British IAG Cargo is looking for an new development in Kuala Lumpur as their fourth Asian hub in compliance with their other hubs in Singapore, Hong Kong and Bangkok as they restored their direct services last May from London.
British Airways suspended their direct services in 2001, using Singapore as a hub for Kuala Lumpur airport in spite of their colonial ties as a part Commonwealth countries.
Regional commercial manager Asia Pacific for IAG Cargo, John Cheetham, stated on July 3th during a media briefing at the Mandarin Oriental in KL, that with a daily B777 service in place, offering 15 tons of cargo capacity as standard and up to 19 tons depending on weather conditions and baggage load, Kuala Lumpur could act as a “hub for the wider area”.
He says IAG stopped the route in 2001 due to the economic conditions, but this has changed considerably and IAG Cargo is also now able to use a more efficient cargo service. The carrier is operating a Boeing 777-200 extended range aircraft, which Cheetham says has a payload of 15 tons, but can sometimes hold up to 19 tons.
The service has been boosted by the timings. The Heathrow to Kuala Lumpur flight leaves daily at 20.15h and returns at 23.05h, which Cheetham says is, “perfect timing,” for cargo as it lands at 05.25h UK local time, meaning cargo can be sent on its route network or trucked there and then.
IAG Cargo’s cargo ton kilometers in 2014 reached 5.6 billion, and the new route to Kuala Lumpur is hoped to boost this significantly.
