Worldwide Flight Services has signed a contract with China Airlines to provide cargo-handling services at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport.

China Airlines Cargo flies to Chicago eight times a week with Boeing 747-400Fs. Under the agreement, WFS will handle up to seven of these, amounting to approximately 56,000 tonnes of freight per year.

“China Airlines is one of our biggest customers in the US and over nearly two decades of working together we have gained a strong understanding of the airline’s service requirements,” said Ray Jetha, senior vice president of sales and business development in North America at WFS. “We have demonstrated our ability to deliver the quality and reliability expected and sincerely appreciate the airline’s continued confidence in WFS. We look forward to a growing partnership based on the mutual respect and trust between our organizations.”

WFS was awarded its first North American contract with China Airlines in 1998 at New York JFK. It also provides cargo-handling services for the carrier in Dallas/Fort Worth and Houston, as well as passenger and ramp operations in Honolulu.

Overall, WFS will now handle more than 130,000 tonnes of cargo for China Airlines in North America.