Cuba courts Volga for new cargo hub

RUSSIA’s Ministry of Transport has invited Volga-Dnepr Group to participate in a project to explore the potential development of an air cargo hub in Havana, Cuba. The first Transport Working Group involved in the project met in the city at the end of March. The opportunity for Volga-Dnepr to participate in the project, followed negotiations between Russian and Cuban government officials.

At the first meeting of the Transport Working Group – consisting of Volga-Dnepr, Cubana de Aviacion and AeroVaradero – it was agreed to establish a Joint Working Team to undertake a detailed analysis of air cargo flows from the Americas to Western Europe, the Middle East and Far East, CIS and Russia. The main objective of the review is to assess the potential for increased efficiency of air cargo services that would result from having a hub at Jose Marti Airport, Havana. The subsequent data will be used to formulate a business plan that will allow a decision to be taken on the viability of the potential new hub by 2011.

In support of the project, Volga-Dnepr will complete an exhaustive analysis of business opportunities in the region to determine whether flight operations to Jose Marti by Volga-Dnepr Airlines and the group’s scheduled cargo airline, AirBridgeCargo, are commercially viable.

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