In a short statement, the UK’s Civil Aviation Authority said that the airline would provide flights carrying medical supplies using two Boeing 747 freighters.
At its own request, the airline had its AOC suspended back in late February in response to the weak market outlook.
However, since then, air cargo prices have increased rapidly with spot market rates as high $14-$16 per kg out of China as governments try to secure capacity to move medical equipment.
Overall cargo capacity is estimated to be down by around 31% as a result of passenger airlines culling operations and removing swathes of belly capacity from the market.
The airline has been active for around four years; at one point its fleet consisted of four B747 freighters – three -400s and one -8F – and it employed around 200 people.
However, as the market began to enter a slump towards the end of 2018, CLA’s fortunes began to wane.
Towards the end of last year, the cracks began to show and the carrier announced measures to meet the challenging market conditions.
In October, it was revealed that CLA, along with partner AirBridgeCargo, would cancel a series of scheduled services.
Then in late February it announced it would end services, stating: “Due to the latest market development, specifically the drastic decrease of the market demand, CLA finds it extremely difficult to continue its commercial operations.”
It added: “Most importantly, CLA operations have been severely affected as it had placed a significant portion of its commercial activities in the Chinese market. As a result, a decision was made to suspend the flights.”
