The French maritime logistics giant expands its air division by taking over the cargo operations of the Belgian carrier that was officially declared bankrupt today by the Walloon Brabant Commercial Court

French logistics group CMA CGM has officially completed the acquisition of Air Belgium's cargo division, marking the end of a difficult period for the Belgian carrier, which was previously subject to a judicial reorganization procedure. The announcement, confirmed today by official sources close to the operation, includes the maintenance of the Air Belgium brand and the safeguarding of 124 jobs out of 401 total, including 72 pilots. The operation comes after a previous agreement with the Air One Belgium consortium was revoked in early March by the commercial court. CMA CGM, mainly known for its fleet of container ships, then submitted its own bid, which was the winner.

The acquisition includes four Air Belgium cargo aircraft, which will continue to operate cargo flights from Belgium under the new management. This development further consolidates CMA CGM's entry into the air cargo sector, which began in March 2021 with the collaboration of Air Belgium, which operated the first cargo flights on behalf of the French Group from Liège airport.

Air Belgium's financial difficulties had led in September 2023 to the decision to stop passenger routes to South Africa and Mauritius, defined as "chronically unprofitable", a measure later extended to all scheduled passenger flights, from 3 October 2023, while only cargo activity would continue. Subsequently, in 2024, the company had filed for judicial reorganization, culminating today with the declaration of bankruptcy by the Walloon Brabant commercial court, and with the official announcement of the acquisition by the French group of cargo activities.

For CMA CGM, this strategic operation represents a further step in its ambition to offer integrated logistics solutions to its customers, responding to the growing demand for agile and multimodal transport. The French company had already demonstrated its commitment to the air sector with the purchase of new cargo aircraft, including orders for Boeing -777F and Airbus A-350F, positioning itself as a launch customer for the latter model.