Etihad Airways and Henan Province Airport Group, the parent company of the Zhengzhou Xinzheng Airport (CGO) — a vital domestic aviation hub and the gateway to the central region of China — has signed a deal aimed to establish a strategic partnership to strengthen aviation ties between the UAE and China.

The national airline of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) said it plans to operate freighter operations between Zhengzhou and Abu Dhabi in 2022 subject to regulatory approvals.

Etihad Airways and Zhengzhou Xinzheng International Airport (CGO) aim at together creating the "Air Silk Road" between Henan Province and the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, as well as building CGO airport into an air freight hub in the region and to diversify product sales and cargo distribution channels at Zhengzhou Xinzheng International Airport.

"Etihad is very excited to see the potential to further expand its cargo footprint in China, and to create the 'Air Silk Road' between the emirate and Central China together with Henan Province Airport Group. This will greatly improve the diversification of product sales and cargo distribution channels in this region and strengthen economic and trade links between the UAE and China, and beyond," said Martin Drew, senior vice president Sales and Cargo, Etihad Airways.

"As the national airline of the UAE, Etihad Airways has played a key role in the transportation of vaccines and medical supplies within and outside the UAE, based on its professional medical logistics solutions," Drew added.

He noted that for instance, since the start of the pandemic, Etihad Cargo has operated 1,042 flights out of Shanghai and Beijing, carrying over 65,000 tonnes on its Boeing 777 freighters and passenger freighters, among which, 50% of the flights were medical supplies to support the global fight against Covid-19.

Strong cargo performance

Driven by the huge demand for medical supplies, Etihad Cargo noted that it has "performed strongly" in the past year as it restored 90% of its destinations compared with before the pandemic in the same period in 2019, while its capacity has increased by 20%.

"We are very pleased to sign the MoU with Etihad Airways, a key airline player in the Middle East region with extensive network to Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa, to explore various opportunities under the 'Air Silk Road' aviation initiative inspired by the China-proposed 'Belt and Road Initiative,'" commented Kang Xingzhen, chairman of Henan Airport Group Co. Ltd.

"Driven by the dramatic growth of Zhengzhou Xinzheng Airport in recent years, the Zhengzhou Airport Economy Zone (ZAEZ) has become the first and, to date, the only aerotropolis in China to simultaneously address business, multimodal surface transportation, airport and urban objectives as an integrated whole," Xingzhen said.

"Supported by Zhengzhou Airport’s 51 air cargo routes, the ZAEZ has not only become a manufactured product export dynamo, but also Central China’s largest foreign-origin meat port as well as a leading Chinese distribution point for a multitude of other imported food perishables. We sincerely hope to see Etihad Airways’ scheduled freight flights land into the CGO in the not-too-distant future," the airport chief added.