AA Cargo adds another European link

AMERICAN Airlines Cargo (AA Cargo) is strengthening its European links by adding a new direct service between Helsinki (Finland) and Chicago (US).
In April the cargo unit commenced flights from Chicago to Dublin (Ireland), as well as New York (US) to Budapest (Hungary). AA has also started new flights to Haneda (Tokyo) and Shanghai (China) this year.
“American Airlines Cargo is committed to growing our direct services to northern Europe, and this is just one more example of that effort,” Tristan Koch, managing director of European cargo sales, said. “Chicago is a key gateway that provides our European customers with unparalleled access to global routes and we are pleased to be building our network to meet their needs.”
With current high fuel charges AA’s expansion comes at a cost to cargo providers as the airline has increased its fuel surcharges at least once a month this year. The increments of US$0.05/kg in most international markets and $0.02/lb for US domestic shipments went from every four weeks to a fortnightly hike. The fuel surcharge amount went from $0.70 per kilo on 30 December 2010 to $1.05 per kilo on 5 May 2011.
Effectively the cost of shipping one ton of goods on the international market has gone up $35 in the space of four months. As an example, the cost to fill a 777F with a capacity of 103 tonnes for international markets has risen by $3,605 since January. If the increments continue this will mean it will cost $10,000 more to fill up a 777F at the end of the year than it did at the beginning.