February 26, 2018: The flag carrier of Turkey, Turkish Cargo had scheduled additional 12 flights between January 26 and February 12 to meet the surge in demand for Valentine's Day, and carried 906 tonnes of cut roses to the Netherlands from Kenya's capital Nairobi.

In total, Turkish Cargo had carried about 3000 tonnes of flowers from Africa to different destination until Valentine’s Day. The airline with its special cargo service flies to 51 destinations in Africa.

Turkish Cargo was able to lift the maximum load from Nairobi during the said period with its newly inducted B777F. It carried 234 tonnes more flowers in comparison to the other carriers.

Turkish Cargo operates weekly five cargo service from Nairobi, of which three are direct flights between Nairobi and Maastricht. It carries 340 tonnes of cut roses per week.

Flowers are kept in a temperature controlled environment through the entire journey by maintaining 2°C to 8°C. The flowers were separated from vegetables and fruits in the same shipment to safeguard them from the ethylene gas produced by fruits and vegetables during the flight.