Tag: Emirates Cargo

Emirates SkyCargo transports 600 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, more than 27M doses to Uganda

Over 200 million doses flown in Oct and Nov 2021

More than 27 million doses flown to Uganda

Emirates SkyCargo has announced that it has crossed a major milestone in the global distribution of COVID-19 vaccines with 600 million doses flown on its flights, including more than 27 million doses transported to Uganda.

Since October 2020, the carrier has transported more than 2.8 million kilograms (2800 tonnes) of COVID-19 vaccines from 35 origins to over 80 destinations.

“Emirates SkyCargo remains committed to the rapid distribution of COVID-19 vaccines to vulnerable communities around the world. When we formulated our COVID-19 distribution strategy in 2020, Emirates SkyCargo prioritised the movement of COVID-19 vaccines through our Dubai hub to developing countries. I’m happy to announce that nearly two thirds of the total vaccines we transported were headed to destinations in Africa, Asia and the Middle East. With our extensive reach across six continents, our wide-body capacity and expertise in cool chain logistics, Emirates SkyCargo will continue to be a reliable partner for the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines in the months to come,” said Nabil Sultan, Emirates Divisional Senior Vice President, Cargo.

With the increasing roll-out of vaccination and booster campaigns across global markets, Emirates SkyCargo witnessed a steady increase in the demand for transportation of COVID-19 vaccines in the second half of 2021.

In October and November 2021 alone, Emirates SkyCargo moved more than 200 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, almost one third of the total COVID-19 vaccines transported by the carrier since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Key highlights of Emirates SkyCargo’s COVID-19 vaccine transportation programme

Close to 2.8 million kilograms (2800 tonnes) of vaccines transported on Emirates flights, equivalent to nearly 600 million doses since October 2020

Vaccines flown from 35 origins to 80 destinations across six continents

7 million- most number of COVID-19 vaccine doses moved on a single flight

Asia (185 million doses), Africa (150 million doses) and the Middle East (70 million doses) continue to be priority markets for vaccine delivery

North America and Europe are the main origin regions for COVID-19 vaccines for Emirates SkyCargo

Emirates SkyCargo’s GDP certified pharma terminal in Chicago has handled more than 160 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines flown from the US to countries around the world.

Emirates SkyCargo has been a key global player in the air distribution of COVID-19 vaccines and other relief materials and essential commodities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The air cargo carrier offers sophisticated cool chain solutions for pharmaceutical cargo with Emirates Pharma- a specialised three-tiered air transportation product designed for temperature sensitive pharmaceuticals and backed by Emirates’ state of the art GDP certified pharma infrastructure at its cargo hub in Dubai.

In June 2021, Emirates SkyCargo expanded its pharma cool chain infrastructure at Dubai International Airport, allowing it to store an additional estimated 60-90 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines.

Emirates SkyCargo offers cargo capacity on more than 2,800 weekly flights connecting more than 140 destinations across six continents.

December 20, 2021
Emirates SkyCargo announces Bi-weekly flights to Uganda

Dubai, UAE; Emirates SkyCargo willcontinue to operate cargo flights to Entebbe InternationalAirport thereby facilitating the movement of goods during this uncertain times.

Emirates will operate two weekly cargo flights every Friday and Sunday and these will touch down at the airport at 14:00hrs and depart at 16:00hrs.The airline has deployed a Boeing 777 wide-body passenger aircraft for its cargo operations on the Entebbe route.

On March 29, 2020, the Emirates SkyCargo flight brought into the country 28.5 tonnes of general cargo comprisingtesting kits, pharmaceuticals, diagnostic equipment for hospitals and textiles. While the exports includedperishables such as fruits and vegetables, flower cuttings and Fish maws.

During the Financial Year 2018/19, Emirates SkyCargotransported close to 16,000 tonnes of cargo to and from Entebbe. Emirates Skycargo averages 24% market share and is one of the oldest operating stations for Emirates SkyCargo.

