Flower volumes have been blossoming over recent weeks as people all over the world invest in bouquets for their loved ones. The air cargo industry plays a vital role in helping people celebrate the time of year when love is in the air. Keep an eye on this page to find out how the industry has been tackling demand this busy season.
Etihad's dedicated freighters lift flower volumes
Ahead of this year's Valentine's day, Etihad Cargo operated four dedicated flower charters, moving 510 tonnes of flowers from Nairobi to destinations across Europe, including the Netherlands, Germany, and the UK.
Additionally, with four weekly flights to Nairobi, including three passenger flights offering bellyhold capacity and one dedicated freighter service, Etihad Cargo facilitates the export of approximately 95 tonnes of flowers from Kenya every week, ensuring consistent support for the global floriculture industry.
Among the blooms transported are premium big-head roses, including High and Peace, Cappuccino, Cabaret, Topaz and Roseberry, as well as mixed selections tailored to meet the preferences of European markets.
While Valentine's Day saw a surge in flower shipments, the carrier is also gearing up to support the upcoming European Mother's Day, with flowers continuing to be exported from Nairobi and beyond.
Source: Etihad Cargo
Qatar adds capacity to meet Valentine demand
Qatar Airways Cargo transported 2,800 tonnes of flowers, the equivalent of 42m fresh-cut red roses, from Kenya and South America in time for Valentine’s day.
From Nairobi, the carrier transported almost 1,600 tonnes of red roses on its scheduled flights and charters. Additionally, from Bogota and Quito, it carried close to 1,200 tonnes to key markets including Amsterdam, Middle East, Asia and Australia.
In addition to its regular scheduled passenger-and-cargo flights, the cargo carrier operated nine additional Boeing 777 charters from Nairobi and 10 additional charters from Quito in the fortnight leading up to Valentine’s day.
Qatar Airways Cargo’s Chief Officer Cargo, Mr Mark Drusch said: "Qatar Airways Cargo increased capacity by adding extra charter freighters to connect Kenya, Bogota and Quito’s floriculture sector to key markets and customers worldwide through our network of over 170 passenger and 60 freighter destinations. The additional charter flights are in addition to our scheduled passenger-and-cargo flights."
LATAM Cargo's flower volumes hit almost 25,00 tons
LATAM Cargo transported nearly 25,000 tons of flowers from Colombia and Ecuador over the three week Valentine's Day period, making it the leading carrier of flowers from these countries to the US.
To meet the high seasonal demand, LATAM operated more than 420 departures from Bogotá, Medellín, and Quito with its 20 freighters, as well as three additional freighters from external operators.
In Colombia, more than 12,000 tons of flowers — including roses, carnations, and chrysanthemums — were transported from the departments of Antioquia and Cundinamarca on over 200 flights.
Meanwhile, in Ecuador, LATAM significantly increased its capacity for the season, operating 214 flights that enabled the export of approximately 12,500 tons of flowers, primarily roses, to key global markets — doubling the volume transported during the regular season.
Source: LATAM Cargo
Record flower volumes at Ecuador's Quito Airport
This year, 28,779 tons of flowers were exported through Quito Airport, marking an 8.7% growth compared to the 24,466 tons shipped during the same season in 2024.
According to official information from Quiport's Operations Department, there were 534 outbound flights, representing a 9.6% increase over the 487 flights last year.
These results exceeded initial forecasts, which anticipated growth of only 3% to 5%. Airport operator Quiport said the success was attributed to the "outstanding quality of Ecuadorian flowers combined with efficient coordination between Quiport, airlines, palletisers, and cargo and consolidation agencies".
The peak day of the season was 5 February when 1,847 metric tons of flowers were shipped on 31 flights.
During the 22-day high export season, the main destinations were cargo hubs in the US and Europe, from where the flowers were distributed to their final destinations.
To meet this high demand, 20 cargo airlines, both regular and charter, operated from Quito’s terminal, ensuring efficient and secure logistics for one of Ecuador's most iconic products.
Challenge rises to the challenge
Over the last two weeks, Challenge Handling in Liège has managed over 30 flights from various customers, transporting more than 3,000 tons of fresh flowers.
The handler’s facility offers a dedicated cool area for post-flight treatment, cooling, and sorting, alongside an expedited customs clearance process.
The handler’s sister company, airline Challenge, recently launched its first flights to Nairobi using its Boeing 767 freighters. Since then it has tripled capacity, upgrading certain flights with a Boeing 747-400F.
Or Zak, Challenge Group chief commercial officer, said: ”With Nairobi as our first African destination, we are committed to supporting our customers’ needs and delivering our services wherever required. Backed by nearly five decades of expertise in transporting perishable goods, we provide end-to-end logistics solutions tailored for this specific sector.”
Flower processing improves for Avianca Cargo
Investments made by Avianca Cargo helped the airline improve processing times for the Valentine’s season as it handled 18,000 tons of flowers.
The airline said it had doubled its cargo capacity between Colombia and Ecuador, and the US for the Valentine’s Day season to meet demand levels.
The carrier operated around 300 cargo flights carrying the 8,000 tons of flowers - in line with 2024 volumes for the season.
To support the market Avianca invested in infrastructure enhancements, digitalisation projects and a 30% increase in its US operations workforce.
Avianca said the investments had reduced flower processing and delivery times in Miami by 57% and helped it achieve the number one position in flower transportation to Los Angeles.
Blooming MIA business
Business has been blooming at Miami International Airport (MIA) in the weeks leading up to Valentine’s Day, with the cargo gateway projecting that more than 1,500 tons of cut flowers will arrive daily between January 1 and the end of February – a 3% increase over the airport’s record-breaking peak season in 2024.
MIA, which welcomes 91% of all imports by air to the US, expects to receive 90,154 tons of cut flowers valued at more than $400m during this year’s Valentine’s Day rush.
Flowers continue to be MIA’s largest imported product by weight, accounting for 359,396 tons annually worth $1.65bn.
MIA benefits from having an extensive air route network with Colombia and Ecuador, the two top flower-producing countries in the region that account for approximately 86% of all flowers imported to the US by air.
Swissport invests in Europe flower facilities
Swissport has expanded its 'Flower Corridor' infrastructure to its Amsterdam and Liège facilities to enable a fully temperature-controlled, end-to-end process for the transport of fresh flowers from Kenya to Europe, extending shelf life by up to a week.
The investment has seen the ground handler invest in capacity and technology to handle perishable and sensitive freight within a pre-defined temperature range, which must be maintained throughout the entire ground handling process.
This Valentine’s season, Swissport expects to handle more than 250m flowers at its air cargo centre within Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta Airport (NBO).
Flowers from Kenyan farms are transported to global destinations by 35 additional freighter flights, a surge of over 50% compared to average volumes due to Valentine’s Day, said Swissport
