March 21, 2018: Turkish Cargo recently carried 1.5 million live Gilt-head breams weighing 100 tonnes to Oman from Izmir by providing the environment, needed by the fish underwater, above the clouds.

For this trip, Turkish Cargo used its Boeing 777F wide-body freighter on charter basis and was accompanied by aquaculture engineers. Also, pH balance, oxygen and water temperature levels of baby gilt-head breams were checked every 1 hour.

Delivering a statement on the cargo flight operation Turhan Ozen, chief cargo officer at Turkish Airlines, said, "The live fish of 100 tonnes were required to be transported to Oman from Bodrum in a maximum period of 40 hours. They were first taken to trucks and carried to Izmir in 3 hours upon completion of the initial preparations, and then, they were loaded in our freighter equipped with special techniques by our cargo handling officers. They were carried to Oman from Izmir in 3 hours, so, we were able to carry them within 24 hours in total. We accomplished this operation by means of our Boeing 777F type freighter in accordance with IATA LAR (Live Animals Regulations), reinforcing our success in transportation of live animals requiring an utmost level of care. Carrying 1.5 million live fish by means of a freighter requires accurate air-conditioning, and expertise in oxygen and temperature checks. Furthermore, this carriage operation fell under the status of transportation of dangerous goods due to the oxygen cylinders utilized. We could provide the environment required for health of the fish, and meet the requirements of the operation thanks to our expert team."

Turkish Cargo has an adequate freighter fleet and a globally-effective flight network to readily meet the requests for importation of live fish from many Arab countries such as Tunisia, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, and builds up trust for special cargo.