From January 29 to February 13, demand for Valentine’s Day flowers marks one of the busiest seasons for American Airlines Cargo, and team members around the world rose to the occasion this year.
On average, the airline ships more than 1 million lbs of flowers during this time each year. And the floral love keeps on growing, especially in Amsterdam. This year American moved 417 tonnes of cut flowers from the Dutch capital, or 920,000 lbs. – a 15% increase over the 358 tonnes (790,000 lbs.) of flowers moved in 2019.
From the farm to the famous Aalsmeer flower auction, exporters buy the blooms to send off around the world. From there, American either flies them directly to Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) or trucks them to London Heathrow Airport (LHR) to be flown to destinations such as New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Dallas/Fort Worth, New York, Los Angeles, and Miami.
While Amsterdam and London are both top exporters for the Valentine’s rush, Miami also plays a large role in flower traffic during this time of year.
In 2019, American shipped 235,000 lbs pounds of flowers – notably roses and gypsophilia (baby’s breath) from its Miami hub during the two weeks leading up to Valentine’s Day. Many of these shipments originated in South America – primarily Quito, Ecuador, and Bogota, Colombia – destined for the US and other international locations.
