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Lufthansa and ANA restart cargo tie-up and add NCA and SWISS

Lufthansa Cargo, SWISS WorldCargo, All Nippon Airways (ANA) and Nippon Cargo Airlines (NCA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the aim of enhancing cooperation in the air cargo market between Japan and Europe. The four carriers will assess opportunities for collaboration, including greater network connectivity between Japan and Europe, additional routing and capacity options, as well as enhanced flexibility and service choices. The MoU is built on the past alliance between Lufthansa Cargo and ANA, whose parent company, ANA Holdings also owns NCA. In 2014, Lufthansa Cargo and ANA established a cargo joint venture covering the Japan-Europe market, but following restructuring activities within ANA Holdings' cargo business, the cooperation was suspended in September 2023. Now, building on the foundation established by the two companies, Lufthansa Cargo and ANA aim to explore the potential resumption of their cargo joint venture, including SWISS WorldCargo and Nippon Cargo Airlines. "Japan is an important market for Lufthansa Cargo, and our long-standing relationship with All Nippon Airways has enabled us to serve customers reliably for many years," said Ashwin Bhat, chief executive of Lufthansa Cargo. "Together with SWISS WorldCargo and Nippon Cargo Airlines, we now want to explore how we can leverage our respective brand strengths, networks and expertise to create even greater value for our customers. "By offering even more options and flexibility between Japan and Europe, we are further delivering on our mission of Enabling Global Business." Alain Chisari, head of SWISS WorldCargo, commented: "Europe and Japan are both key markets for customers that rely on trustworthy, high-quality air cargo services for care-intensive and time-critical shipments. "Bringing together our strong European network and specialised cargo expertise with the capabilities of our partners could provide customers with an even broader range of transport solutions." Kenichi Wakiya, executive vice president, cargo marketing & services, All Nippon Airways & chief executive, ANA Cargo, stated: "All Nippon Airways and Lufthansa Cargo have built a strong foundation over many years. We are pleased to renew our dialogue and broaden our cargo joint venture to include SWISS WorldCargo and Nippon Cargo Airlines. "By bringing together the individual strengths of all four carriers, we aim to respond even more effectively to the diverse logistics needs of customers in Japan and Europe." "Nippon Cargo Airlines leverages extensive experience in dedicated freighter operations and a strong presence in the Japan-Europe cargo market as we join forces with our partners," added Hiroyuki Homma, president and chief executive, Nippon Cargo Airlines. "We are fully committed to complementing the networks, aiming to provide customers with expanded capacity and flexible routing solutions."

Emirates SkyCargo continues North America expansion with Milan-New York flight

Emirates SkyCargo is continuing to expand its presence in North America with a new freighter connection between Milan and New York. The new weekly service between Milan Malpensa and New York JFK will start on 5 December using one of the carrier's 100-tonne-capacity Boeing 777 freighter aircraft. The carrier said the service was being launched to serve growing demand for export capacity from Northern Italy and the Lombardy region. The carrier pointed out that exports from Milan carried by Emirates SkyCargo grew 13% in financial year 2025/26 compared to the previous year and added that New York is the largest air cargo export destination for Italian goods. Meanwhile, overall exports of Italian goods carried by Emirates were up 12% year on year for the 2025/26 financial year. Key export commodities that move by air from Milan include pharmaceuticals, vaccines and clinical trial medication, luxury goods and fashion items, industrial equipment and machine parts, high-end automotives, fresh produce and speciality food products. In the other direction, the carrier reported a 23% increase in the volume of exports it carried from JFK and Newark Liberty airports between financial year 2024/25 and FY 2025/ 26. Key export commodities moving from New York include pharmaceuticals and healthcare products, perishables, e-commerce shipments, machinery and industrial components. Badr Abbas, divisional senior vice president, Emirates SkyCargo, said the new service would also complement its existing passenger services. "Milan is a key air cargo gateway for Italy and Europe, where Emirates SkyCargo currently offers over 500 tonnes of weekly export capacity to global markets, including over 100 tonnes weekly bellyhold capacity on our passenger flights to New York. "The new freighter service adds important maindeck capacity on a vital trade corridor, offering exporters greater access, flexibility and reliability when serving customers in the US. "Exports from the Greater New York region have seen strong growth, reflecting robust demand for reliable access to international markets. "By combining enhanced freighter capacity with our extensive network of freighter and passenger services through Dubai, we are enhancing connectivity for pharmaceuticals, e-commerce, perishables and machinery from the US, while creating faster links to destinations across the Middle East, Asia and beyond." Emirates SkyCargo also operates a once-weekly freighter flight between Milan and Dubai (DWC) to allow connection to other destinations in the Emirates network. North America connections The new service comes as Emirates SkyCargo has been expanding its presence in North America in line with fleet expansion. Emirates SkyCargo has also launched freighter flights in 2026 to Los Angeles (LAX) and Dallas (DFW) while increasing frequencies to Miami (MIA). The expansion follows the delivery of eight new freighter aircraft this year, including seven Boeing 777-F production freighters and one Boeing 777-300ER converted freighter. "This expansion helped power the growth of Emirates SkyCargo's freighter network from over 40 destinations in March 2026 to over 60 destinations by July 2026," the carrier said. Last week, Emirates reported that its cargo volumes were down 1% in the first half of its 2026-2027 financial year, but cargo revenue increased by 50%. The airline said its gains occurred "as the regional conflict reduced available airfreight capacity while concurrently pushing shippers to seek airfreight options due to marine transport disruptions".

