Finnair Cargo to launch India service

"The new freighter services offer fast connections between India and northern Europe. According to our customers, there is a great need for cargo capacity, especially between Nordic countries and Mumbai," Finnair Cargo's vice president (global sales) Pertti Mero said.

According to the company, the move was in line with the airline's plan to expand its operations to leverage the transit traffic between Asia and Europe.

"This is in line with Finnair Cargo's vision to be number one in the Nordic countries and to be the most desired option in transit traffic between Asia and Europe. According to our plans, North America and India will be a natural expansion direction," the firm's senior vice president Antero J. Lahtinen said.

The new service will be started in co-operation with Nordic Global Airlines Ltd (NGA), a new all-cargo airline based in Helsinki, in which Finnair Cargo is a minority shareholder. The service would be operated once a week on a Boeing MD-11F aircraft.

Currently, Finnair Cargo provides freighter service to and from Frankfurt, Hong Kong, New York, Seoul and Shanghai.