Jade Cargo marketing partnership transfers from Swiss to Lufthansa

Jade Cargo marketing partnership transfers from Swiss to Lufthansa Lufthansa Cargo and Jade Cargo International said this week they are extending a cooperative agreement, with Lufthansa Cargo responsible for marketing the air freight capacity of its Sino-German cargo subsidiary on routes from Europe to Asia.
   The Blocked Space Agreement will apply to all Jade Cargo International’s routes from Europe and will be valid through March 2009. Under terms of the agreement, the sales partnership between Jade Cargo International and Swiss WorldCargo will be transferred to Lufthansa Cargo, which owns Swiss WorldCargo.
   “Taking over Jade’s capacities ex-Europe will enable us to expand our services and offer our customers attractive, direct flights from major economic centers in Europe to the flourishing Pearl River Delta region and the commercial metropolis of Shanghai,” said Andreas Otto, a Lufthansa Cargo executive board member responsible for product and sales, in a statement.
   “It makes sense with the emergence of the Lufthansa Cargo Group to assign roles and tasks to specific group members,” said Oliver Evans, chief cargo officer for Swiss WorldCargo. “Swiss WorldCargo is a niche specialist, with unique strengths in the delivery of high value-added products, and we have decided to focus on opportunities to apply those specific strengths within and outside the group.”
   “On routes to Asia, Jade Cargo International will be able to offer non-stop flights on routes that were previously only served indirectly via the Frankfurt hub,” said Kay Kratky, chief executive officer of Jade Cargo, which is based in Shenzhen.
   Jade flies to Shenzhen and Shanghai Pudong from Amsterdam, Barcelona, Brescia, Luxembourg and Stockholm. From Shenzhen, Jade provides connections to the Asian economic centers of Osaka and Seoul. As part of the capacity expansion, Frankfurt and Chinese Tianjin Airport will be integrated into Jade’s route network.
   Jade is jointly owned by Shenzhen Airlines and Lufthansa Cargo, with a 25 percent stake.