-growing markets for FedEx," declared Michael Ducker, executive vice-president and chief operating officer of FedEx Express.
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