Relatedly, on March 30, 2020, an Emirates SkyCargo flight carrying close to 500,000 Covid-19 testing kits landed at Sao Paulo airport in Brazil. The kits were moved from Guangzhou via Dubai by the air cargo carrier on the first of two such flights operated to transport supplies to Sao Paulo. During the same week, Emirates also executed two special charters carrying almost 200 tonnes of medical supplies such as hand sanitizers and protective face masks from Hong Kong to Sydney while another flight transported pharmaceutical supplies to Karachi.

As part of a special charter operation, an Emirates Boeing 777 freighter transported close to 100 tonnes of relief material including hospital equipment to Milan, Italy and over 55 tonnes of highly temperature sensitive pharmaceuticals were flown to New York from Mumbai. Between March and April, the air cargo carrier will also be operating nine freighter flights to Budapest as part of a charter to transport supplies such as face masks and equipment to Hungary.

In addition to transporting critical medical supplies around the world, Emirates SkyCargo is also playing a vital role in bringing food materials into the UAE and the Middle East. During the last week of March, the carrier operated special flights from Pakistan and India to bring in more than 150 tonnes of perishables to Dubai. Dedicated cargo flights from Cairo and Nairobi have also been transporting perishables to Dubai and onwards to other destinations within the Middle East.

Operating within a rapidly changing global environment, Emirates SkyCargo has had to adapt and reinvent its operations and network to make sure that it can continue to facilitate not just transport of essential commodities but also support economies and help businesses around the world maintain continuity by keeping global supply chains up and running.

“In these trying times, we more than ever stand by our commitment for Emirates SkyCargo to act as a global conveyor belt for the transport of much needed commodities such as food and medicines and also for flying in equipment, machinery and other components which are vital for business continuity across essential industries,” said Nabil Sultan, Emirates Divisional Senior Vice President, Cargo. “As an extremely agile and customer-focused business, we have been able to establish a new network and schedule for our cargo operations within a very short period of time, utilising lower deck capacity on our wide-body Boeing 777 passenger aircraft which supplement the cargo capacity we offer on our freighter aircraft.

“Additionally, in order to consolidate operations and reduce costs in this new scenario, we have also temporarily shifted all our cargo handling operations to Dubai International Airport (DXB). Taken together we are making sure that we react more quickly to requests coming in from every part of the globe from our customers,” Sultan added.

Dedicated cargo flights on passenger aircraft

Emirates SkyCargo has announced a new flight schedule for its global cargo operations which also includes cargo flights operated on its Boeing 777 passenger aircraft. These flights will offer around 40 tonnes of lower deck cargo capacity per flight and will supplement the cargo capacity being offered on Emirates’ fleet of freighter aircraft.

These cargo only flights are scheduled to operate to over 30 destinations across the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Europe and Australia with a majority of destinations being served with multiple weekly and daily flights. The schedules and destinations for the dedicated cargo flights on passenger aircraft have been planned keeping in mind optimal interconnectivity with Emirates’ scheduled freighter operations.

More details on Emirates SkyCargo’s scheduled operations can be found on the air cargo carrier’s website.

In addition to scheduled operations, Emirates SkyCargowill also operate charter and ad-hoc operations on Emirates aircraft based on market demand.

Consolidation of operations at Dubai International Airport

With effect from 1 April 2020, Emirates SkyCargoconsolidated all its cargo handling operations at Dubai International Airport, temporarily suspending operations at Emirates SkyCentral DWC, the terminal handling Emirates’ freighter aircraft. The move will help the air cargo carrier streamline cargo operations between its freighter flights and the new dedicated cargo flights being offered on Emirates’ passenger aircraft fleet.

April 3, 2020
Spreading Love and Supporting Livelihoods: Emirates SkyCargo gears up for Valentine’s Day

Air cargo carrier operates nine special flower charters covering five continents in February to meet additional demand

First direct flowers charters for Emirates SkyCargo from Nairobi to Sydney and from Quito to Los Angeles

Over 50,000 tonnes of flowers exported by carrier in 2018 making an important economic contribution to local economies

Every year, millions of roses are gifted worldwide on Valentine’s Day resulting in a spike in demand for flowers in early February. To meet this requirement, major flower producing nations around the world including Kenya and Ecuador harvest and air-freight additional quantities of roses to important global centres of flower distribution such as the Aalsmeer market in the Netherlands and directly to customers around the world.

