Many of these developments have occurred against a backdrop of structural change in global trade, including supply chain diversification, recovery of belly capacity as passenger flights returned, and the rise of digital platforms transforming sales and service. The GSSA and GSA sector has evolved from a fragmented collection of regional sales relationships into a networked ecosystem where major agents provide end-to-end commercial expertise, digital tools and strategic growth pathways for global carriers. Across Asia, North America and Europe since 2020, developments have underscored how commercial representation, strategic partnerships, and regional expansion plans define success in an industry now reshaped by resilience and innovation.
GSSA/GSA industry developments since 2020
Since 2020, the air cargo landscape in Asia has been shaped by a vigorous rebound from the pandemic and by carriers seeking stronger commercial networks in the face of shifting trade flows. One of the most significant developments in the region was the appointment of the ECS Group as the general sales and service agent (GSSA) for CMA CGM Air Cargo in April 2024, followed by ECS Group’s later selection as exclusive global GSSA partner for Asiana Airlines’ international belly cargo operations in August 2025. The CMA CGM Air Cargo deal marked a major step in this maritime-origin carrier’s evolution into airfreight, lifting its commercial presence across Asia and beyond. The appointment put ECS at the forefront of selling and servicing cargo capacity on behalf of CMA CGM Air Cargo, combining its global GSSA network with one of the fastest growing ocean-air integrated logistics players operating at gateways from East Asia into Europe and the Americas
The strategic importance of this development cannot be overstated. In the wake of the pandemic and the disruption of global supply chains, shippers in Asia increased their reliance on flexible and resilient cargo options, whether on belly capacity or freighters. The partnership allowed CMA CGM Air Cargo, backed by one of the world’s largest container shipping groups, to leverage an established GSSA with operational strength and local market intelligence in key Asian hubs such as Singapore, Hong Kong and China. Concurrently this expanded the range of commercial solutions available to forwarders and logistics providers in a part of the world where demand rebounded quickly, buoyed by e-commerce, manufacturing exports and the resurgence of just-in-time inventory strategies.
A corollary to the CMA CGM Air Cargo partnership was ECS’s design to capitalise on Asiana Airlines’ strategic pivot post-2024. After divesting its dedicated freighter division amid regulatory and financial recalibration, Asiana shifted to a belly cargo model, with the airline depending wholly on the lower decks of its passenger fleet to generate freight revenue. In August 2025 Asiana appointed ECS Group as its exclusive global partner to manage international belly cargo sales, reservations, customer service and ground handling coordination, covering major markets in Asia, Europe and the Americas. This reflected not only a practical commercial decision but also a broader trend in the industry, where passenger belly capacity became a significant revenue driver and carriers leaned on GSSAs to unify sales and service across heterogenous markets.
In many ways the Asia story since 2020 is one of post-pandemic resurgence of demand accelerating the need for sophisticated commercial representation, while strategic partnerships between carriers and GSSAs reflected an industry that had matured beyond pre-pandemic models of ad hoc representation.
North America market
Across the North American theatre, one of the most exciting air cargo GSA developments in the period since 2020 has been the appointment of Wexco Cargo GSSA as the United Kingdom General Sales Agent (GSA) for Alaska Airlines in January 2026, signalling Alaska Airlines’ broader strategy to extend into transatlantic markets from its primary North American base. From May 2026, Wexco, part of the Kales Group, will lead cargo sales, marketing and customer engagement for Alaska Airlines’ cargo operations in the UK as the airline begins daily widebody services from London Heathrow to Seattle and beyond. This appointment is noteworthy for several reasons. It demonstrates how North American carriers are increasingly embracing strategic partnerships with specialist agencies not just domestically but across regions in pursuit of new cargo markets. Alaska Airlines will connect Europe and North America with cargo flows that link into its broader network from Seattle across the United States, Hawaii, Central America and the Asia Pacific, all facilitated by strong local commercial representation in London
This development also epitomises the changing role of GSAs in the North American context. Traditionally, airlines might have built direct sales teams or engaged local agencies on a limited basis. In Alaska’s case, the choice of Wexco reflects the maturing sophistication of commercial strategy, with emphasis on data-driven yield management, forwarder engagement, and real-time capacity visibility. Wexco’s toolkit, which includes reporting metrics and digital capacity tools, aligns with a cargo business in which data and agility have become competitive assets. The UK market itself was targeted because it offers one of the densest concentrations of freight forwarders and multinational shippers in Europe, providing a fertile testing ground for extended operations. The appointment also underscores the trend of airline GSA partnerships becoming international in scope, mirroring the globalisation of cargo demand and the increasing interdependence of regional markets.
Wexco’s new role forms part of a broader narrative of transformation in North America’s air cargo landscape. The industry in the United States has seen a persistent recalibration of cargo services with players like JetBlue collaborating with GSSAs and carriers such as Atlas, Hawaiian, and others realigning their sales footprints to better tap into cross-border demand. Although Alaska’s transatlantic expansion is technically an inbound European development, it represents the outward-looking strategy of North American carriers and the central role that GSA and GSSA partnerships play in enabling these moves.
When taken together, these moves hint at a broader North American story: that of cargo markets seeking new trade lanes and network opportunities beyond the continent, supported by commercial partnerships that balance carrier ambition with agent expertise.
Europe – Consolidation and expansion
In Europe the air cargo GSSA and GSA scene experienced some of the most dynamic developments since 2020, defined mainly by consolidation and strategic expansions. European GSSA dynamics have also been shaped by expansion strategies such as the ECS Group’s broadened coverage for Challenge Group across Eastern European markets in 2026. Under this expanded agreement, ECS now provides comprehensive GSSA services for Challenge Group in multiple new territories, enhancing connectivity from Europe’s Liège hub to Asia, Africa and the Americas. This reflects a shift beyond traditional Western European strongholds into emerging cargo nodes, driven by demand for specialised sectors such as pharmaceuticals, complex machinery and high-value components
Moreover, the period since 2020 has seen a wave of M&A and strategic consolidation in the European GSSA sector, with major players like ECS Group and Kales Group actively acquiring or integrating operations across multiple markets, from North Africa to Central America and within Europe itself. These moves have had cascading effects on airline representation and the competitive landscape for cargo sales. For instance, ECS’s acquisition activities, including EFIS Maroc and International Airline Marketing, have strengthened its footprint in strategic air cargo gateways and diversified its portfolio of airline partners, enabling economies of scale previously unseen in this sector.
With digital transformation also gaining speed across GSSA operations in Europe, agents have increasingly integrated advanced cargo platforms to improve capacity visibility, pricing agility and forwarder engagement. This has helped shape a more data-centric commercial environment, where agents are expected to deliver not just sales but real-time market insights and predictive analytics to airline partners.
The post GSSA/GSA market trends since 2020 appeared first on Air Cargo Week.
Go to Source
Author: James Graham
