Turkish Cargo has joined the International Air Transport Association (IATA) CEIV Lithium Battery (CEIV Li-batt) certification program aimed at certifying competence to carry lithium battery products safely.

In a statement, Turkish Cargo — the air cargo brand of Turkish Airlines — said the participation of the carrier in the certification program, which consists of the training, assessment and validation processes, became formalized at the signing ceremony held during the IATA World Cargo Symposium, where the future standards of the air cargo industry are formalized.

 [Source: Turkish Cargo]

"As a global air cargo brand, we are strongly committed to maintaining the supply chain for the lithium battery products and diligently fulfilling our responsibilities in this regard. Thus, participation in the CEIV Li-batt certification program, which is globally accepted as one of the highest standards, is a great source of pride to us," said Bilal Ekşi, CEO of Turkish Airlines, during the signing ceremony.

He noted that such a new certification program underlines the adherence of Turkish Cargo to high-quality standards and its commitment to providing safe, fast and secure air cargo service to its customers.

Brendan Sullivan, the Global Head of Cargo at the IATA, noted that the European freight market is one of the largest in the world, accounting for close to a quarter of total global trade.

"Having Turkish Airlines, one of Europe's largest cargo carriers, achieve CEIV Li-batt certification is a significant boost for meeting shippers' expectations in terms of the safe transport of goods containing lithium batteries," he said.

Developed for the purpose of performance of global air cargo operations at a high standard, the CEIV Li-batt certification program is designed to improve safety during the handling and shipment of lithium batteries throughout the supply chain.

Such a new program also validates that the related policies, processes and procedures are implemented by the companies in accordance with the new CEIV program in line with the standards set by IATA.