Asia Cargo Network begins Bahrain operations

Southeast Asian air cargo charter services provider Asia Cargo Network (ACN) has teamed up with Bahraini aviation services provider MENA Aerospace to begin operations out of Bahrain. The partnership is operating under the MENA Cargo brand (the cargo subsidiary of MAE Aircraft Management, itself the aircraft and management division of MENA Aerospace), with flights managed by ACN on its Bahraini air operator’s certificate, said the Bahrain Economic Development Board. ACN invested $135m to acquire a 49% stake in MAE Aircraft Management in 2022. The joint venture (JV) started with two Boeing 737-300 freighters and there are plans to add five more aircraft (B737-800Fs and B767-300Fs) by the end of 2023. Additionally, the JV plans to develop an extensive network of cargo flights across the region. On delivering the first aircraft to MENA Cargo Airlines in late 2022, ACN said: “Cargo routes will extend to Dubai, Iraq, Kuwait and Sudan from Bahrain International Airport five times per week and [are] expected to carry an average of 16 tons per flight.” MAE Aircraft Management managing director Iman Marco said that the Kingdom of Bahrain’s advanced infrastructure, and its strategic location at the crossroads between Asia, Africa, and Europe, will play a vital role in ACN’s growth plans to expand and serve its customers in the MENA region and beyond. Ahmed Sultan, executive director for business development of manufacturing, transport and logistics at the Bahrain Economic Development Board, highlighted the Kingdom’s competitive advantages such as its free trade agreements with 22 countries, attractive operating costs for logistics businesses, “superb” infrastructure, and connectivity by air, land and sea.