In mid-March, United Airlines took steps to manage the historic impact of COVID-19 and began flying a portion of its Boeing 777 and 787 fleets as dedicated cargo-only flights to transport air freight to and from U.S. hubs and key international business locations across Europe and beyond. More than ever, providing reliable cargo transportation was vitally important and the United Cargo team stepped up to support its customers.
Although airlines are facing the most challenging environment its industry has ever experienced, United Airlines is very excited to celebrate a major milestone. Since 19 March 2020, United has operated over 5,000 cargo-only flightsglobally, transporting over83 million kilogrammes of cargo on these flights alone. More than a fifth of these flights have departed from the EMEAI region, with over 1,100cargo-only flights, carrying over 22 million kilogrammes, operating across the Atlantic from Amsterdam/Netherlands, Mumbai/India, Brussels/Belgium, Delhi/India, Rome/Italy, Frankfurt/Germany, London Heathrow/United Kingdom, Milan/Italy, Tel Aviv/Israel and Zurich/Switzerland.
With an increased need to keep the global supply chain moving, and an even more urgent need for medical supplies, United knew it had to utilise its network capabilities and personnel to move vital shipments, such as medical kits, personal protective equipment (PPE), pharmaceuticals and medical equipment between its U.S. hubs and key international destinations.
In cooperation with freight forwarders and partners all over the world, United Cargo helped transport more than 53 million kilogrammes of medical supplies to aid in the fight against COVID-19, using a combination of cargo-only flights as well as passenger flights.
“United has played a critical role in keeping global supply chains stable during the pandemic as we deliver urgently needed goods around the world,” said Jan Krems, President, United Cargo. “These past few months have created challenges that I have never seen in my 30-plus years of experience working within the air cargo and freight forwarding industry. I’m proud of our teams for staying focused on our mission to provide high-quality service and to keep our customers connected with the goods they need most.”
United offers a comprehensive European network of cargo flights to the U.S,, including from Frankfurt/Germany, Amsterdam/Netherlands, Brussels/Belgium, London/United Kingdom, Dublin/Ireland, Zurich/Switzerland, Rome/Italy and Paris/France.
