Belize's largest regional carrier. John Greif III started the airline in 1979 with one aircraft and two staff. It is now headquartered in San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, operating from San Pedro Airport as its main base and Philip S. W. Goldson International Airport as its international gateway, with a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan EX fleet flying more than 200 scheduled flights a day. It is the only airline in Belize registered under the IATA Standard Safety Assessment (ISSA) and, alongside passengers, has long carried mail, parcels and fresh produce to points in Belize and nearby regional destinations. No direct cargo flights between mainland China and Belize are publicly listed; China cargo normally connects through a North or Central American hub to Belize City and is distributed to domestic points from there.
Chinese-language service provider: Goodhope Logistics (China) Limited, handling booking, customs declaration and end-to-end logistics for international air freight, on routes from China to the United States and all major continents.
Tropic Air (IATA code 9N, ICAO code TOS, callsign TROPISER) was founded in Belize by John Greif III in 1979 with one aircraft and two employees. It began with a short route between Belize City and San Pedro, extended flights to the main towns and islands of Belize, and then added regional points toward Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras. After more than four decades it is the carrier with the most flights in Belize and the youngest fleet, with a published domestic passenger market share of about 61 percent. Maximillian Greif is chief executive and the airline employs more than 300 people.
The fleet consists of Cessna 208B Grand Caravan EX aircraft. Published sources show that between 2025 and 2026 the airline took delivery of five factory-new aircraft of the type in batches, the last in January 2026, bringing the all-Caravan fleet to 15 aircraft in service, the youngest fleet in Belize and the surrounding region. The airline operates more than 200 scheduled flights a day, carries about 300,000 passengers a year and moves roughly 425,000 to 441,000 pieces a year. The type is a single-engine turboprop that can use island and coastal airports with limited runways, which lets the airline serve destinations that conventional aircraft struggle to reach.
On safety and industry standing, it is the only airline in Belize registered under the IATA Standard Safety Assessment (ISSA), has completed several audit cycles since joining in 2015, and is a member of the Latin American and Caribbean Air Transport Association (ALTA). On cargo, scheduled flights routinely carry freight; published services include same-day carriage of mail, parcels and perishable goods, plus cargo charters on request. No direct cargo flights between mainland China and Belize are publicly listed, and no China office of the airline is listed either. The standard path for China cargo is through a North or Central American hub to Belize City, with domestic distribution handled by the airline and local ground agents.
| Airline | Tropic Air |
| Company type | Regional carrier (mainly passenger service, with cargo carried on scheduled flights) |
| Country | Belize |
| Global headquarters | San Pedro, Belize (Ambergris Caye) |
| Hub airport | San Pedro Airport (SPR) International gateway: Philip S. W. Goldson International Airport (BZE) |
| Founded | 1979 |
| IATA two-letter code | 9N |
| ICAO three-letter code | TOS |
| Radio call sign | TROPISER |
| Air waybill prefix | No publicly available information that can be cross-checked |
| Official lookup website | tropicair.com |
| Cargo aircraft | 15 Cessna 208B Grand Caravan EX (published figure; passenger configuration, with cargo sharing hold and cabin space on the same flight) |
| China services | No direct cargo flights publicly listed and no directly owned China office |
The information above is compiled from public sources. Fleet size and destination coverage may change with operational needs, so check the carrier's latest publication.
The airline carries freight to all scheduled points, on the same flight as passengers. This suits small-lot mail and parcel traffic with tight transit requirements.
Published services include same-day carriage of perishables, suitable for seafood, fruit and vegetables and other fresh items with modest temperature requirements. Transit time depends directly on flight connections.
Cargo charters are available for larger lots, fixed time windows or volumes that exceed scheduled capacity, arranged with the carrier batch by batch.
At Philip S. W. Goldson International Airport the airline connects with North and Central American carriers and breaks inbound consignments at Belize City down to domestic points, forming the last leg for China cargo in Belize.
Hold structure: the all-Caravan fleet is single-engine turboprop with no separate main deck cargo hold, so freight uses the hold and spare cabin space on the same flight. Payload per aircraft is far below a widebody or narrowbody freighter, and piece weight and volume must be checked shipment by shipment. Cargo shares weight and balance limits with passengers, so acceptable volume varies with passenger load, fuel and weather. If cargo arriving in Belize City needs to move on to San Pedro, Placencia or Dangriga, plan the domestic connection at the booking stage.
