Panalpina expands controlled air freight network to Brazil

Panalpina is expanding its controlled air freight network by adding a full-freighter service to Brazil. As of March, Panalpina will not only operate scheduled charter flights from Hong Kong to Huntsville, but also from Huntsville to São Paulo. The extended service is part of the recently renewed long-term agreement between Panalpina and Atlas Air. It offers scheduled main deck capacity to South America from the US and a record transit time of less than 40 hours from Hong Kong to São Paulo.

“Our customers in the US have a need for fast and efficient connections to Brazil. The new set-up with Atlas Air, where we switched one of our wet-leased aircraft to 200 scheduled charters per year, allows us to meet this demand effectively,” explains Lucas Kuehner, global head of Air Freight at Panalpina.

As of 3 March 2015, Panalpina will initially operate two flights per week from Huntsville to Viracopos, São Paulo, with dedicated scheduled charters using Atlas Air 747-400 freighters.

The direct service from Huntsville to São Paulo, called Brazil Wings, has been specifically designed for customers in the Midwest and in parts of the Southeastern United States. The new service is tailored to companies that manufacture heavy machines and equipment for agriculture and mining. Brazil, with its large agricultural and mining industries, is an interesting market for these companies, but getting the goods there can be challenging. So far, the companies had to export via large, congested airports with limited freighter capacity.

“We offer an alternative – scheduled main deck capacity to Brazil from an uncongested airport that puts high priority on cargo,” says Roberto Schiavone, head of Air Freight for the region Americas at Panalpina. “Export cargo can be easily trucked to our unique air freight gateway in Huntsville. There we offer an airside facility and short distances. This allows for fast expediting and full control on the ground. In addition, customers benefit from cargo consolidation and customs clearance services.”

Panalpina provides road feeder services from over ten major US cities to Huntsville on a daily basis. From the Chicago area, with its important manufacturing base, transport to Huntsville takes as little as 16 hours. Panalpina also manages import customs clearance and delivery to the final destination in Brazil, thus providing a full door-to-door service.

The freighter flights from Huntsville to São Paulo connect seamlessly with the freighter flights coming in from Hong Kong. As an extension of the recently announced twice-weekly Hong Kong-to-Huntsville service with Atlas Air charters, Panalpina can now offer one of the fastest transit times from the Far East to South America. “We can fly cargo from Hong Kong to Viracopos via Huntsville in less than 40 hours,” says Matthias Frey, global head of Panalpina’s controlled air freight network.

“The new service to Brazil showcases what we can offer to customers,” adds Kuehner. “We route our flights and offer freighter capacity to suit particular customer requirements. We address unmet needs and offer end-to-end solutions.”