ISTANBUL: September 21, 2108. Turkish Cargo is adding Mexico City to its network from October 03. It will be the carrier's 19th destination in the Americas and its eighth in Latin America.

One B777 freighter will route from Istanbul via Madrid to Mexico City and return via Bogotá, Curacao and Maastricht; and the second will also operate via Madrid on the outbound leg and return via Houston to Istanbul.

Airfreight imports to Mexico are expected to include auto parts, chemicals and petrochemical products, textiles, fish, pharmaceuticals, flowers and other perishables. The airline expects country exports to include fresh flowers, fruits and vegetables, technological products and automotive parts.

Turkish Airlines reports cargo and mail traffic for the first eight months of 2018 rose 25.5 percent to 897,521 tons from 714,875 tons year-on-year and  August volumes increased 20.8 percent to 117,655 tons from 97,417 tons in 2017. In the first half of 2018, Turkish Cargo volumes rose 28 percent to 660,000 tons and revenue increased 35 percent to US$784 million.