The fleet is built around a single main type, the Cessna 208B Grand Caravan EX. It is a single-engine turboprop with short take-off and landing capability, able to use island and coastal airports with short runways and limited ground support, which fits a country made up largely of islands and coastal towns. From 2025 the airline took factory-new aircraft in batches, completing the current expansion in January 2026 at 15 aircraft in service, the lowest average fleet age in Belize and the region. In its early years the airline flew light piston types such as the Cessna T182T; that type belongs to the fleet renewal story, and published sources do not fully agree on its current status.
| Aircraft type | Number | Power type | Payload (published reference) | Role |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cessna 208B Grand Caravan EX | 15 aircraft | Single-engine turboprop | About 1,587 kg | Domestic and regional scheduled flights |
| Cessna T182T | 2 aircraft | Single-engine piston | About 379 kg | Light auxiliary type listed in published sources |
The table is compiled from published sources. Payload figures are published reference values for the type and are not the amount that can be accepted on a given flight. Actual acceptance depends on passenger load, fuel, sector length and weight and balance limits, as calculated by the carrier for that flight.
| Cargo types handled | Mail, parcels, documents, small spare parts and consumer goods |
| Suitable shipment sizes | Distribution cargo with low piece weight and small lot size |
| Fresh produce | Arranged around same-day connections; transit time depends directly on flight times |
| Runway suitability | Can operate at island and coastal short-runway airports |
| Capacity per flight | Shares weight and balance limits with passengers; must be calculated shipment by shipment |
| Out-of-gauge cargo | Overweight or oversize pieces need prior approval; the carrier confirms acceptance after review |
The chart shows the value of Belize imports by source in 2024, with China as the second-largest source. Figures follow published statistics and indicate the scale of China cargo entering Belize.
Published sources list no scheduled cargo service by the airline to mainland China or Hong Kong, and no office of its own in China. No direct cargo flights between mainland China and Belize are publicly listed.No public information availableCargo from China usually connects through a North or Central American hub to Belize City.
Philip S. W. Goldson International Airport (BZE) is the international gateway and San Pedro Airport (SPR) the main operating base. Domestic points include Belize City Municipal Airport, Caye Caulker, Caye Chapel, Corozal, Dangriga and Hopkins, Placencia, Punta Gorda, and inland points such as Belmopan and Orange Walk.
Published regional points include Cancun and Merida in Mexico, Guatemala City and Flores in Guatemala, and San Pedro Sula and Roatan in Honduras. Regional operations and schedules change with the season; the carrier's latest publication applies.
| Destinations | Airport code | Country | Service type |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Pedro (main operating base) | SPR | Belize | Dense domestic scheduled services |
| Belize City (international gateway) | BZE | Belize | Scheduled domestic flights connecting with North American and Central American carriers |
| Caye Caulker | CUK | Belize | Dense domestic scheduled services |
| Placencia | PLJ | Belize | Domestic scheduled flights |
| Dangriga and Hopkins | DGA | Belize | Domestic scheduled flights |
| Punta Gorda | PND | Belize | Domestic scheduled flights |
| Corozal | CZH | Belize | Domestic scheduled flights |
| Cancun | CUN | Mexico | Regional scheduled flights |
| Guatemala City | GUA | Guatemala | Regional scheduled flights |
| San Pedro Sula | SAP | Honduras | Regional scheduled flights |
| Roatan | RTB | Honduras | Regional point; operating status as published by the carrier |
| Mainland China and Hong Kong | — | China | No published scheduled freighter data at present |
Destination roles are compiled from public sources; where no operating days are listed, no fixed schedule is publicly available. Schedules change with the season and are confirmed by the carrier on the day of booking.
The airline does not fly to China, so China cargo to Belize and the region moves in two stages: from a Chinese origin airport via a North or Central American hub to Belize City, then distribution inside Belize by the airline and local ground agents. The value sits in the last stage, breaking an inbound consignment at Belize City down to islands and coastal towns quickly.
Operational note:For cargo to the United States and Europe we book capacity with the main carriers on those lanes. Shipments to Belize are best arranged under one air waybill for the whole journey, with the mainline carrier and the final distribution carrier billed separately; we quote as one package and handle customs and handover.
| Company address | 7 Coconut Drive, San Pedro Airport, Ambergris Caye, San Pedro, Belize |
| Cargo contact | cargo@tropicair.com |
| Cargo phone | +501 223 4851 |
| Reservations phone | +501 226 2012, +501 226 2626 |
| Toll-free from the US and Canada | 1-800-422-3435 |
| Official website | tropicair.com |
| China contact | No China office is publicly listed. Contact the airline's local agent in China, or ask us to coordinate on your behalf.No public information available |
| Information note | Contact details and office hours may change, so check the carrier's latest publication before handover |
The airline has no publicly listed office of its own in China, so shippers cannot easily book with the carrier from inside the country. A local Chinese agent can book the mainline leg and hand over to a Belizean agent for last-leg distribution. Coordinating through a forwarder that knows Central American traffic adds value in these areas:
Published domestic points cover islands, coastal towns and inland towns, so last-leg connections are direct for cargo bound for San Pedro, Caye Caulker, Placencia, Dangriga and Punta Gorda.
The airline operates more than 200 scheduled flights a day, with dense service toward San Pedro and Caye Caulker, so inbound cargo at Belize City can be delivered domestically quickly when connections are planned well.
