The American airfreight map is getting a makeover, and smart carriers are clamoring for their erasers. While the Asia-Pacific routes that once seemed bulletproof have started to show cracks, the Americas have become the new promised land for freight operators looking to dodge economic turbulence and chase better yields. The numbers don’t lie about this continental shift. Global cargo demand climbed 2.2 percent year-on-year (YoY) in May 2025, but there’s a plot twist: traffic on the Asia–North America lane plummeted 10.7 percent during the same period, according to IATA’s May 2025 update. That’s more than a slight dip, it’s an alarm telling carriers to rebalance capacity away from soft transpacific flows toward lanes offering steadier returns.
Meeting regional demand
By July, the picture brightened as demand accelerated to 5.5 percent YoY, proving that carriers with nimble networks could capitalise on the rebound faster than their rigid competitors. Airlines aren’t just sitting around hoping for better days. They’re actively reallocating freighters and tightening schedules with surgical precision. Several major operators have trimmed marginal transpacific frequencies while pumping up capacity into the Americas and across the Atlantic, chasing lucrative e-commerce, perishables, and pharmaceutical flows that pay the bills.
LATAM Cargo showcases this strategic pivot, announcing additional B767F operations that boost weekly freighter frequencies between South America and Europe by roughly 25 percent, complementing its Miami-focused network operations. Meanwhile, Avianca Cargo has mastered the art of seasonal flexibility, staging dedicated flower flights and expanding infrastructure around Miami and Bogotá to handle peak perishables without disrupting core schedules during crucial flower season periods.
Hub hierarchy
While Miami remains the undisputed king of north-south flows, carriers are increasingly leaning on Bogotá, São Paulo/Guarulhos, Mexico City, and Dallas–Fort Worth for handling perishables, pharmaceuticals, and other premium express cargo. These strategic locations offer faster aircraft turns, extensive trucking networks, and customs processes tailor-made for fast shipping.
The game plan involves stitching together shorter, higher-frequency sectors. Think Bogotá–Miami–US Northeast or Mexico–Texas–Midwest routes, allowing customers to access daily capacity with reduced exposure to long-haul disruptions that can devastate express supply chains.
With fuel and labour costs remaining high, the cargo mix is tilting decisively toward higher-yield commodities: life sciences, premium seafood, fresh produce, and express e-commerce. Products demanding tighter service are being scaled rapidly. To meet demand American Airlines Cargo has extended 24/7 live tracking to shipments in temperature-controlled units under its ExpediteTC programme while enabling self-service booking capabilities.
Planning for the long haul
Boeing’s 2025 Commercial Market Outlook projects the global freighter fleet will expand approximately 67 percent from 2,375 aircraft in 2024 to 3,975 by 2044, with growth driven heavily by passenger-to-freighter conversions of mid-size twins ideal for express operations.
The Americas benefit from powerful structural advantages. Nearshoring trends to Mexico, steady perishables exports from Andean countries, and Brazil’s industrial recovery are pulling capacity southward and creating new opportunities. The region offers shorter stage lengths, faster asset utilisation, and multiple gateway options. As July’s demand rebound showed, carriers maintaining flexible intra-Americas and transatlantic networks can capture growth surges without overcommitting to volatile routes that drain profitability and tie up valuable aircraft assets.
Re-routing the future
Looking ahead, expect more frequency-driven schedules, tighter coordination with integrators and forwarders, and selective freighter deployments into premium cargo clusters around Miami, Bogotá, Mexico City, São Paulo, and Dallas–Fort Worth connecting key regional markets.
The winning strategy won’t be deploying more aircraft, it’ll be strategically deploying smarter aircraft with greater operational flexibility in dynamic markets where demand signals burn bright and profit margins remain primed for sustained long-term growth.
