News / Geodis inks deal with Atlas Air and mas to capitalise on growing LatAm trade

Geodis

Shippers trying to connect Asia to South America by air could see a slew of new options after Geodis signed a strategic interline agreement with Atlas Air and Mexico’s mas.

The move focuses on connectivity for trade via Colombia, Brazil, Panama, Chile, and Costa Rica, and the deal also includes direct links from Asia (eg, Hong Kong), via Mexico, offering customers in Europe and Asia expanded freighter capacity, reliability and network reach – with a particular focus on Brazil.

The three companies said the interline arrangement would offer “seamless operational integration” between them, allowing cargo transfers across their flights and promising customers smoother, faster, and more reliable delivery options.

“Airfreight demand in and out of Central and South America has grown by more than 30% over the last 12 months,” said Henri Le Gouis, EVP, global freight forwarding, at Geodis.

“This interline agreement reinforces our commitment to providing a broader, more reliable network and increased capacity.”

Mas CEO Robert Van De Weg added that the deal “highlights the value of collaboration … delivering greater flexibility and reliability for our customers”.

Although individual airlines have added capacity out of Latin America, overall freighter capacity remains partly constrained. Atlas Air has grown its capacity 38% on Europe–LatAm routes and 28% on North America–LatAm in the year to date, but market-wide, freighter capacity is down 11% from Europe to LatAm this year, while North America–LatAm is up just 6%.

The timing of the interline deal coincides with new routes offered by other airlines to and from Europe, showing growing demand. In October, Latam Cargo boosted its Europe–South America freighter operations to 15 weekly, a 25% increase in capacity or 750 tons weekly.

It also introduced a new direct cargo route, São Paulo-Recife-Brussels, the first time exports from north-east Brazil gained direct cargo access to Europe.

Latam also launched a new direct freighter service from Brussels to São José dos Campos on 2 October, initially weekly, with plans to increase to two weekly flights over the winter season, or some 50 tons a week.

Avianca Cargo has also boosted its European presence with twice-weekly A330F flights. The service connects Quito–Miami–Maastricht–Zaragoza, building on a triangular operation Avianca previously ran using an Ethiopian 777F carrying ecommerce from China to Ecuador and flowers to the Netherlands.

Avianca Cargo reported a 15.5% rise in Q2 revenues, crediting resilient LatAm–EU trade flows. Forwarders in Brazil and Colombia report steady year-on-year growth in both imports and exports, especially in perishables, high-value goods, pharmaceuticals, and ecommerce.

While the focus thus far has been on Europe-Latin America, this new agreement will boost transpacific routes for Asian exports to Latin America.