Emirates SkyCargo continues North America expansion with Milan-New York flight

Emirates SkyCargo is continuing to expand its presence in North America with a new freighter connection between Milan and New York.

The new weekly service between Milan Malpensa and New York JFK will start on 5 December using one of the carrier’s 100-tonne-capacity Boeing 777 freighter aircraft.

The carrier said the service was being launched to serve growing demand for export capacity from Northern Italy and the Lombardy region.

The carrier pointed out that exports from Milan carried by Emirates SkyCargo grew 13% in financial year 2025/26 compared to the previous year and added that New York is the largest air cargo export destination for Italian goods.

Meanwhile, overall exports of Italian goods carried by Emirates were up 12% year on year for the 2025/26 financial year.

Key export commodities that move by air from Milan include pharmaceuticals, vaccines and clinical trial medication, luxury goods and fashion items, industrial equipment and machine parts, high-end automotives, fresh produce and speciality food products.

In the other direction, the carrier reported a 23% increase in the volume of exports it carried from JFK and Newark Liberty airports between financial year 2024/25 and FY 2025/ 26.

Key export commodities moving from New York include pharmaceuticals and healthcare products, perishables, e-commerce shipments, machinery and industrial components.

Badr Abbas, divisional senior vice president, Emirates SkyCargo, said the new service would also complement its existing passenger services.

“Milan is a key air cargo gateway for Italy and Europe, where Emirates SkyCargo currently offers over 500 tonnes of weekly export capacity to global markets, including over 100 tonnes weekly bellyhold capacity on our passenger flights to New York.

“The new freighter service adds important maindeck capacity on a vital trade corridor, offering exporters greater access, flexibility and reliability when serving customers in the US.

“Exports from the Greater New York region have seen strong growth, reflecting robust demand for reliable access to international markets.

“By combining enhanced freighter capacity with our extensive network of freighter and passenger services through Dubai, we are enhancing connectivity for pharmaceuticals, e-commerce, perishables and machinery from the US, while creating faster links to destinations across the Middle East, Asia and beyond.”

Emirates SkyCargo also operates a once-weekly freighter flight between Milan and Dubai (DWC) to allow connection to other destinations in the Emirates network.

North America connections

The new service comes as Emirates SkyCargo has been expanding its presence in North America in line with fleet expansion.

Emirates SkyCargo has also launched freighter flights in 2026 to Los Angeles (LAX) and Dallas (DFW) while increasing frequencies to Miami (MIA).

The expansion follows the delivery of eight new freighter aircraft this year, including seven Boeing 777-F production freighters and one Boeing 777-300ER converted freighter.

“This expansion helped power the growth of Emirates SkyCargo’s freighter network from over 40 destinations in March 2026 to over 60 destinations by July 2026,” the carrier said.

Last week, Emirates reported that its cargo volumes were down 1% in the first half of its 2026-2027 financial year, but cargo revenue increased by 50%.

The airline said its gains occurred “as the regional conflict reduced available airfreight capacity while concurrently pushing shippers to seek airfreight options due to marine transport disruptions”.