The newly-created airline unit of shipping giant CMA CGM has secured its air carrier certificate from the French Civil Aviation this month – paving the way for the airline to carry out specified commercial air transport operations. 

CMA CGM Air Cargo also received its first Boeing 777F on May 31 while the carrier awaits another similar aircraft in the process of being delivered.

The carrier is projected to have a dozen planes by 2026 including four Airbus 330-200Fs and another two new B-777Fs that have been ordered and are scheduled to enter the fleet in 2024.

Four more A-350Fs will join the CMA CGM Air Cargo fleet between 2025 and 2026.

In May, the CMA CGM Group announced that it will acquire a 9% stake in Air France-KLM Group in a deal that would combine the airfreight capacity, sales, and freighter operations of the two airlines.

The new deal is for a 10-year exclusive strategic partnership that will see the airline and shipping group combine their current fleets of 10 full-freighter aircraft as well as the 12 freighters they have on order.

This new commercial partnership also covers Air France-KLM’s belly aircraft capacity, including over 160 long-haul aircraft.

Air France-KLM, on the other hand, has a fleet of six full freighters – based at Paris CDG and Schiphol – and has outstanding orders for four additional planes.

Rodolphe Saadé, chairman and CEO of the CMA CGM Group said then that the deal with Air France-KLM will allow CMA CGM to "significantly accelerate the development of our air division, CMA CGM Air Cargo."

"This partnership is fully in line with CMA CGM's strategy and its ambition to become a leader in integrated logistics," Saadé added.