Gulf carriers bulk up their fleets

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Saudia Cargo will double its fleet, adding four Boeing 777-200F jets over more than two years, as Saudi Arabia pushes to become a logistics hub linking three continents. The aircraft will carry heavy and temperature-sensitive goods nonstop on long-haul routes, an executive told Asharq Al-Awsat.
Other Gulf carriers have been adding freight capacity throughout the war. Emirates SkyCargo in July flew the first commercial Boeing 777-300 passenger-to-freighter conversion, carrying more than 100 tons from Hong Kong to Dubai, with Israel Aerospace Industries contracted for at least three more conversions. Qatar Airways and Etihad Airways are expanding through dedicated freighters and belly capacity.
That capacity is arriving before the freight has fully returned, however. Middle East carriers’ cargo traffic rose 1.7% year-on-year in July compared to a 4.0% increase in capacity, IATA said, while volumes on crucial routes from Europe and Asia to the Middle East fell for a fifth straight month.

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