Compass Cargo Airlines

Compass Cargo Airlines is an all-cargo airline registered in Bulgaria and based at Sofia International Airport. It obtained EASA certification in 2021 and began commercial cargo operations. The name Compass reflects a business built around Sofia as the reference point, with cargo reaching out towards both Europe and Asia, and the call sign MIGRATOR echoes the rhythm of scheduled cross-border flying. The airline holds IATA code HQ and ICAO code ADZ, and its approvals cover international scheduled and charter cargo on widebody and narrowbody freighters.

The fleet consists of Boeing 737-800SF converted narrowbody freighters and Boeing 747-400 series widebody freighters, seven aircraft in all. Two of the 737-800SF fly DHL's intra-European night network from Leipzig/Halle (LEJ) in Germany under contract, while the 747-400F and 747-400ERF fly intercontinental mainline and ACMI work, often for carriers such as Emirates SkyCargo. For a shipper in China the main value is the 747 widebody freighter on the direct Zhengzhou to Sofia route, which links an Eastern European gateway directly to Chinese cross-border e-commerce and electronics supply chains.

The official reference site is compasscargo.eu, a plain text domain that shippers and agents can use to verify carrier credentials and flight status. The airline has no published office or commercial entity in China; bookings and charters for China are arranged through its authorized agents or charter brokers, with a local forwarder confirming space, documents and ground handling.

The airline operates seven aircraft, split between narrowbody and widebody freighters in a pairing of widebody intercontinental mainline plus narrowbody intra-European distribution. The Boeing 747-400 series is the main type on China-Europe routes, with payload and ULD compatibility suited to bulk cross-border e-commerce and high-value electronics. The 737-800SF serves intra-European routes, with two aircraft permanently deployed at the Leipzig/Halle hub under the DHL contract.

The Boeing 747-400F has a single main deck running the length of the aircraft and a nose cargo door that opens upward, which suits over-length and outsize equipment and large pallet loads. The 747-400ERF extends the range on the same airframe and suits ACMI sectors between the Middle East, Europe and Asia. For Chinese e-commerce exports the widebody main deck takes dense loads of PMC and PAG pallets and air containers, and a payload of about 90 tonnes per flight meets bulk space demand during seasonal e-commerce peaks.

In loading terms the 747-400F main deck is built around PMC and PAG pallets, with air containers stacked in the lower hold, and the large nose door lets over-length cargo enter the main deck in one piece; electronics usually move on PAG pallets with shock-resistant packing. The 737-800SF, a converted narrowbody, takes AKH containers and small pallets with a payload around twenty tonnes, matched to frequent, tight-deadline night sectors within Europe. The two 737-800SF stationed at Leipzig/Halle are a typical deployment of that role and do not fly China intercontinental sectors.

Compass Cargo serves China through two airports: Zhengzhou Xinzheng (CGO) as the direct scheduled freighter point, and Hong Kong (HKG) for regular Boeing 747 operations. Cargo from either end enters Bulgaria and Eastern Europe through Sofia (SOF) and is distributed onward within Europe.

Note: the frequencies above are compiled from public sources, and about four flights a week from Zhengzhou to Sofia is the planned figure. Actual schedules follow season, volume and the carrier's maintenance plan, subject to carrier confirmation on the day of booking.

Compass Cargo uses Sofia as its Eastern European gateway, building a network of direct China freighter service plus intra-European connection. Cargo from Zhengzhou CGO lands at Sofia SOF and can be distributed further through European cargo hubs such as Liège (LGG) and Leipzig/Halle (LEJ), reaching Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, Greece, North Macedonia and other Balkan and Eastern European countries as well as the main western and central European consumer markets.

Diagram: solid orange arrows are the Zhengzhou CGO to Sofia SOF direct mainline, dashed lines are the supplementary capacity via Hong Kong HKG, and grey lines are the intra-European connections from Sofia to Liège LGG and Leipzig LEJ. Node positions are schematic and not to geographic scale.

The Sofia gateway covers the Balkan peninsula and the Eastern European manufacturing belt. Bulgarian vehicle parts, electronics assembly and textile clusters can be collected by truck the same day at Sofia. Flights to Liège connect western and northern Europe, where several European air cargo forwarders and scheduled truck lines gather at the airport, so Chinese e-commerce parcels can reach Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and western Germany the next day. Leipzig connects central Europe, where the DHL narrowbody night network distributes to Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, Austria and other industrial countries. Choose clearance and local distribution at Sofia, or a combination with onward air to Liège or Leipzig; we coordinate the mainline and transit sectors.

Because Compass Cargo has no published office in China, shippers do not book with the airline directly. They submit the request to a local forwarder, which approaches the carrier's authorized sales desk or a charter broker for space. Goodhope Freight coordinates the whole process from booking request to distribution after landing.

Booking notes for cross-border e-commerce and electronics: declare the total pieces, piece weight and pallet specification at booking, provide battery data in advance for high-value electronics, declare lithium battery cargo separately under dangerous goods rules and allow time for palletising and security recheck. Space on the fixed Zhengzhou-Sofia schedule of about four flights a week tightens during e-commerce peaks, so lock space seven to ten working days ahead; if volume exceeds the roughly 90 tonnes available per flight, assess a midweek extra section or a charter. Schedules and space are subject to carrier confirmation on the day of booking.

The Zhengzhou-Sofia freighter route opened on 1 November 2024 with a Compass Cargo Airlines Boeing 747-400F, the type registered LZ-CJA, and was the first direct international freighter route from Zhengzhou Xinzheng International Airport to Eastern Europe. It mainly serves cross-border e-commerce and electronics exports. The launch was announced by China's State Post Bureau in November 2024 and marked an extension of Zhengzhou's air cargo network from the traditional western European and North American hubs towards an Eastern European gateway.

On the ACMI side, the airline's two Boeing 747-400ERF, registered LZ-CJB and LZ-CJC, have often provided wet lease and crewed flying for carriers such as Emirates SkyCargo since entering service, and both were still in service in March 2026. That is why regular Boeing 747 operations are recorded at Hong Kong, giving shippers in south China a supplementary channel alongside the Zhengzhou direct flight. Two Boeing 737-800SF are deployed for DHL at Leipzig/Halle Airport under a long-term contract on the intra-European night network, forming an intercontinental plus regional capacity pairing with the China-Sofia mainline.

For tracking, the air waybill number gives access to cargo milestones through the carrier's system or our customer service. Because the airline has no published office in China, rates, manifest details and special cargo requirements are subject to the carrier's written confirmation on the day of booking. Outsize, dangerous goods and perishable shipments must be declared at booking with dimensions, weight and temperature requirements, and we check aircraft type and door compatibility with the carrier shipment by shipment.