A China Cargo Airlines (CCA) flight took off from Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport to Los Angeles, the U.S., on Monday – a first for the airline, according to Shenzhen Special Zone Daily.
This is Shenzhen airport’s second international cargo route and first intercontinental cargo route launched this year after China Central Longhao Airlines added a route to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, on Jan. 6.
CAA’s new cargo route runs four times a week and is operated by a Boeing 777 freighter.
So far, the number of flights on the all-cargo aircraft route from Shenzhen airport to Los Angeles has been increased to 12 per week, boosting North American cargo route capacity.
Shenzhen airport currently has 51 freight waypoints including 31 international and regional ones, which is a new high.
Shenzhen airport’s annual cargo and mail throughput increased by 12.1 percent year on year to 1.56 million tons in 2021, ranking third among the top 10 airports on the Chinese mainland.
International and regional cargo volume increased by 26.8 percent year on year to 650,000 tons, accounting for 41.5 percent of the total.
In 2021, Shenzhen airport introduced eight new cargo airlines including Atlas Air and Southern Air, and added 17 international cargo routes to Chicago, Los Angeles, Bangkok, Singapore, Cologne and Paris.