Emirates SkyCargo will open a new trade lane to South America with weekly freighter services to Bogota, Colombia from 16 January.

The Colombian capital will become Emirates SkyCargo’s sixth South American cargo destination, and third served by freighter aircraft.

Flight EK9930 will arrive in Bogota at 22.00h local time on Wednesday and depart from the city at 00.05h local time on Thursday.

A Boeing 777 Freighter will be used on the route, offering over 100 tonnes of cargo capacity and main deck doors allowing for the transportation of large and outsized cargo.

Emirates SkyCargo will work with Avianca for the freighter service out of Bogota, with the Latin American carrier will commercialise the capacity of the 777F on its return leg to Maastricht.

The two airlines are working on a deeper development, where Emirates SkyCargo will assist Avianca to transport cargo across the Middle East, Africa and Asia, while Avianca will help Emirates SkyCargo strengthen its reach in South America.

Hiran Perera, senior vice president – cargo planning and freighters at Emirates SkyCargo says South America is one of the airline’s main focus regions and has a lot of potential for air cargo capacity.

He says: “We are also delighted to be working with Avianca for this freighter service and we look forward to strengthening our partnership to facilitate more trade between customers in South America and the rest of the world.”

Emirates SkyCargo transports cargo on passenger and freighter services to and from Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro, Santiago, Viracopos and Quito.

With the addition of Bogota, Emirates SkyCargo will be able to offer 500 tonnes of cargo capacity a week to South American customers.