Challenge Group has established a scheduled route between Mumbai (BOM) and Liège (LGG), operating twice weekly, utilising the added capacity of its second converted B767 freighter.

The new scheduled flight between Mumbai and Liège creates a direct link between strong economic geographies with operations serving the whole of Europe and the US.

In the announcement, Challenge Group said the freighter — offering a payload of 52 tons per uplift — will mainly carry pharmaceuticals and electronics but also the large and complex main deck cargo shipments.

"Given that India is striving to become the factory of the world, and the production of key verticals has significantly increased during the past few years, our strategic decision to now launch a regular and direct India-Europe service goes some way towards satisfying the intense customer demand on this route," said Or Zak, chief commercial officer of Challenge Group.

"In fact, after the inaugural flight, we are already adding a second weekly frequency from April onwards," he added.

Or Zak explained that the launch of the company's Mumbai freighter service is the result of extensive market preparation conducted over the past year.

"This initiative commenced with consistent charter operations across various airports such as DEL, HYD, and BLR. Subsequently, we conducted a targeted roadshow in BOM and DEL last June, engaging with key stakeholders in the logistics industry to present our assets, capabilities, expertise, supply chain approach and the value proposition of our end-to-end solution."

"This endeavour provided more insights into their business requirements. Our participation in the recent Air Cargo India event in February further solidified our presence and network within the sector, paving the way for the successful introduction of our Mumbai freighter service," he added.

Challenge Group's Indian cargo capacity, which is offered for bookings to the entire Indian freight forwarding community, is managed by the group's entrepreneurial and reliable GSSA partner, Rainbow Aviation.

Challenge Group noted that in allocating the additional capacity of its second converted B767 freighter to operate in this new market, the Group aims to enhance customer service and advance its global presence significantly.