Mike King, Special Correspondent | Jun 20, 2012 9:56AM EDT
Emirates is expanding it air freight capacity to Iraq after seeing demand soar.
The airline will launch a four times per week service to Erbil in August to complement existing services to Basra and Baghdad from its Dubai hub. The service, which will see the deployment of an Airbus 340-300, will be boosted to daily at the start of September.
Erbil, located in the Iraqi Kurdistan region, boasts huge oil reserves and a number of ongoing large-scale construction projects including a $1.6 billion media center.
Emirates SkyCargo, the freight division of Emirates, has been operating a thrice-weekly freighter service to the city since February last year mainly transporting machinery and parts for the oil and gas industry.
The new passenger flight, which is able to carry 13 tonnes in the bellyhold, will increase Emirates’ weekly capacity from Erbil to more than 400 metric tons, said the airline.
Contact Mike King at michael@borderline.eu.com.
