IATA Expands CASS Cargo Services in Latin America

The International Air Transport Association is extending its cargo settlement infrastructure across three Latin American markets through new and upgraded Cargo Accounts Settlement Systems deployments. ## Regional Cargo Volume Trends Carriers based in the region recorded average year-on-year growth of 3.3 percent in cargo tonne kilometers over the decade ending April 2026. This performance produced a cumulative increase of 38.8 percent across the period. ## Mexico Domestic Operations Launch Mexico introduced CASS Domestic operations in April 2026, extending the CASS Export framework that began in 1987. The country became the second market after the United States to implement IATA FlexiPay, which supports real-time billing, secure prepayment, and flexible payment terms among airlines, cargo agents, and freight forwarders. Domestic air cargo exceeded 125,000 tonnes in 2025 and represented 15.8 percent of total tonnage moved from, to, and within Mexico. In the first quarter of 2026, the Monterrey-Mexico City International Airport route grew 50.9 percent year-on-year, the Tijuana-Guadalajara route rose 36.0 percent, and the Mexico City International Airport-Hermosillo route increased 17.0 percent. ## Paraguay Export System Timeline CASS Export operations are scheduled to open in Paraguay during the final quarter of 2026. The market handled more than 42,000 tonnes of air cargo in 2025, reflecting a 225.3 percent year-on-year increase. ## Brazil Domestic Rollout Schedule IATA intends to activate CASS Domestic services in Brazil beginning in early 2027, building on an existing CASS Export operation that has run for more than two decades. Carriers serving Brazil moved over 791,000 tonnes of air cargo in 2025, with domestic traffic accounting for 7.9 percent of that total. Air cargo represented 5.9 percent of Brazilian exports by value in 2025 while comprising only 0.3 percent of export weight. ## Global CASS Performance Metrics CASS processed USD 47.5 billion in settlements during 2025 and maintained a 100 percent on-time settlement rate. The system currently comprises 89 CASS Export operations, 9 CASS Import operations, and 2 CASS Domestic operations worldwide, including the recently activated Mexico Domestic service. Juan Antonio Rodríguez, IATA’s Executive Director for Financial Services, BSP & CASS, noted that the cargo industry continues to rely on CASS to support expansion in domestic and emerging export markets. Further details appear in the [IATA announcement](https://www.iata.org/en/pressroom/2026-releases/06-05-iata-expands-cargo-services-brazil-mexico-paraguay/) and coverage hosted by [Simple Flying](https://simpleflying.com/). ## Why it matters for AeroLink pilots Pilots operating cargo flights in these markets may encounter updated settlement procedures and expanded domestic connectivity that influence scheduling and payload planning on routes such as Monterrey-Mexico City and Tijuana-Guadalajara.