Air China has commenced a new three-year cargo and ramp handling agreement with Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) in Liege, Belgium.

The airline operates four Boeing 777 freighter flights a week to Liege from Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport, the capital of Zhejiang Province, returning to China via Madrid.

WFS expects to handle over 14,000 tonnes of cargo for Air China in the first year of the new contract, rising to over 23,000 tonnes with expected increases in flight operations in 2023/24.

The joint statement from Air China and WFS said the new contract is linked to WFS' existing handling operations in Liege for Cainiao Smart Logistics Network, part of the Alibaba Group, which is a shareholder in Air China.

"Air China is already a very significant customer of WFS in Europe, North America, and Asia for our cargo, ramp, and passenger handling services and for fuelling. Winning this additional contract in Liege shows the strength of our business partnership and, we hope, reflects Air China's experience of working with WFS stations across its global network," said Marc Claesen, senior vice president of commercial of WFS EMEAA.

"As well as complementing our relationship with Cainiao in Belgium, it also reinforces our reputation as a leading freighter handling provider in Liege and justifies our growing investment at the airport," Claesen added.

WFS now handles more than 220,000 tonnes annually in Liege in cargo facilities totalling 25,000m² and manages over 100 freighter flights per month for airline and logistics customers.

WFS said it already enjoys a strong partnership with Air China through existing cargo handling operations in Denmark, France, Germany, Spain, and the United Kingdom.

It also holds contracts with the airline in the US and Canada as well as providing fuelling services in Hong Kong.