Spanish airline Air Europa has joined the Freightos booking and payment platform. It adds the carrier’s Spain-Latin America routes, along with 15 domestic destinations within Spain and 40 international routes across Europe, North America, and Latin America. Initial digital booking capabilities will focus on the Spanish export routes–connecting Madrid with Barcelona, Bilbao, Valencia with Air Europa’s global network–and then add key international origins in Europe, the Americas and Asia Pacific, including perishable cargo capacity from Latin America.
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Emirates rethinks courier delivery
Emirates Skycargo has launched an Emirates Courier Express end-to-end delivery service. It aims to break away from traditional hub-and-spoke models, with packages making multiple stops before arriving at destination and instead travelling from origin to destination directly, like passengers. The carrier says that this significantly reduces time in transit and handling.
The carrier is offering different service levels, ranging from next day urgent delivery to a two-day Premium service.
Emirates Courier Express has access to over 250 widebody passenger and freighter aircraft to move packages worldwide and is complemented by a network of partners to manage customs clearance and first and last mile transportation.
Emirates has worked with customers to pilot the product, before launching to market. Over the last year, Emirates Courier Express transported several thousands of packages from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, South Africa and the UK with an average delivery time of under 48 hours.
At launch, Emirates Courier Express will be active and available in these seven markets, but will ultimately be expanded across its entire network.
Emirates SkyCargo divisional senior vice president, Badr Abbas said, “Emirates Courier Express is an evolution in how we move goods across the globe, at speed and at scale. Building on our world-class and well-established infrastructure, and reimagining traditional logistics processes where necessary, this innovative solution does not just meet the Emirates Gold Standard of reliability and excellence but sets a new benchmark for what’s possible. This is only the beginning of our vision to continuously innovate and lead the charge in the express delivery sector.”
Senior vice president of product and innovation, Dennis Lister, added: “Emirates Courier Express is the result of challenging the status quo. Along with the industry, we watched the increasing volumes of cross border shipping and challenged ourselves to find a better way to transport these goods faster and more efficiently. The new product launch reflects our ongoing commitment to push the boundaries to introduce innovations which drive real impact and ensure our customers always have access to the fastest, most reliable and cost-effective solutions available.”
Air Canada restarts Ottawa-Heathrow flights
Air Canada has resumed flights from Ottawa to London Heathrow with a Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft. Services will operate four times weekly with connections at Heathrow across Europe, the Middle East, India and Africa. The carrier will serve Heathrow from six Canadian cities, with up to 63 weekly flights in summer 2025.
The carrier is also launching thrice weekly 787-9 flights between Vancouver and Manila, rising to four a week in May.
Unilode to manage Magma’s ULDs
Avia Solutions Group’s Magma Aviation has awarded a multi-year ULD management partnership to Unilode Aviation Solutions.
Unilode will ensure Magma Aviation’s day-to-day ULD needs are supported throughout its global network and the partnership also includes Unilode’s digital service, track-and-trace coverage, maintenance and repair services, complete operational management planning, and oversight for the cargo solutions company’s 3,500 ULD needs.
Magma Aviation chief executive, Peter Kerins, said: “By transitioning to Unilode, we will not only have access to the world’s largest ULD fleet, but we will also benefit from improved ULD visibility through Unilode’s innovative digital management systems.
“This agreement is not just about numbers and resources, it is about building on our operational efficiencies to further enhance our services. With Unilode’s support, we can streamline our processes, optimise our logistics, and continue to be proud of the flexible and comprehensive services we deliver to our customers.”
Turkish Cargo returns to Maastricht with flights from Ecuador and Miami
Turkish Cargo has returned to Maastricht Aachen Airport with two weekly freighter flights operating a Quito-Miami-Maastricht-Istanbul rotation.
The flights will transport flowers, other perishable goods and general cargo. The airport’s Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) status will allow goods to move faster through customs.
The airport’s head of commercial development, Dean Boljuncic said: “Our specialized in-house cargo hub was chosen for its fast and efficient service, a one-stop shop model that bolsters our handling capacity and customized provisions.” said,
The Royal Schiphol Group took a 40% stake in Maastricht-Aachen in 2023 as an alternative to the Netherlands’ main gateway.
Awery gives Schiphol courier Wings
Awery Aviation Software says that Schiphol-based on board courier Wings achieved a 25% increase in productivity since implementing its tailored digital solution.
In collaboration with the Wings team, Awery developed a comprehensive OBC service solution, incorporating Awery’s enterprise resource planning (ERP) system, with custom-designed track-and-trace software accessible through a mobile application.
Wings has a network of over 3,200 couriers in over 150 countries.
