All Nippon Airways Cargo and United Cargo have launched their trans-Pacific joint venture.

Toshiaki Toyama, president of ANA Cargo [left in photo], said that there were two major factors behind the decision to partner with United Cargo.

“The main reason is the customer benefit of the joint network and capacity coverage, with overlapping destinations where there is steady demand and also new destinations to which customers did not previously have access,” he said. “Also, the passenger units have been in partnership since April 2011 and have established a trusting relationship. It was already obvious that the two companies work well together in terms of the culture and ethics of the employees.”

According to ANA, the first phase will cover joint sales and aligned operations for shipments originating from Japan destined for Canada and the US.

The joint venture will extend to Canada-Japan and US-Japan cargo at a later date.

Toyama said that he was optimistic about the Japan-US cargo market, despite economic uncertainties.

“The current market is tough – that’s a known fact,” he said. “On the bright side, the forecasts do not show such a decline in the tonnage. I see a great opportunity here. It is times like these that we need to start something new, such as the JV, to provide added value to our customers.”

ANA and United signed an agreement to establish the joint venture in March 2016.