Dubai-based cargo airline SolitAir has launched its inaugural flight to Sofia, Bulgaria, marking the cargo carrier’s first route into the European Union.
SolitAir’s flights from its hub at Dubai World Central in the UAE to Vasil Levski Sofia Airport have been made possible by its ACC3 (Air Cargo or Mail Carrier operating into the Union from a Third Country Airport) designation, granted by the Belgian Civil Aviation Authority in March.
Combined with its existing UAE GCAA Air Operator’s Certificate and EASA Third Country Operator (TCO) authorisation, the designation completes the regulatory foundation required for SolitAir to operate scheduled freighter services into EU airspace.
The route gives EU-based freight forwarders, integrators and e-commerce businesses a direct link into SolitAir’s wider network across the Middle East, Africa, the Indian Subcontinent, the STAN countries and China.
Hamdi Osman, founder and chief executive of SolitAir, said: “Sofia is more than a new dot on the map – it is the first European link in a network we have built city by city across some of the world’s most commercially vital, yet underserved, trade routes.
“Our ACC3 certification was never just a regulatory milestone; it was the key that would let us connect the markets we already serve to Europe.”
Sofia occupies a strategic position at the crossroads of Central, Eastern and South- Eastern Europe, with established road and rail links into the EU’s wider single market.
The city has developed into a regional logistics and manufacturing base, with growing demand for time-critical airfreight spanning e-commerce, automotive components, pharmaceuticals and perishables – sectors that align closely with SolitAir’s existing cargo specialisms.
SolitAir obtained an Air Operator Certificate (AOC) from the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) General Civil Aviation Authority in March last year.
Since its operational launch in October 2024, the airline has grown to 56 routes across more than 34 countries, including a 17-city network across Africa, anchored by a hub in Nairobi.
SolitAir operates a fleet of seven 737-800 Boeing converted freighters, each with 20-tonne cargo capacity and able to carry dangerous goods, pharmaceuticals, perishables, valuable and oversized freight.
The airline is targeting fleet growth to 20 aircraft operating from its 20,440 sq m cargo hub at Dubai World Central.
