FedEx begins its first direct Singapore-US air cargo service

New Alaska route geared to general cargo, not express shipments

FedEx cargo aircraft rest May 12, 2024, on a dedicated ramp at Ted Stevens International Airport in Anchorage, Alaska, ready to deliver parcels and larger shipments around the world. (Photo: Shutterstock/GingChen)

FedEx Corp. has introduced its first direct flight from Singapore to its regional hub in Anchorage, Alaska. The first direct connection for FedEx from Singapore to the United States is tailored to support shippers of heavier, palletized cargo rather than its express parcel network.

The integrated logistics provider said Tuesday it will operate the route six times per week with a Boeing 777 freighter jet from Changi Airport to Anchorage, a major connection point for daily services to cities in the Lower 48. The aerospace, health care, industrial, high-tech and semiconductor industries are expected to be primary users of the new service.

FedEx (NYSE: FDX) said it will operate a backhaul flight from Anchorage to Singapore once a week, with plans to expand frequency to five flights per week in the summer. 

The flight improves transit times, allowing shipments picked up in Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand on Saturday to arrive in the U.S. a day earlier, on Monday. Businesses shipping from across this dynamic region will enjoy enhanced connectivity when importing and exporting to the U.S.

The new Singapore-Anchorage service is part of FedEx’s buildout of a deferred air cargo network to compete with freighter operators for traditional cargo typically tendered by freight forwarders. The so-called Tricolor strategy is designed to better utilize airline assets by going after new business amid weaker parcel shipping demand. FedEx executives have said their daytime Orange network is the air equivalent to less-than-truckload service.

Click here for more FreightWaves/American Shipper stories by Eric Kulisch.

Write to Eric Kulisch at ekulisch@freightwaves.com.

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Eric Kulisch

Eric is the Parcel and Air Cargo Editor at FreightWaves. An award-winning business journalist with extensive experience covering the logistics sector, Eric spent nearly two years as the Washington, D.C., correspondent for Automotive News, where he focused on regulatory and policy issues surrounding autonomous vehicles, mobility, fuel economy and safety. He has won two regional Gold Medals and a Silver Medal from the American Society of Business Publication Editors for government and trade coverage, and news analysis. He was voted best for feature writing and commentary in the Trade/Newsletter category by the D.C. Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. He was runner up for News Journalist and Supply Chain Journalist of the Year in the Seahorse Freight Association's 2024 journalism award competition. In December 2022, Eric was voted runner up for Air Cargo Journalist. He won the group's Environmental Journalist of the Year award in 2014 and was the 2013 Supply Chain Journalist of the Year. As associate editor at American Shipper Magazine for more than a decade, he wrote about trade, freight transportation and supply chains. He has appeared on Marketplace, ABC News and National Public Radio to talk about logistics issues in the news. Eric is based in Vancouver, Washington. He can be reached for comments and tips at ekulisch@freightwaves.com