China's SF Airlines Co., Ltd., the largest express airline in the country by aircraft fleet, announced the official launch of the international freight route Shenzhen - Singapore on Sept 4. The new route is the 13th addition to SF Airlines navigable overseas cities.
The route is to be flown by B767-300 freighters which mainly ships goods that require extra care in handling such as mobile phone components.
In Singapore, Changi Airport Group welcomed the arrival of the SF Airlines, the first Chinese express airlines to operate between Singapore and China. Upon landing, the first B767-300 freighter was welcomed by Lim Ching Kiat, Changi Airport Group's Managing Director for Air Hub Development.
The director said the new route allows for more cargo shipping from China to and through Changi Airport. The presence of SF Airlines in the airport is an indication that Singapore is a premier regional cargo hub, he said.
Indeed, China is the airport's largest air cargo market with more than 270,000 tons of airfreight for the 12 months ending in June 2018, Changi said in its announcement. In particular, Shenzen is one of Singapore's top five Chinese cities for air cargo services.
The new SF Airlines weekly service on a Boeing aircraft increased the main deck aircraft activities to and from Shenzhen by about 16 percent. As of July 1, Changi Airport is connected to 36 cities in China with more than 380 weekly services.
According to statistics from the Civil Aviation Administration of China, the country has enjoyed an upsurge in its air express industry. In 2017 alone, Beijing serviced 7.06 million tons of airmail cargo. This was a 5.6 percent increase year on year compared to the same period in 2016. This number would likely swell more in the coming years.
Changi's managing director said the market is seeing a growing demand by the Chinese market for perishables and pharmaceutical products from the Southwest Pacific and Southeast Asian regions. With the new route for SF Airlines, the growth of air express delivery on these routes is to be expected, the director highlighted.
Liang Xi, SF Airlines Vice President of Maintenance and Engineering, explained the company opened the new route to arrest the rapidly growing market demands in the region.
The launch of the international freight route Shenzhen - Singapore follows another direct freight route that was launched on Aug. 5, the Shenzhen - Chennai route.
SF Airlines was established in 2009 and has since provided safe operation efficiency and quality air freight services.
