Global Crossing Airlines, a provider of turnkey air transport service for airlines and ad hod charter flights, has inked a short-term agreement to provide airlift in the United States for DHL Express.
The contract is another positive development for the Miami-based airline’s cargo business, which has been slow to catch fire compared to the passenger operation.
Global Crossing Airlines (OTCQB: JETMF), which operates four Airbus A321 converted cargo jets in addition to 15 Airbus passenger aircraft, said in an earnings report last week that its cargo division generated more than 1,600 billable operating hours during the fourth quarter, quadruple the amount from the year-ago period.
The addition of IBC Airways, a South Florida-based carrier serving Caribbean islands such as Jamaica, Cuba and Haiti, as a customer contributed to the improvement in revenue. Global Crossing (GlobalX) said it recently renewed a six-month contract with IBC Airways guaranteeing 200 block hours per month for two freighter aircraft. In the past six months, it also began flying on behalf of an air cargo wholesaler and United Airlines between Puerto Rico and Chicago.
The carrier said it will provide transportation services to DHL Express under a short-term contract that lasts into the third quarter.
President and CFO Ryan Goepel told FreightWaves that GlobalX will shuttle parcels within DHL’s network for six months, starting in April, using a single A321 freighter. The airline is treating the deal as a trial to showcase its ability to perform and the strong economics of the A321 in the U.S. market, he added.
GlobalX entered revenue service three years ago with A320-family passenger jets providing charter flights for airlines, cruise lines, casinos, sports teams, concert tours, the U.S. government, and hotel and resort destinations. It began dedicated cargo service less than two years ago and is the only operator of A321 passenger-to-freighter aircraft in North America.
The cargo segment was a drag on GlobalX’s third-quarter earnings. In addition to limited customer demand and excess narrowbody freighter capacity in North America, GlobalX was hurt by the loss of a U.S. Postal Service contract as the letter carrier shifts to cheaper ground transportation.
“We believe we have mitigated a significant amount of that exposure in 2025 with the contracts we have in place, which drives significant year-over-year improvement,” Goepel said during Friday’s earnings call with analysts. The four freighter aircraft are now operating about 300 to 400 hours per month for contract customers, which will bring the cargo segment close to breakeven.
The tariff war triggered by President Donald Trump is a wild card for the air cargo industry, but GlobalX is relatively insulated from most markets under potential tariff action, he added.
The airline ended the year on an upswing as it reallocated aircraft from the charter segment to higher-margin dedicated contract carriage under which it operates regular routes for clients, like DHL and IBC, that lease aircraft, crews and mechanics to fly their freight. Under those types of stable contracts, the customer pays for fuel and airport fees, and assumes the price risk for filling the plane with people or cargo.
Revenue in the fourth quarter increased 11% to $60 million, primarily due to higher flight hours, fleet expansion and the increased revenue per operating hour flown from higher rates negotiated in bundled service contracts. B2B airline revenue increased more than three times compared to the prior-year quarter, while charter revenue decreased 16.4% due to the managed reduction in ad hoc and short-term flying for nonairline customers such as hotels, casinos, cruise ship companies and tour operators.
On the charter side, GlobalX did secure a contract to transport the mega-band AC/DC on its North American tour, which kicks off April 10 in Minneapolis, Goepel told FreightWaves. It also finalized a contract to ferry teams for this year’s March Madness college basketball tournament, providing four dedicated aircraft for a minimum of $5 million in revenue. Additionally, it flew 12 college basketball teams during the regular season.
The aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance business now represents 60% of revenues versus 22% in the fourth quarter of 2023, while charter revenue only accounts for 36% of revenue compared to 75%.
The company continues to shrink adjusted and net losses, but earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and rent, a common metric for measuring financial health in the airline industry that accounts for high cost of aircraft rent, increased nearly 70% year over year to $19.3 million.
“While challenges continue to persist in the cargo market, their impact has lessened significantly compared to last year and we believe we have stabilized the business moving forward. Our average utilization per aircraft available increased 12% to 473 block hours compared to the year ago quarter,” Goepel said during the earnings briefing.
In another strategic shift, Global Crossing Airlines is beginning to acquire and take ownership of airframes while leasing the engines instead of leasing a complete aircraft to support ongoing growth. Goepel said airframes are durable assets that hold their value for decades. Holding them gives the airline greater control over maintenance and modifications, whereas engines, given their production costs, maintenance and market demand, are much more expensive to acquire and maintain.
The company signed a letter of intent and intends to acquire its first airframe in the second quarter, he said.
Click here for more FreightWaves/American Shipper stories by Eric Kulisch.
RELATED READING:
GlobalX Airlines to open cargo lane between Chicago, Puerto Rico
Global Crossing Airlines changes CEO, cargo direction
Has the e-commerce bubble burst for air cargo?
The post From DHL to AC/DC, GlobalX Airlines lands new transport deals appeared first on FreightWaves.
