In early March, a loaded 747-400 freighter, operated by Atlas Air on behalf of forwarding firm Panalpina, pushed back from the gate in Huntsville, Alabama, and took off at sunset, full of machine parts from the American Midwest. It was the inaugural flight of Panalpina's twice-weekly "Brazil Wings" main-deck service from Huntsville to São Paulo, Brazil. On its return journey to Huntsville from Viracopos International Airport, the freighter flew on to Hong Kong International, with a load of perishable goods from Brazil and other South American markets. The total transit time for the new VCP-HSV-HKA route was less than 40 hours – pretty impressive for a journey of more than 11,300 nautical miles.