Turkish Cargo becomes Europe’s top air cargo firm

ISTANBUL

Turkish Cargo, the rising logistics brand of Turkish Airlines, has ranked first in Europe and fourth in the world among air cargo companies with its total transportation performance, according to the World Air Transport Statistics published annually by the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

According to Freight ton-kilometers (FTK) data, the company showed a transportation performance of 9.2 million tons in 2021, increasing its business volume by 32 percent and surpassing Europe’s leading air cargo brands to reach the top.

“As the world’s fastest-growing air cargo brand, we continue to add value to the air cargo industry with our contributions to the supply chain and to resolutely maintain our critical role in increasing the competitiveness of global trade,” Turkish Airlines CEO Ahmet Bolat said in a statement.

“By carrying this success of Turkish Cargo in Europe to all over the world, we are rapidly moving towards our goal of being one of the top three air cargo brands in the world by 2025,” he added.

As a result of the fleet, infrastructure, process and quality improvement investments made by Turkish Cargo in 2017, the company has managed to increase its global ranking from 22nd to fourth and its market share from 2.6 percent to 5.2 percent in the last five years.

Having 13 cargo planes in its fleet in 2017, the company increased this number by 53.8 percent in 2022, bringing the number of aircraft to 20. Depending on the expansion in the fleet, the number of destinations that Turkish Cargo flies to with cargo planes nearly doubled, reaching 100.

Turkish Airlines has become the airline that organizes flights to most international destinations in cargo as well as passenger transportation. Thanks to the air bridges established by Turkish Cargo, Turkish exporters can establish direct commercial connections with approximately 85 percent of the world’s total GNP.

Turkish Cargo, which plays a critical role both in Türkiye and on a global scale, with its market share in world health products increasing by 8 percent during the pandemic period, organized more than 6,500 Pax-free (passenger aircraft converted into cargo aircraft) flights to overcome the capacity shortage.

In addition, SMARTIST, which became operational in 2021, is the largest and most modern air cargo facility in Europe in terms of facility capacity and technological infrastructure.