KLM to consolidate Schiphol cargo handling as part of cost drive

KLM will consolidate all its cargo handling activities at its main Schiphol hub to its own warehouse as part of measures to improve its financial performance. The airline today announced a range of initiatives aimed at strengthening its financial foundation, including reducing job roles, seeking fresh labour deals and revamping its European operations. The consolidation of cargo handling activities at Schiphol will cover freight carried on both passenger and cargo aircraft, the airline said. While there was no mention of role reduction in the cargo business, KLM indicated that there would be no additional hires to manage the extra volumes. "This will help prepare KLM Cargo for the new cargo terminal, scheduled for completion in 2035, and enable it to attract more transfer cargo passing through Schiphol," KLM said in an announcement. "The company will also expand its services for customers requiring additional support. "The increased cargo volumes will ultimately be handled without hiring additional employees. "This will be achieved by simplifying processes, working smarter, increasing automation, and deploying employees across different activities." In 2024, Menzies Aviation announced a deal that would see it provide cargo warehouse and ramp handling services for all KLM/Martinair freighter operations at Schiphol for five years. At the time, Menzies said the renewed contract represented its largest contract at Schiphol. KLM flagged "significant progress" in improving its financial performance through its 'Back on Track' programme - citing structural improvements of more than €750m - it says these efforts are still not enough to secure the Dutch carrier's future. Bas Brouns, chief financial officer of KLM, said: "We need to strengthen our financial foundation to make KLM more resilient in the face of uncertainty and better prepared for the future. We need a KLM that can invest in a new generation of aircraft, better customer service, and our people. "These measures will help us increase revenue and further reduce our structural costs. We need to make a major leap forward. Improving our annual earnings by €1 billion is essential to delivering our strategy and focusing on what sets KLM apart." The wide-ranging measures include outsourcing and reorganising operations as KLM focuses further on its core activities. "This means certain activities will be carried out with external partners, reorganised or further consolidated within Air France-KLM," it said. KLM has or will reorganise around 5,000 positions within the company, the impact of which it hopes to limit through natural attrition, voluntary arrangements and transfers. This figure covers 1,250 roles at its catering unit as part of its partnership with Gategroup, around 800 ground services roles that will be transferred to external partners, and 2,000 positions - including 1,500 at customer contact centre Cygnific - that are being transferred to Air France-KLM. It estimates a further 1,000 roles will be reduced as a result of productivity improvements. As part of the measures, KLM is also revamping its European operations, including changing the balance between larger and smaller aircraft in its European fleet. "The [Airbus] A321neo will remain part of the fleet, while smaller Embraer 195-E2 aircraft will replace the planned A320s," it said. "By operating more smaller aircraft, KLM can better match capacity to the demand across its European network. This will give KLM Cityhopper a greater role." It said Boeing 737 and Embraer 190 aircraft will be phased out "over the coming years", without specifying a timeframe. KLM will also reallocate its European capacity on routes that contribute most to passenger connectivity and Amsterdam Schiphol's nonstop network.