DSV loves RFD: Logistics provider and airport hook up over air cargo

Global logistics giant DSV on Saturday launched a weekly dedicated air charter service from Seoul, South Korea, to Chicago-Rockford International Airport, underscoring the airport’s growing popularity as a cargo relief valve for crowded O’Hare airport, an hour’s drive to the east.

DSV has contracted with all-cargo airline Atlas Air to operate a Boeing 777-200 freighter on the route, Zack Oakley, the airport’s executive director, confirmed. FlightAware tracking data shows the flight stopped in Shanghai, China, before heading to Chicago-Rockford airport (RFD), with a fuel stop in Anchorage, Alaska.

The aircraft continued on Sunday to Luxembourg. DSV, the third-largest logistics service provider in the world based on revenue, began utilizing RFD in November when it began weekly charter flights from Shanghai. In June, an inbound service from Luxembourg began.

All the flights are operated by Atlas Air and flow through RFD on their way to other destinations in the DSV network.

“Incheon is one of Asia’s most important cargo hubs, and with this new service, DSV can provide reliable capacity and connectivity via the network we are building through Rockford,” said Mohamed Siraj, DSV’s vice president Air Direct / Global Gateways in a joint news release last week.

“The airport has consistently demonstrated the operational reliability and flexibility needed to support scheduled international freighter services, making it a natural choice as we continue developing our air cargo operations.” And DSV isn’t finished adding air freight service to Chicago-Rockford.

The company plans to introduce a scheduled service connecting RFD to Chennai, India, later this year. Many freight forwarders charter aircraft and deploy them on specific routes for customers because of the greater control it gives them over capacity, scheduling, and delivery speed versus handing freight to various commercial airlines.

Why It Matters: DSV is using the small airport in Rockford, Illinois, to bypass Chicago O’Hare airport and gain efficiencies. DSV uses a multi-client terminal operated by Menzies Aviation to transfer loads between the freighter aircraft and trucks that support its local warehouses. RFD is No. 19 in North America for cargo.

In 2025, the airport handled 498,432 metric tons of cargo, up 10. 8% from the previous year, according to figures from Airports Council-International. The Federal Aviation Administration ranks RFD as 12 in the U. S.

based on total landed weight, which also includes the weight of the aircraft and likely reflects the fact that more large cargo aircraft serve the airport. UPS, Amazon Air and Maersk Air Cargo are the dominant carriers at RFD and have their own parcel and cargo handling terminals.

Maersk provided trans-Pacific service on its own fleet of Boeing 767-300 freighters until early this year, when it terminated its flying contract with Amerijet. But it still brings in freighters, operated by Magma Aviation, from Liege, Belgium, each week.

Since the Covid crisis, second-tier airports like RFD have become more attractive to logistics companies chartering their own aircraft due to less crowding, lower fees and operating costs, airside cargo terminals that give them direct control over their freight compared to using a third party for disassembling and preparing loads for pick up, and less congested roads.

The upshot is goods can be expedited from the airport to their final destination, making customers happier. RFD officials tout that airlines can save up to 25 minutes in taxiing time compared to O’Hare airport, saving fuel and reducing carbon emissions. Click here for more FreightWaves/American Shipper stories by Eric Kulisch.

Write to Eric Kulisch at ekulisch@freightwaves. com. RELATED STORIES: Large logistics firms launch dedicated flights to Chicago area The post DSV loves RFD: Logistics provider and airport hook up over air cargo appeared first on FreightWaves.