IAG to boost pharma business in Latin America

Citing growing Latin American demand for pharmaceutical goods, IAG Cargo said it is introducing three new routes to Latin America. Beginning in the spring of 2016, IAG will operate direct flights from London Gatwick to San Jose, Costa Rica, and to Lima, Peru. Additionally, on May 15, 2016, IAG Cargo is scheduled to begin service from Madrid to San Juan, Puerto Rico.

The Gatwick-to-San Jose route will depart twice-weekly, beginning April 27 next year, and the Gatwick-to-Lima route will depart three times each week beginning May 4. A British Airways 777-200ER with a maximum cargo payload of 18 tonnes will serve both routes. The Madrid-to-San Juan service will also operate three times a week, using an A330-200, with a cargo payload of up to 15 tonnes.

The expanded offering is expected to be particularly beneficial to pharmaceutical shippers, as Latin America is an important high-growth market for this trade, according to IAG Cargo.

Peru’s pharmaceuticals market is expected to grow to US$3 billion by 2024, with a compound annual growth rate of 6.2 percent over the next eight years.  Of these market served, IAG Cargo said Costa Rica will experience the largest increase in pharmaceutical sales over a 10-year period, growing from $800 million in 2014 to $2.3 billion by 2024. IAG Cargo said it can support manufacturers looking to enter these Latin American markets through Constant Climate, its time- and temperature-sensitive product for the pharmaceuticals sector.

“There has been no direct air link between the U.K. and Lima since 1982,” said Rodrigo Casal, regional commercial manager, Latin America at IAG Cargo. But with these new direct flights from two European hubs, Casal said that, by May 2016, IAG Cargo will offer customers a weekly lift of up to 2,700 tonnes into Latin America.