Etihad selects ECS group as cargo service provider

United Arab Emirates-based Etihad Cargo, the cargo and logistics arm of the Etihad Aviation Group, has entered into cargo service provider agreements (CSP) with the French ECS Group for general sales and support services, to support the carrier’s operations in key Asian, European and North American markets.

ECS Group’s subsidiary, Globe Air, will provide customer service, reservations, post-flight support, operations support, accounting and billing support services for the carrier in the U.S., U.K., Germany, Netherlands, Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia. Etihad Cargo will itself lead sales activities in those territories through its own commercial organization.

Additionally, Globe Air and ECS subsidiaries UniversalGSA and ExpAir entered into CSP agreements with Etihad to provide sales services in Canada, Belgium, Switzerland, Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and the Nordics, as well as Los Angeles and the offline Etihad stations in the United States. Services under the new agreements begin April 1 across these territories, except in the Czech Republic, Singapore and Indonesia, where services are expected to commence June 1.

The new agreements support Etihad Cargo’s 2018 revamp of its strategy, which includes investment in new global sales and distribution structure across its network. According to a press release from Etihad, the carrier’s renewed regional distribution strategy is designed for it to lead its own sales and commercial activities in select global cargo gateways.

Etihad Cargo, which was ranked No. 26 among the top 50 cargo carriers of 2018, also recently extended its handling partnerships with dnata across 15 global stations, while ECS Group expanded its operations in Australasia last year with the acquisition of Wexco. ECS Group has 153 global offices, representing companies across more than 50 countries.