ULAN BATOR, July 20 (Xinhua) -- Mongolia's first ever Boeing 737-300 cargo aircraft landed in Genghis Khan international airport here on Saturday.

With a weight of 20,000 tons, the Boeing 737-300 cargo aircraft can travel up to 5,250 km.

"I believe today's event has opened a new page in the history of the aviation sector of Mongolia," said Mongolian Minister of Road and Transport Development Byambasuren Enkh-Amgalan.

"Air cargo transport plays a significant role in any country's economic development," Chuluunkhuu Togmid, principal CEO at Mongolian Airways Cargo company, told Xinhua.

In 2018, a total of 5,339 tons of cargo were transported by air, 6 percent more than the same period the year before.