Katowice-Pyrzowice Airport will be the first one to offer direct all cargo flights from Poland to North America. A weekly trans-Atlantic flight between Hamilton International Airport near Toronto, Canada and Katowice will be operated every Saturday. The schedules have been designed to meet the increasing needs and requirements of air cargo shippers in North America and Eastern Europe.
This strategic aircraft wet lease agreement was signed between Cargojet Income Fund (the “Fund”), Canada’s leading domestic premium overnight air cargo network operator, and LOT Polish Airlines effective November 7, 2009.
“Katowice Airport is situated in the Upper Silesian Industrial Region, which is one of the most industrialized areas in Poland. The location of the airport allows a time efficient delivery to destinations in Poland as well as Eastern and Central Europe,” says Mariusz Kuczek Director and General Manager Cargo & Mail Bureau of LOT Polish Airlines. LOT is the only airline which offers direct transatlantic flights from Poland to Canada and the USA.
“We are very excited to be the first North American all cargo operator to introduce this new freighter service. The B767-200 Extended Range freighter aircraft will allow us to provide significant international air cargo capacity, as the global economy rebounds,” says Ajay K. Virmani, President and CEO of the Fund.
In Canada the goods will be transported to their destination point by Cargojet. If the destination point is outside Canada LOT Polish Airlines has many interline agreements, which enable the cargo to be flown or trucked to any city within the USA as well as Central and South America.
Cargojet is Canada’s leading provider of time sensitive overnight air cargo services. Cargojet operates its network across North America transporting over 750,000 pounds of time sensitive air cargo each business night, utilizing a fleet of forty-one all cargo aircraft.
based on cargojet.com
According to Gazeta Wyborcza, Katowice Airport was chosen from among other Polish airports in Warsaw, Cracow and Łódź which were pretending to service Cargojet flights. It was possible thanks to a perfect localization and roads network which is still developing. The new cargo flight ties in with an expansion of Katowice Airport. A transshipment base including new airdocks, warehouses and car parks for trucks will be developed until 2013 thanks to EUR 16 million. The airport secured necessary plots already.