A new competitor is arriving in the circle for express air cargo in Asia. ATSG and Okay Airways join hands with three other companies to generate United Star Express Airlines.

A general study of Alibaba’s scheduled increase of Chinese online shopping business to worldwide e-commerce power, and the connected developer of the Cainiao logistics network.

Alibaba plan to become the similar authority in Europe and the America that it already is in China, but that its dream of an open logistics network had the power to tremble the express industry. The air cargo industry is responding to this opening.

On 24 September, in the Chinese city of Tianjin, five companies contracted a Sino-American joint-venture contract generating United Star Express Airlines. The new object, registered in  the free trade zone in Tianjin with registered capital of 400 million RMB, strategies to begin aircraft processes in mid of 2016.

The major allies in the JV are US-based Air Transport Services Group China-based Okay Airlines; and Vip shop Holdings Ltd, a China-based online vendor major in marketing common branded goods at cut-prices. The other participants are Tianjin Dongjiang Investment Company and Bridgewater Developments Ltd. At first, United Star will work in China and in adjacent Asian countries, providing third party express and contract airplane services to countrywide and worldwide express companies.

According to a report express package volume is increasing approximately 30% yearly in China, and carriers are adding capacity greatly in an effort to keep active.

China Postal Airlines and SF Airlines are the apparent examples, they add 737, 757, and now 767. It is also significant to think of that the large Chinese grouping and passenger carriers are also increasing their slim body and wide body passenger fleets, and that this additional belly size is also being filled by parcels created through online shopping.

According to the JV allies during its starting year of work, United Star Express assumes to have six small and average size cargo carriers, with a Boeing 737, Boeing 757 and Boeing 767 airplane.

The basis of the airlines was not listed, but since Okay Airways presently work only one freighter. ATSG will run the 767 freighters. ATSG secondary Air Transport International has four aircrafts 757-200Fs in its fleet, but these are presented in deal to DHL Express, so unless the DHL deal is ended, any 757 freighters worked  with United Star would have to come from anywhere else.