Awery founder and chief executive, Vitaly Smilianets, said: “For Wings on Board, we developed a solution that automates previously manual tasks, and provides secure access to critical operational data, allowing for communication between all parties involved in the shipment.”
The solution digitalises Wings’ day-to-day operations from request and quotation handling to mission and courier management, allowing the Wings team to win more business with the same number of staff.
Wings managing director Raz Brod (pictured), added: “We realised the need for a technology partner who could develop a solution to eliminate the time-consuming manual processes that were slowing down our operations, and since implementing Awery’s software, we have seen a significant increase in efficiency.”
DHL gains medical expertise
DHL Group is to acquire 100% of Cryopdp, a global provider of supply chain solutions for the life sciences sector from Nashville-based parent company, medical logistics specialist Cryoport, subject to regulatory approvals.
Cropdp specialises in movements for clinical trials, biopharma and cell and gene therapies. It has offices in 15 countries and processes over 600,000 shipments per year, serving customers and patients in over 135 countries.
At the same time, DHL is entering into a strategic partnership with Cryoport. The two companies aim to strengthen their supply chain services offering to the global life sciences and healthcare sector.
DHL Group already has an established life sciences and healthcare business that contributed over €5 billion to global sales in 2024.
Chief executive of DHL Supply Chain, Oscar de Bok, said: “The acquisition of Cryopdp is a crucial step for our supply chain business as we look to further expand our Pharma Specialized Network to meet the evolving needs of clinical trials, biopharma and cell and gene therapies, while further strengthening our presence in the conventional pharma and life sciences healthcare segment. The acquisition of CRYOPDP and the expanded partnership with Cryoport Inc. will enable us to offer integrated end-to-end solutions that enhance our capabilities.”
Cryoport chief executive, Jerrell Shelton, added: “We are very pleased to be able to further expand our trusting relationship with DHL Group. Together, we will offer an expanded range of supply chain solutions to meet the critical supply chain needs of businesses and patients. This strategic partnership combines the strong expertise of DHL Supply Chain and Cryopdp and provides Cryoport with the opportunity to further expand its presence in global growth markets such as Asia Pacific, as well as Europe, the Middle East and Africa.”
WestJet speeds voyages of the beagles
Canadian carrier WestJet Cargo is to be the official partner of The Beagle Alliance. It will provide transport of dogs across Canada rescued from research facilities, ensuring they reach their forever homes quickly and with minimal stress.
The Beagle Alliance rescues former research animals who would otherwise be euthanized and advocates for animal free science.
Initially, The Beagle Alliance had concerns about air travel for their rescued dogs due to their history of trauma. However, when founder Lori Cohen’s dog Poppy was successfully transported via WestJet Cargo from Vancouver to Winnipeg, they recognized that air travel was a faster, less stressful alternative to long-haul ground transport. Since then, WestJet Cargo has become the preferred carrier for relocating rescued beagles across Canada.
Cohen explained: “Canada is a large country, and ground transport is simply not always feasible. When our first rescue, Poppy, was flown via WestJet Cargo, we realized that this was a reliable and compassionate option for our animals. It is both a blessing and an honour to work with WestJet Cargo in getting these beautiful dogs to their forever homes kindly and with the utmost care.”
The air carrier aims to rescue and relocate 50 former research beagles to homes across Canada this year, as well as helping raise awareness for The Beagle Alliance’s mission.
IAG reinstates Malaysia, San Fran and Denver flights and frequencies
IAG Cargo has reinstated daily flights between London Heathrow and Kuala Lumpur, between Spain and San Francisco and on Dublin/Denver in its summer 2025 schedule. It has also increased frequencies in Latin America, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East.
Daily flights between Kuala Lumpur and London Heathrow will resume on 1 April, operated by a B789 aircraft while three-times weekly services will operate to San Francisco from both Madrid and Barcelona.
Capacity across North America will grow with the return of flights to Denver from Dublin as well as additional services on established routes such as Chicago, Vancouver and Washington from London Heathrow.
In Latin America, services to Rio de Janeiro from Madrid will increase from four to six flights per week. The route from Heathrow to Doha (goes up from seven to 12 flights per week, while Tokyo goes from ten to 14 weekly flights.
Italian GSA pioneer, Glauco Martinelli
Glauco Martinelli, founder of the first Italian general sales agent, ATC, died on 27 March.
He began his career in 1960 with BOAC, followed by key roles in the cargo divisions of South African Airways and Alitalia, before founding ATC to represent Air Canada in Italy 1979, at a time when the GSA concept was still unknown.
Under his leadership, ATC became a leading name in the Italian market, joining the international ECS in 2012when he passed the leadership of the company to his son, Sauro Martinelli. ATC is the largest GSA organisation in Italy.