Five factory-new aircraft arrived between 2025 and 2026, the all-Caravan fleet stands at 15 aircraft in service, and average fleet age is the lowest in Belize and the region, which supports operational reliability.
It is the only airline in Belize registered under the IATA Standard Safety Assessment (ISSA) and is a member of ALTA; both can be verified publicly.
Batches with fixed time windows or volumes beyond scheduled capacity can go by cargo charter, with capacity arranged per batch, which suits project and seasonal consignments.
Single-engine turboprops limit payload per flightLimited capacityso full-container and large heavy consignments do not fit. With no direct flight from China, cargo must transit a third country, and total transit time is set by hub connections.
Where it fits: the airline's strength is last-leg distribution inside Belize, connections to regional points and same-day carriage of small, frequent lots. For volume cargo to Belize we usually place the China to Americas hub mainline with another carrier and use the airline and local agents for the domestic leg beyond Belize City, pricing each sector separately.
Belize's only international airport is Philip S. W. Goldson International Airport (BZE) at Ladyville near Belize City, about 9 to 10 miles from the city. All international air cargo enters through it and then fans out to domestic points and neighbouring countries. With a single gateway, Belize City is the mandatory clearance and transhipment node, so arrival connections and domestic distribution for China cargo must be planned together at that point.
No direct cargo flights between mainland China and Belize are publicly listed. Published carrier information shows Belize City's international routes operated by several North American and Central American carriers to points including Miami, Dallas/Fort Worth, Charlotte, Houston, Chicago, Denver, Atlanta, Los Angeles, New York, Toronto, Calgary, Montreal, Panama City and San Salvador. Cargo from China normally moves from a domestic airport to one of those hubs and then to Belize City, involving two loading cycles and one transit customs entry, so the plan needs a connection buffer.
The last leg is flown by light aircraft, where payload is set dynamically by passenger load, fuel and sector length. Heavy or bulky pieces need prior application to the carrier, which checks weight and balance and door dimensions before confirming acceptance. A shipment with many pieces often has to be split across flights, so the booking stage should set the shipping sequence and required arrival dates per batch.
Once the booking is confirmed, submit the consignee details for the air waybill, commercial invoice and packing list as the carrier requires. Customs clearance and pickup in Belize City can be handled by a local agent; if the cargo moves to another destination in Belize, the domestic leg can be arranged under the same set of documents. Our quote itemises origin customs declaration, mainline air freight, transit handling, and destination clearance and delivery.
Tropic Air is a regional carrier in Belize, founded by John Greif III in 1979. It runs scheduled passenger flights and carries freight on all scheduled points. Its IATA code is 9N, ICAO code TOS and callsign TROPISER. Published sources give no air waybill prefix that can be cross-checked.
Published sources list no scheduled cargo service by the airline to mainland China or Hong Kong. No direct cargo flights between mainland China and Belize are publicly listed, and no China office is listed; shippers can contact its local Chinese agent or ask us to make the introduction.
The airline does not fly to China, so no China route schedule or aircraft assignment exists. Once China cargo reaches Belize City, the airline carries it on domestic sectors with Cessna 208B Grand Caravan EX aircraft; schedules follow the seasonal flight plan and are confirmed on the day of booking.
Published sources list 15 Cessna 208B Grand Caravan EX in service, with five factory-new aircraft delivered in batches between 2025 and 2026. Some sources also list light types such as the Cessna T182T, and the accounts do not fully agree. The fleet is passenger configuration with no dedicated freighter listed.
Published services include same-day carriage of mail, parcels and perishables, plus cargo charters on request. Given the payload and cabin limits of the type, oversize or overweight pieces, cargo needing an independent temperature zone and regulated commodities require full details at booking, with acceptance confirmed by the carrier after review.
Cargo arriving at Belize City can clear customs at Philip S. W. Goldson International Airport and then be distributed by the airline to San Pedro, Caye Caulker, Placencia, Dangriga and Hopkins, Punta Gorda and Corozal, with optional connections to regional points such as Cancun, Guatemala City and San Pedro Sula. We place the China to Americas hub mainline with other carriers.
Goodhope Logistics (China) Limited is based in Shenzhen, China, and specializes in international air cargo from China to the United States and major markets worldwide. We design air cargo solutions to Belize, moving cargo from major Chinese airports through an Americas hub to Belize City and onto the Tropic Air domestic network, covering quotations, export clearance, airfreight, customs clearance and delivery. Ask us for routings and rates.
Disclaimer:Prepared by Goodhope Logistics (China) Limited (Goodhope Freight). Airline names, codes, trademarks and brand marks mentioned here belong to their respective owners. We are an independent international freight forwarder and have no affiliation, agency or investment relationship with this airline. The information is compiled from public sources for reference only and does not form a contract of carriage or a service commitment. Space, rates and schedules are subject to actual confirmation by the carrier or its authorized agent on the day of booking.