Impossible Cargo

When Cathay Cargo transported 2,000-year-old Terracotta Warriors more than 7,000 kilometers from Xi’an to Perth, there was no margin for error. Vibration thresholds and handling protocols were measured down to the last detail, with each decision holding irreplaceable value. For most carriers, such a shipment would be exceptional.

For Cathay Cargo, precision at this level is the expectation – a defining quality captured in its operating philosophy: We Know How.

Under the leadership of new Director Cargo Dominic Perret, the Cargo Operator of the Year is shaping the next era of global logistics, defined by complexity, digitalization and trust.

Air cargo plays an outsized role in global trade. Although it accounts for just 1% of total trade by volume, it represents more than 35% of global trade by value, according to industry estimates – a reflection of its crucial role in transporting goods that demand absolute speed, control and precision.

Bloomberg Intelligence’s sector outlooks point to continued momentum in the highest-value categories of air freight, including pharmaceuticals, biotech inputs, semiconductor machinery and cross-border e-commerce. This is the high-stakes landscape of seemingly impossible cargo that Cathay Cargo specializes in moving.

When Cathay Cargo transported 3,000-year-old Egyptian artifacts from Shanghai to Hong Kong, the requirements resembled laboratory environments more than conventional logistics. Cathay Cargo developed a tailored build-up plan based on the customer’s loading diagrams to ensure the utmost care. Safety nets and straps were used to secure the artifacts, preventing any movement during transit. Experienced pallet build-up specialists also provided guidance on-site, while Cathay Cargo personnel maintained full oversight end-to-end.

“For someone to entrust you with objects of that historical value shows the level of confidence in our service,” Perret notes. “Our business is about trade and commerce, but it’s also about great cultural exchanges that we can support.”

Cell and gene therapies are reshaping both global healthcare and the logistics behind them. The sector is forecast to grow at double-digit rates from 2025 to 2034, driven by breakthroughs in CAR-T and mRNA technologies.

Cathay Cargo recently transported a critical apheresis blood shipment from Hong Kong to Shanghai under strict temperature control, a crucial step in a patient’s CAR-T cancer treatment. Pharma-certified handlers, IATA-compliant processes and expedited clearance ensured zero deviation – and zero delays.

“When a patient is waiting,” Perret says, “there is no margin for delay. These are the moments that highlight the human impact of what we do.”

Cathay Cargo’s ability to manage high-stakes shipments begins with its people. Across its global network, Cathay Cargo's IATA-certified specialists, from loadmasters and handlers to pharma and dangerous goods experts, bring decades of operational experience. These are the teams behind shipments that require exacting standards: museum-grade artifacts, temperature-critical medical therapies, hazardous materials and oversized industrial machinery.

This depth of experience is not incidental. It’s the backbone of Cathay Cargo’s reputation, and one of the few differentiators in an industry where high-value, high-complexity shipments are growing faster than general freight. For example, temperature-controlled logistics is expanding at around 7% a year, driven by sectors like biotechnology and premium food supply chains. And Asia-Pacific, home to the world’s most important manufacturing corridors, now accounts for about one-third of global cargo traffic, with Hong Kong consistently leading all international hubs.

In the global air freight market, air cargo digitalization surged from 38% in 2020 to 75% in 2024, according to IATA, with the industry targeting 100% by 2030. The shift reflects a broader structural change: businesses now expect the same visibility, flexibility and speed from cargo that consumers expect from e-commerce.

For Perret, digital transformation is a strategic priority, and not a side agenda. “Expertise has always been Cathay Cargo’s foundation,” he says. “Digitalization is how we amplify that expertise, making it faster, smarter and more intuitive for customers.”

His experience in Customer Care, where he built AI-enabled service models and launched omnichannel platforms, informs his approach to cargo’s next evolution. “The focus is the same,” he explains. “Understand customers deeply, anticipate their needs and build technology that removes friction.”

In a sector undergoing rapid digital transformation, Cathay Cargo has a track record of leading. It was the first airline in the world to exchange shipment data through the ONE Record protocol, a milestone that gives customers unprecedented visibility across cargo movements.

Meanwhile, Cathay Cargo’s AI assisted lithium screening employed by Cathay Cargo Terminal together with special fire‑containment solutions, helps the carrier manage the fire risk associated with the transportation of dangerous goods, such as lithium batteries, and safely deliver a significant proportion of the 1.25 million dangerous goods transported by air every year. In addition, Cathay Cargo’s HeavyPro tool uses AI to automate the calculation process and generate precise loading diagrams of how and where to secure the shipment using restraint straps, reducing shipment confirmation from nine hours to three hours.

As high-value supply chains expand between Asia and the world, Cathay Cargo’s combination of specialist expertise, digital leadership and network strength positions it to lead this next chapter.

“Our vision is unchanged: to be the world’s best air cargo carrier,” Perret says. “What’s different now is the scale of opportunity. With digitalization and AI, and our proximity to the world’s fastest-growing manufacturing bases, we’re ready to redefine what’s possible.”