Etihad Cargo is upgrading its winter schedule network, with both freighter and passenger routes being refreshed.

Weekly freighter flights to Columbus, Ohio will now go via Europe, stopping off in Frankfurt, Germany on the way out and Amsterdam, the Netherlands on the way back.

The flights to Ohio’s Rickenbacker International Airport will be supported by road feeder services to other US destinations, and a second flight is planned with an additional European gateway by the end of the year.

Supporting North American growth, Christel Alaimo has joined from Flexport to take up the role of area manager – North America.

Abdulla Mohamed Shadid, managing director cargo and logistics services at Etihad Aviation Group says: “As a strategic addition to our US team, Christel will significantly boost our Stateside operation as an invaluable in-market resource to drive growth across North America and spearhead plans to provide additional connectivity to our customers across the US.”

Johannesburg, South Africa will join the freighter network with a weekly Boeing 777F flight to OR Tambo International Airport from 5 October.

It will act as a seasonal gateway for perishables and other goods, complementing existing belly-hold capacity on daily flights to Johannesburg, Cairo, Casablanca, Rabat and Lagos.

The belly-hold network will be upgraded with a fourth daily flight to London Heathrow from 27 October, and the second daily service to Paris Charles de Gaulle being swapped from an Airbus A380 to a Boeing 777.

Airbus A330s will be replaced on routes to Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, Bangalore’s Kempegowda International Airport and OR Tambo with a Boeing 787 to increase capacity.

Shadid says: “The refresh ensures we can adequately support demand from our growing and valued customer base. The network expansion has been achieved through efficient route streamlining resulting in minor service reductions on some routes without any route cancellations.”