Cargoitalia adds Atlanta

Cargoitalia – Italy’s all-cargo flag-carrier – will commence MD11 freighter services from Milan to Atlanta on February 2nd, providing the only through maindeck cargo link between the two cities.

Atlanta will be served twice-weekly from Milan, using Cargoitalia’s 90-tonne capacity MD11 freighters, arriving Monday and Thursday. Both services will operate via New York JFK, while return flights will route direct from Atlanta to Milan.

Cargotalia’s new Atlanta-Milan services will be marketed by Heavyweight Air Express, which represents the airline throughout the USA. Heavyweight previously sold the airline’s capacity in the Atlanta area using road feeder services to connect to its flights from Chicago. Heavyweight will also use the new flights to market Cargoitalia’s Dubai and Sharjah services via its Milan hub.

Says Cargoitalia Commercial Director Roberto Gilardoni: “Atlanta is one of the most important air cargo gateways in the USA, and therefore a must-have city in our growing network.

“The new Atlanta services open up the important Texas market with its oil-related industry, along with the rest of the southern states. We also now have the ability to serve Miami overnight, which in turn creates potential for interline agreements with carriers serving central and south America.”

Adds City of Atlanta Mayor, Kasim Reed: “Our freight forwarders have been asking for more airlift capacity to Europe. Cargoitalia is a world-class, all-cargo airline that meets this need, and I am confident it will serve our customers well in the years to come. Air cargo has a huge economic impact on Atlanta and the metropolitan area, and I am committed to growing this vital business sector.”

Atlanta will be the third USA destination to be added by Cargoitalia, following its introduction of New York in 2009 and Chicago in 2010. Chicago will now receive its first upgrade to direct services from Milan on Thursdays (replacing the previous routing via New York), with a continuation of flights via New York on Saturdays. New York continues with twice-weekly direct services from Milan, on Wednesday and Sunday.

Elsewhere, the airline is considering the addition of a third frequency from Milan to Shanghai subject to market conditions, and meanwhile continues to offer ad hoc freighter capacity for charters.

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About Cargoitalia S.p.A. (Cargoitalia)

Cargoitalia was re-launched under new ownership in April 2009. In May 2009, the airline took delivery of its first MD11SF freighter, in July it received its AOC, in August it took delivery of a second MD11SF and commenced ad hoc charter operations, and in September 2009 it started scheduled operations to Hong Kong and New York.

In 2010, the airline added Dubai and Chicago to its destination network. In May, it took delivery of its third MD11 freighter – a brand new passenger-to-freighter conversion from Singapore-based SASCO, embodying a number of design improvements over its first two aircraft. In September, Cargoitalia began twice-weekly flights to Shanghai.

Cargoitalia’s owners are ALIS Holding (66.7%) and Intesa SanPaolo (33.3%). ALIS Holding in turn is owned by the family of Chairman and CEO Alcide Leali (62%), other private investors (8%), and Ricerca S.p.A. (Benetton), Selin S.p.A. (van den Heuvel) and Banca Intermobiliare, each having 10% stakes.

About Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport:
Hartsfield-Jackson is the world’s busiest airport, serving more than 90 million passengers annually with nonstop service to 160 U.S. destinations and more than 90 international destinations in 55 countries. Hartsfield-Jackson is also a leading U.S. cargo airport, receiving several awards for its cargo operations, including Air Cargo Week’s Airport of the Year (2010, 2009) and Air Cargo World magazine’s Award of Excellence for the best North American cargo operations in its category (2010, 2009). Hartsfield-Jackson offers a geographically desirable location for cargo carriers and freight forwarders that want to expand their global networks with lower operating costs. Companies readily can connect with air, road and railway transportation systems in Atlanta. For more information, go to www.atlanta-airport.com. Check out the Airport’s YouTube channel by visiting www.youtube.com/AtlantaHartsfield, and become a fan on Facebook.