American Airlines Cargo maintains a wide network

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Lorena Sandoval, managing director of Florida, Caribbean and Latin America for American Airlines Cargo


Even with reductions in capacity, Brazil remains an important market for American Airlines Cargo, managing director of Florida, Caribbean and Latin America Lorena Sandoval (pictured) tells Air Cargo Week.

Despite having less capacity than in 2018, AA Cargo is still the largest wide-body operator into Brazil, which Sandoval says provides good options for shipper and freight forwarder customers.

The peak season is looking good for perishables, when they traditionally move from Brazil to the USA and beyond.

Sandoval says: “A key attribute of the Brazilian market is in the variety of items we carry on our aircraft. We certainly handle a lot of exports of items such as mangoes, papaya and fish and there are also considerable volumes of automotive parts, machinery parts, and leather.”

AA Cargo flies to Sao Paulo’s Guarulhos and Rio de Janeiro’s Galeao airports, which cover 80% of business activity in Brazil. The airline’s extensive trucking network extends its coverage and provides further support to customers.

The network is always being evaluated, with new flights being added when needed.

Sandoval says: “I am pleased to be able to say that we are adding a seasonal flight from MIA to GRU starting on Oct 25, 2020 which will run right through until April 2021, which will increase our service to 3x daily MIA-GRU-MIA flights.”

Serving over 350 cities worldwide gives customers plenty of options. Sandoval says: “For the perishable high season, our European routes are something that many customers are familiar with and have used for years, but our international network has also opened up destinations and cities in Asia which we are finding is increasingly popular with customers.”

How the Brazilian airfreight market will grow depends on what happens to the economy, but official forecasts suggest GDP will increase, meaning more exports.

Sandoval says: “With the flexible nature of our fleet, we will be ready and able to provide cargo capacity to meet any new demand.”

Having worked in the Latin American logistics market all of her career, Sandoval knows a thing or two about the region. She says despite local bureaucracy, Brazil is a logistics-friendly country.

Sandoval says: “It’s just important to be aware of the rules, and work with professionals who can guide you through the processes. Our team on the ground in Brazil has decades of experience in the air cargo sector of Brazil, and are available to help all our customers.”