IAG Cargo has announced its Q1 results from January 1 to March 31, 2014, reporting commercial revenue (flown revenue plus fuel surcharges) of €250 million versus €270 million for the same period last year. Volumes of 1,371 million cargo tonne kilometres (CTKs) for the year increased by 0.5 per cent compared to Q1, 2013. Capacity remained broadly flat. Overall yield (commercial revenue per CTK) for this quarter was down 3.8 per cent at constant exchange rates. Steve Gunning, CEO at IAG Cargo, commented: “The Q1 results are consistent with the weak market conditions that continue to prevail. In such conditions, we continue to maintain our capacity discipline and resist taking business that does not make a positive contribution. We are pleased that our load factor has shown a modest improvement especially as it was the final quarter of our wet-leased freighter programme. “The quarter has seen considerable developments in our business, which meet our customers’ needs and enable the business to be even more competitive. “From a network perspective, our newest route to Austin, Texas is already proving to be highly successful with high load factors after only two months of operation. Capacity to Tel Aviv has been boosted by the introduction of wide-bodied aircraft, which supports Constant Climate our industry-leading pharma product. Finally, we have announced that next-generation aircraft will operate on several key routes including Singapore and Hyderabad. In addition, in early May our new freighter programme with Qatar Airways was launched smoothly with strong volumes. We are already further developing this programme to expand the network reach. “We’ve also started the rapid roll-out of the electronic Consignment Security Declaration (known as eCSD) across our business. This is in addition to the continued implementation of our new revenue management system and eAWB. These initiatives are making good progress and enable our customers to do business with us more easily. “These business changes are part of a clear strategy that is focused on better understanding and meeting our customers’ needs. With these developments and others in progress, IAG Cargo is moving forward with real momentum and we look ahead to the rest of the year with cautious optimism.”