Mexico state-run airline to start cargo flights soon, CEO says

By Kylie Madry

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) -Mexican state-run airline Mexicana will kick off cargo flights soon, its chief executive said on Monday, and is eyeing opportunities to launch international flights throughout the Americas.

Mexicana, run by the military, re-started operations at the end of last year after the government bought the rights to the brand from a defunct airline.

At the moment, the carrier operates domestic passenger flights, using the also military-run airport outside of Mexico City as its hub.

"Soon we'll start offering cargo (flights)," CEO Leobardo Avila said at a panel alongside business leaders, including the chief executive of Brazilian planemaker Embraer.

Mexicana signed an agreement in June for 20 Embraer E2 jetliners. With their arrival, Avila said, Mexicana can greatly boost its offerings.

The CEO did not say how soon Mexicana could launch cargo flights, but that it was targeting large supply chains.

Mexicana's hub, the Felipe Angeles International Airport, is also a hub for cargo flights in the country. Outgoing President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador ordered cargo flights be moved there from the main Mexico City airport last year.

The two-year-old airport has already reached capacity, however, and the site is now expanding to accommodate more cargo.

Avila added that Mexicana was looking to take advantage of the so-called nearshoring trend, in which multinational firms move operations closer to their final destination, usually the United States.

"Mexicana is taking this as an opportunity to connect internationally, with North America, but also looking toward South America, the Caribbean," he said.

(Reporting by Kylie MadryEditing by Sarah Morland and Bill Berkrot)