Qatar Airways Cargo launches service at MIA

MIAMI – Within three years of launching passenger service at Miami International Airport, Qatar Airways is continuing its expansion at the gateway hub with two weekly cargo-only flights that began on February 3. Qatar Airways Cargo is using Boeing 777 freighters to fly twice a week from Doha via Luxembourg, the cargo carrier’s European hub, with stops in: Sao Paulo, Brazil; Buenos Aires, Argentina; and Quito, Ecuador. On the return trip, the freighter will stop in Miami and Liege, Belgium, before arriving in Doha. Officials from MIA and Qatar Airways Cargo celebrated the new service with a reception on February 13, after a return flight from Quito. "We proudly welcome Qatar Airways Cargo’s new freighter service to Miami-Dade County," said Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos A. Gimenez. “Our community already benefits from the daily world-class passenger service Qatar Airways provides to Doha, and we look forward to the additional impact its cargo service will have on our local economy.” “We appreciate Qatar Airways Cargo for choosing MIA as a strategic hub for its Latin American cargo operations,” said Miami-Dade Aviation Director Emilio T. González. “As the busiest U.S. airport for international freight and for cargo traffic within the Americas, we expect them to see continued success on their new Miami cargo routes.” Qatar Airways Cargo will handle major temperature-sensitive commodities out of Sao Paulo, Buenos Aires and Quito such as fresh flowers and pharmaceuticals, in addition to high-value imports into South America including medicine, automotive equipment, chemical products, high-tech commodities and equipment for the oil and gas industry.

“We would like to thank MIA, local authorities and our valued customers for their tremendous support in making our newly launched freighter services in Miami another great success,” said Mr. Ulrich Ogiermann, Qatar Airways’ Chief Officer Cargo. “Florida is an exporting powerhouse equipped with robust trade and supply chain infrastructure. We have been anticipating this excellent opportunity to expand our capacity and services into Miami in parallel with Florida’s trade growth as we aim to connect its export businesses with more than 150 destinations around the world via our state-of-the-art Doha hub.” MIA broke its 2015 record for total annual freight traffic last year, growing 0.37 percent to 2.18 million tons in 2016. MIA also continued to be among the world’s top 10 hubs for international freight, with 1.9 million tons of international shipments last year.