Burak Omeroglu, regional director of Turkish Cargo for eastern Europe and Russia - We are going to build freighter hub in Belgrade

(Burak Omeroglu)

The first direct cargo flight between Belgrade and Istanbul was operated in April 2014. A year and a half of successful results with that cargo line resulted in the launch of the second weekly cargo flight by Turkish Cargo in mid-September 2015. Burak Omeroglu, the regional director of Turkish Cargo for eastern Europe and Russia, speaks for eKapija about the results of this company and its plans for this region.

Omeroglu says that the Balkans market is very important for them, announcing the construction of freighter hub in Belgrade.

eKapija: Regular cargo line was launched April 2014. What are the results?

- Turkish Cargo operates for many years with narrow body aircrafts in Belgrade. In April 2014 we started our first scheduled freighter aircraft. So our offered capacity increased to 35.000 kg/week. In September 2015 we decided to start our second scheduled freighter. Currently we offer a total freighter capacity of 70.000 kg/week.

eKapija: It was said at the opening ceremony that the new cargo line would be mainly used to transport food and pharmaceutical products. What other industries will be using this line?

- We are able to carry all kind of goods according to IATA rules and regulations. Our main products are food and hatching eggs. Secondarily we carry semi-finished industrial products and live animals.

eKapija: What are the benefits of the direct cargo line for Serbian companies? What markets will it open for them?

- The general benefit is the fastest connection to important markets in whole world. Turkish Airlines operates to 278 airports in 110 countries worldwide. Our network offers destinations to Middle East, Far East, Africa, Americas and of course Europe.

eKapija: Why did you decide to introduce one more line that has recently been launched?

- Our offered capacity of one freighter per weekly ran out very fast so we decided to launch a second freighter according to market´s demand.

eKapija: What are the advantages of Nikola Tesla Airport over other airports in the region?

- The facility of the airport and the high service level matches our demands. Also Turkish Airlines operates since many years at this airport. It has a suitable location for Balkan countries and close connections to the airports of neighbor stations.

eKapija: Could you tell us your plans for the Balkan market?

- The Balkan market is very important for us. We have daily narrow body aircrafts from all capital cities. Now we are going to build our freighter hub in Belgrad. We are able to bring big sized shipments via our trucking network from/to Nikola Tesla airport which is the center of Balkan region.

eKapija: Do you plan on making some new investments in Serbia and the region?

- Two weeks ago we started our second weekly freighter from Belgrade and now we are going to expand our trucking network for whole region. In future our marketing and sales activities will become focus for this region.

eKapija: Turkish Cargo is one of the world’s fastest growing air cargo traffic brands. What are your results in 2015?

- During the period of January – August 2015 we carried 472,317 tons of cargo. This is equal to an increase of 10.5% compared to 427,317 tons in 2014.

eKapija: Turkish Cargo is an airline with the fastest growing cargo traffic network. What destinations do you cover?

- Our network covers 48 domestic and 227 international destinations. We fly in Europe to 106, in Far East to 33, in Middle East to 34, in Afrika to 44 and in Amerika to 11 destinations. Those are in total 278 destinations.

eKapija: Tell us more about Turkish Cargo’s global network and the fleet you use.

- Our freighter fleet has 7 of Airbus 330 and 3 of Airbus 310. Our narrow and wide body fleet has 21 of Boeing 777, 114 of Boeing 737, 4 of Airbus 340, 45 of Airbus 330, 53 of Airbus 321, 29 of Airbus 320, 14 of Airbus 319 and 6 of Embraer 190. With this number of aircrafts we are able to realize a frequency of 2.735 international and 2.227 domestic flights.

Marija Kambic