Berlin (BER) Airport and long-haul traffic? According to most aviation experts, this was a hopeless venture. Regional pan-European operations yes, but intercontinental flights? Most traffic prophets were skeptical when the airport opened its gates in OCT20.
They were wrong. The intercontinental segment is constantly growing at BER, as evidenced by data. Air freight is benefiting from this upward trend, emphasizes Torsten Jueling (TJ), Senior Manager Business Development Aircargo, in his interview with CargoForwarder Global (CFG).
CFG: A while ago, experts gave BER little chance of sustainable long-haul traffic, despite Berlin’s population of roughly 4 million. Traffic figures refute the forecast. What happened?
TJ: In 2024, In 2024, intercontinental cargo traffic at BER grew by 43% year over year, versus +67% on continental routes. Currently, BER offers a network of eight intercontinental destinations beyond a distance of 4,000 km. Due to the increasing utilization of widebody aircraft, cargo flown long-haul accounts for 44% of the total throughput, followed by trucking and regional cargo operations to continental destinations.
E-commerce heads the list of products handled at BER, followed by shipments dispatched by big industrial players such as TESLA and its European mega factory, which is located close to the airport. Other well-known names that have settled in the vicinity and contribute to steady cargo flows are the turbine manufacturers, MTU and Rolls Royce, with the latter planning to expand its activities due to growing demand for aero engines. Pharma producers, Bayer and Takeda, or electronics giant, Siemens, that engages in Power-to-Hydrogen turbine production, are also big names in cargo. As are firms such as Volkswagen or the maritime industry at the Baltic Sea, located in Poland, close to the German border, no more than 2–2.5 driving hours away from BER.
Growing intercontinental network
CFG: Qatar Airways is constantly upping its Berlin flights. Is BER meanwhile experiencing an economy-of-scale effect, benefitting both passengers and cargo?
TJ: Qatar Airways was the only intercontinental carrier that kept serving BER Airport during the Covid pandemic. This enabled them to expand their customer base, which has been paying off ever since. Currently it offers 18 widebody flights (B787) per week on the Doha-Berlin sector. Come 30MAR25, the frequencies will be increased to three flights per day. Compared to 2022, cargo capacity has tripled, reaching more than 200 tons of export per week.
CFG: Further proof of economies of scale is Turkish Airlines (TK), which has announced additional Berlin services, operating widebody aircraft. What exactly are TK’s BER plans?
TJ: TK’s passenger expansion is backed by the largest Turkish community outside Turkey, with a headcount of nearly 200,000 people living in Berlin. Turkish Airlines also plans to up the frequencies of its widebody fleet at the end of MAR25, from 2 to 3 daily flights. This also increases the fleet’s lower deck cargo capacity by 33%.
CFG: Another long-haul customer, serving BER-PEK, is Hainan Airlines, which has just upped its A330 flights to 5/7 – the maximum allowed by the regulator. What role does cargo play on this route, broken down into imports and exports?
TJ: From a cargo standpoint, the main reason for the flight increase is the import of e-commerce goods. Often the bellies of the A330 are fully booked. On the export side, the carrier cooperates with GSSA Air Logistics, which is responsible for selling capacity from Berlin to/via Beijing.
CFG: The low-cost airline, Scoot from Singapore, serves Berlin 4/7, but only carries air freight on way to Berlin, not on the return leg. Why is that?
TJ: On the way back to Singapore, Scoot stops over in Athens. That might be a reason for their decision.
Transatlantic flights are thriving
CFG: In contrast to the aforementioned carriers, United and Delta serve transatlantic routes. So does Norwegian budget carrier Norse. As widely known, without a substantial contribution to earnings from air freight, a route is generally not profitable. Hence, what role does cargo play on flights to and from North America?
TJ: That’s absolutely correct. Even a jammed passenger class of a legacy carrier or a fully booked flight of a low-cost airline do not suffice to generate profits on long-haul routes. Hence, the airlines need the contribution of cargo to earn money. This contrasts to pan European passenger services which allow for 3 to 4 flight rotations per day.
Back to the North Atlantic: We are experiencing an increasing demand from/to Berlin. In addition to United, which flies EWR year around 7/7 – Delta Air Lines connects JFK 5/7 as of April, followed by 7/7 in MAY25. Norse will increase their new BER-MIA flights from 2/7 to 3/7 during the Easter holiday period (March03 – April25) and continue their 4/7JFK flights in May.Finally, the Canadian leisure carrier Air Transat intends to connect Berlin with Toronto 2/7 with A321LR seasonally from JUN20 till OCT23, 2025.
CFG: Are there actually any signals from the Lufthansa Group to offer passengers and cargo clients intercontinental nonstop services to/from Berlin?
TJ: No. They offer the market belly load service from Berlin to their hubs Frankfurt and Munich complemented by RFS to FRA.
Latam and Africa are still white spots on BER’s flight schedule
CFG: Iberia is the first airline to operate the Airbus A321XLR. Other carriers have also signed purchase agreement for this Airbus variant, including American Airlines. Although the jetliner is not very cargo-friendly due to the additional tanks in the lower deck that limit cargo carriage, it would enrich BER’s intercontinental network. Are there already signals from airlines to serve Berlin with the A321Extra Long Range?
TJ: In addition to Boeing’s B787, the A321(X)LR is an ideal Airbus variant to connect Berlin nonstop with more intercontinental destinations, even if there will be only limited space for cargo. But once a route is established, a larger and more cargo-friendly passenger jetliner might replace the ‘door opener’ A321XLR. Air Transat just announced that it will start with two flights per week from Berlin to Toronto from 20JUN25 until 23OCT25 with A321LR. It remains to be seen if it will utilize the connection to carry express cargo, e.g. to increase the profitability of this route.
CFG: Torsten, thank you for this interview.
