TNT has announced that it will launch its own China-Europe freighter flights next year as partof its long-term expansion in the Asia-Pacific region. The flights will give the global integrator
its own intercontinental capacity between the two world markets on a long-term basis.TNT Express will lease two B747-400ERF freighters, each with about 100 tonnes capacity, to startup the new direct service between Europe and China in 2006. The aircraft will be leased for aperiod of ten years from the US-based aircraft leasing company Guggenheim Aviation Partners. Nofinancial details were disclosed.
“This is a major step towards achieving our strategic objective of being the number one carrierbetween Asia and Europe”, said Peter Bakker, CEO of TNT. “It provides us with much neededadditional capacity between China and Europe, where our volumes have grown by 35 per centyear-to-date compared with 2004. The investment in the two new freighters will also ensure servicereliability and allow us to take advantage of the growth in manufacturing exports out of China.”& lt; /p>
The first of the two ultra-modern cargo jumbos will be introduced into service in November 2006and the second in June 2007. One freighter will do four round trips per week between Shanghai andthe TNT European air hub at Liege, Belgium. The second freighter will enable the company toincrease the total number of weekly trips to five, and up to nine. Maximum aircraft utilisationwill be achieved by operating for third party partner airlines. The B747-400 ERF will be thelargest aircraft ever operated by TNT and the first jumbo freighter to carry its distinctive orangeand white livery.
The launch of the China freighter flights follows the start of the express operator’s IntegratedDirect Express (IDE) service between China and Europe two years ago in response to the rapid growthof its global high-tech client base. In future, TNT will be able to offer its clients up to 1,000to 1,250 tonnes of dedicated controlled air linehaul capacity per week, connecting TNT’s Europeanhub with the main gateways in China.