Emirates SkyCargo, the freight division of Emirates, operates daily scheduled freighter flights to Nairobi and four weekly freighters to Quito around the year to uplift flowers that are then flown to destinations across its network.

Additional capacity

However, in order to meet the additional demand for transporting flowers during this season, Emirates SkyCargo will be operating a total of nine freighter flights dedicated for flowers over and above scheduled operations. With each of Emirates SkyCargo’s Boeing 777 freighter aircraft being capable of transporting up to 100 tonnes of cargo, this translates into the carrier flying close to 900 tonnes of roses over and above the around 4000 tonnes transported monthly.

Emirates SkyCargo gears up for Valentines Day

Emirates SkyCargo has also notched a number of historic firsts this year. The air cargo carrier operated its first direct freighter flight carrying flowers from Nairobi directly to Sydney and from Quito directly to Los Angeles. This is in keeping with the trend where flower farms supply directly to end customers in global markets in addition to supplying to the flower auction houses.

Keeping flowers fresh

The journey of flower exports begins on a farm where they are harvested by hand. The freshly harvested flowers are then sorted, arranged in bouquets and hand packed into boxes, which are then loaded on the aircraft. In order to ensure maximum freshness and shelf life, the flowers are maintained between 2 and 5 degrees centigrade.

Emirates SkyCargo has designed a specialised three-tiered portfolio of solutions – Emirates Fresh, Emirates Fresh Active and Emirates Fresh Breathe – for air-freighting different kinds of perishable cargo including food items and flowers. Emirates Fresh Breathe provides ventilated cool chain solutions for fresh cut flowers.

Supporting livelihoods

Over 100,000 people in Ecuador and an estimated 500,000 people in Kenya depend on the floriculture industry for their income and livelihoods. By helping exporters of flowers and other perishables reach customers in global markets, Emirates SkyCargo helps make an important economic contribution to the local economies.

In 2018, Emirates SkyCargo transported over 50,000 tonnes of flowers across the world. A majority of the flowers, over 27,000 tonnes, originated in Kenya. This is estimated to be around 15% of the overall flower exports from the nation. In January 2019, the carrier uplifted over 2,200 tonnes of flowers from Nairobi. During the same time, Emirates SkyCargo flew over 1,200 tonnes of flowers from Ecuador to Amsterdam.

Emirates SkyCargo also transports flowers in the belly hold of its passenger aircraft from other markets such as India, Thailand, Sri Lanka and Ethiopia.

Emirates SkyCargo operates a modern all wide body fleet of over 270 aircraft. Emirates SkyCargo’s fleet of Boeing 777 and Boeing 747 aircraft offer a cargo capacity of over 100 tonnes per flight. In 2018, the air cargo carrier moved closed to 2.6 million tonnes of cargo.

February 11, 2019
Emirates SkyCargo’s Rosie touches down in Barcelona for a special occasion

Emirates SkyCargo’s freighter aircraft A6-EFL, also nicknamed Rosie because of her rose decal, made a special appearance in Barcelona on the occasion of ‘The Day of the Rose’. The Catalan festival, originally St Jordi’s Day, is celebrated on the 23rd of April every year with locals gifting roses and books to one another.

Earlier this year, Emirates SkyCargo unveiled the rose decal on the Boeing 777F aircraft in Dubai on Valentine’s Day. The decal which was the first of its kind for Emirates SkyCargo highlights the carrier’s contribution to the global floriculture industry by transporting fresh flowers across the world. In 2016, Emirates SkyCargo transported over 70,000 tonnes of fresh flowers including roses across its network of over 150 destinations across six continents.

