The GSSA contract was signed on 04FEB26 at airBaltic’s new and modern home base facility in one of the region’s largest cargo hubs at Riga Airport in Latvia. The Baltic Cargo Center, which opened last year, can handle up to 45,000 tons of cargo per year, and offers specialized facilities for temperature-sensitive, high-value goods, and live animals. Since 06MAR26, the airline’s flights from the UK to Riga (RIX) as well as Tallinn (TLL), are now under commercial cargo management of ECS Group’s UK subsidiary, Globe Air Cargo UK. They currently include 17 weekly flights from London-Gatwick (LGW) to Riga (RIX) and Tallinn (TLL). Onn 02JUN26, Aberdeen-Riga will be served twice per week, and from 13DEC26, Manchester-Riga flights will recommence. Globe Air Cargo UK will ensure that the load factors on airBaltic’s A220-330 fleet are optimized – predominantly with mail and e-commerce and general cargo.
Jean Ceccaldi, Chief Executive Officer of ECS Group, announced: “This new GSSA contract with airBaltic offers a true win-win situation. It opens up cargo capacities to key destinations in Europe and, in particular, the Baltic regions, which were previously not served from the UK. […] At the same time, airBaltic stands to benefit from Globe Air Cargo UK’s digital framework when it comes to simple and efficient booking processes, or AI-supported shipment documentation, for example.”
Steve Hughes, Managing Director Globe Air Cargo UK, added: “In the seven years that airBaltic has been serving the UK, we have built up a strong personal relationship, managing its handling, supporting growth, promoting its product and providing high load factors and strong revenues out of the UK. We thank Ilja Seliverstovs, Irina Podzuka and Vladislavs Pecevics for the trust and faith they now place in Globe Air Cargo to represent them as GSSA in the UK. We aim to build on this excellent rapport and leverage digital efficiencies, going forward.”
Ilja Seliverstovs, Vice President Cargo at airBaltic, stated: “At airBaltic, we are on a mission to position Latvia as a key strategic logistics gateway in Northern Europe and have invested not only in the youngest and greenest fleet in Europe, but also a new modern cargo handling facility in Riga. Our partnership with Globe Air Cargo UK now adds the much-needed people factor into this success equation. The team’s expertise will help redirect the focus onto our cargo business once more and enable airBaltic to grow as intended.”
