IAG Cargo has announced its Q2 2020 results, reporting commercial revenues of €369m over the period from April 1 to June 30, 2020, an increase of 33.1% on the same period in 2019 at constant currency.

Overall yields for the quarter were up 224.7% to the same time last year at constant currency, reflecting the extra costs of cargo-only flying and dedicated charters and a significantly changed flying programme. Sold tonnes were down 51.2%.

Lynne Embleton, CEO at IAG Cargo, commented: “Q2 was, of course, dominated by the Covid pandemic. As passenger aircraft were grounded across the world, our teams adapted to ensure IAG Cargo continued to play a crucial role in supporting global trade and the movement of essential goods in these extraordinary times.

“We rapidly developed one of the most comprehensive networks of scheduled cargo-only flights available; a network of over 340 scheduled flights per week built around our customers’ needs and tailored to the most important cargo flows. We have reconfigured aircraft to maximise cargo capacity, removing seats and using overhead lockers. These were important capacity solutions, albeit ones that brought additional operational complexity and cost.

“In addition to our scheduled cargo-only services, our newly established charter team has worked closely with commercial entities and governments to develop bespoke capacity solutions. During this second quarter we operated 615 charters, including 416 critical supply operations for the British, Irish and Spanish authorities. To date we have helped governments and private customers transport over 11,000 tonnes of PPE and medical supplies on these charters. We also saw additional PPE tonnage transported across our scheduled flights.

“In short, we have met the challenge of COVID-19 head on.

“The pandemic continues to greatly impact the air cargo industry and businesses at large. For aviation, this is most clearly evident in the sustained restrictions on passenger movements, and, for cargo specifically, on the impact on the global economy.

“It has been a busy and challenging three months. We are pleased to be supporting our customers throughout this unpredictable and changeable operating environment.”