In the two months since the installation of the rose decal, Rosie has been playing her part in facilitating global trade. During this time the aircraft has travelled around the world to over 35 cities in 25 countries across six continents ranging from Australia to the United States. Rosie has also carried over 7,000 tonnes of cargo ranging from general cargo to perishables and even horses. True to her name Rosie has also transported over 550 tonnes of roses over multiple flights between Nairobi in Kenya, Quito in Ecuador to the global flower hub in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

Emirates-SkyCargo’s Rosie has travelled to 35 cities in 25 countries over the last two months

Emirates SkyCargo has been operating a weekly freighter service to Barcelona since March 2016. This service enables the carrier to move large volumes of exports out of Barcelona to other global destinations. Notable exports carried by Emirates SkyCargo from Barcelona include fashion garments, perfumery products, electrical and mechanical products and pharmaceuticals. The freighter allows for customers in Barcelona and the surrounding regions to transport outsized, heavy or unusual cargo that may not fit in the belly hold of the passenger aircraft. In addition to the freighter, Emirates SkyCargo offers customers cargo capacity on its twice daily passenger aircraft to the city.

Emirates SkyCargo is at the forefront of the air cargo industry and operates a modern fleet of 15 aircraft -13 Boeing 777-F and two Boeing 747-400ERFs. In addition to state of the art facilities at its cargo hubs in Dubai, the carrier also offers specialized transportation solutions for the food, pharmaceutical and automotive industries.

May 3, 2017
Emirates SkyCargo clinches top recognition at Global Freight Awards 2016

Emirates SkyCargo, the freight division of Emirates, has been named Air Cargo Carrier of the Year at the 20th edition of the Global Freight Awards ceremony held in London. The award was accepted by David Taylor, Emirates Cargo Sales Manager – Key Accounts in front of an audience of more than 500 guests from the global transport and freight community at a gala dinner held in London at the Lancaster London Hotel on 3 November.

Emirates SkyCargo wins Air Cargo Carrier of the Year award at Global Freight Awards 2016

The Global Freight Awards, supported by the 164 year old freight publication Lloyd’s Loading list, is held annually to recognise and reward innovative ideas and achievements that have set a benchmark for excellence in the freight industry. Emirates SkyCargo was awarded the much coveted Air cargo Carrier of the Year title for 2016 at the end of a two stage voting process open to readers of Lloyd’s Loading List. Overseen by the editorial team of the publication to ensure transparency and independence, the award represents the voice of the industry and that of Emirates SkyCargo’s customers.

Emirates SkyCargo is the largest international airline cargo operator with a fleet of over 250 wide bodied aircraft, including 15 dedicated freighters- 13 Boeing 777-Fs and two B747-400ERFs. The carrier connects cargo customers in 154 destinations across 82 countries in six continents through its hub in Dubai. A global facilitator of trade and commerce, Emirates SkyCargo operates dedicated freighter services to over 50 global destinations in addition to offering cargo capacity on board its passenger flights. Most recently, the carrier launched a weekly freighter service from Oslo to Dubai to facilitate the increasing exports of fresh sea food from the Scandinavian country to the rest of the world.

The Air Cargo Carrier of the year accolade is an immense achievement for Emirates SkyCargo. The carrier has constantly strived to create new benchmarks in the air freight industry by offering customers excellence in service delivery through state of the art infrastructure and innovative products. Leading the industry, Emirates SkyCargo launched Emirates SkyPharma- a purpose built facility for handling temperature sensitive pharmaceutical shipments earlier this year. Emirates SkyCargo’s facilities for transporting pharmaceuticals through its hubs in Dubai are not only state of the art but also certified as complying to the highest industry standards (EU GDP Guidelines) by Bureau Veritas, Germany.

Emirates SkyCargo has been at the forefront of the air cargo industry receiving a number of industry recognitions this year including the award for Overall Carrier of the Year at the Payload Asia Awards held in Hong Kong, the ‘Best Air Cargo Carrier- Middle East’ at the 2016 Asian Freight, Logistics and Supply Chain (AFLAS) Awards held in Shanghai, the ‘Best Cargo Airline Middle East 2016’ at the World Air Cargo Awards in London and the ‘Diamond Award’ at the Air Cargo Excellence Awards 2016 in Berlin.

November 14, 2016