TAAG focuses on SA as strategic cargo market

Source: Supplied

"South Africa is a key market within our cargo strategy and operational footprint. In 2022 we transported approximately 1,632,000 kg of miscellaneous goods/cargo from Johannesburg to different parts of the world, and the trend is to increase the volume of cargo and demand for our services," says Sajid Khan, the airline's cargo director.

According to Khan, South Africa currently exports a vast range of goods. The country is also the departure and arrival focal point for cargo pick-up and drop-off from across the continent. TAAG is a key distributor connecting intra-African markets and intercontinental cargo hubs.

TAAG cargo network connects multiple countries and regions, including Mozambique (Maputo), Sao Tome, Namibia (Windhoek), Angola (Luanda), Nigeria (Lagos), South Africa (Johannesburg, Cape Town) in Africa; Portugal (Lisbon), Spain (Madrid), Italy (Rome) in Europe; Brazil (Sao Paolo) and Cuba (Havana) in South America.

Cargo infrastructure design

The airline’s cargo operations are expected to grow exponentially once Angola’s new state-of-art international airport goes live. This milestone is earmarked for 2024 and will be a game-changer leveraging the connectivity within the Africa Austral region. The new airport cargo infrastructure is projected to be able to handle 50,000 tonnes per year and 15,000,000 passengers per year.

"Cargo segment is nowadays strategic for TAAG with a rising contribution to the company’s sustainability. Thus, I see positive synergies and benefits for the business regarding the New Luanda International Airport, Drº. António Agostinho Neto going live in the next years," says Eduardo Fairen, CEO of TAAG.