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The weekly newspaper for air cargo professionals No. 1,047
2 September 2019
Never mind the Brexit, here’s air cargo
Training by brokers for brokers
The group spotted the gap in the market as no one was providing cargo charter broker training
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he Albion Broker Institute has been established to provide professional training in aircraft brokerage, described as being designed by brokers for brokers. Founded by Lewis King, managing director of Albion Aviation Group, with over 10 years of aviation industry experience, it provides training for both the passenger and cargo brokers. Modules include an introduction to charter brokerage, different types of cargo aircraft, overview of the market and how to carry out a successful cargo charter. King tells Air Cargo Week that the group spotted the gap in the market as no one was providing cargo charter broker training. He says: “The absence of proper regulation in the cargo charter market has allowed for unfair competition from companies and individuals who conduct their business without regard for what is in
the best interest of the customer or the operator. “It has been refreshing to see that people are willing to invest in professional training for aircraft charter brokerage.” The main cargo clients have been freight forwarders looking to develop in-house brokerage or training existing staff. ABI offers both in-house training and webinars, and King says: “Webinars are proving to be very popular with interest from companies in Europe, Middle East and even as far as Asia. Webinars provide the most cost-effective way of training.” The training is aimed at educating a younger audience and install industry best practices and a charter code of conduct. He says: “One day ABI would also like to pioneer regulation in industry to help raise the barriers of entry of becoming a charter broker,.”
jetBlue and Aeronex join forces for cargo services US low-cost carrier jetBlue will partner with Aeronex Cargo to launch a new cargo offering. Aeronex Cargo, based in Miami, are specialists in delivering turnkey air cargo managed services to low-cost airlines and will focus on providing fast and reliable air cargo services to registered freight forwarders as well as known shippers. Cargo services will begin with an air-to-air offering in Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. This service will first be expanded with a drop-off point at Miami International Airport, one of the top five busiest cargo airports in America, where Aeronex Cargo will pick up and transport goods to Fort Lauderdale. By the end of this year, jetBlue
and Aeronex Cargo expect to open additional cargo operations in John F. Kennedy International Airport, Los Angeles International Airport and Boston Logan International Airport (BOS). “Our partnership with Aeronex Cargo allows us to efficiently offer cargo services without impact to our customer operation, building new rev-
enue opportunities from excess belly capacity on our fleet of more than 250 aircraft,” said Robert Martinelli, director customer experience effectiveness, JetBlue. “In my long professional career of more than 35 years in aviation, it is an immense satisfaction to partner with jetBlue in their decision to go back to the cargo business under this unique turnkey solution model and contribute to increase their bottom line,” said Patricio Sepulveda, founder and CEO of Aeronex Cargo. Over the next few years, jetBlue and Aeronex Cargo will evaluate opportunities to expand the cargo operation to nearly 30 cities across the airline’s network where there is high shipping demand.
Aeronex Cargo’s managers have experience in running and growing a domestic and international cargo business. They will provide a turnkey solution to jetBlue that removes logistical challenges arising from cargo operations, allowing jetBlue and its crewmembers to focus on the experience for airline customers.
Pages 8-9
INSIDE DEUTSCHE BAHN SETTLE CLAIM
DEUTSCHE Bahn has reached a settlement with Lufthansa to end an air cargo cartel legal dispute that has been ongoing since 2013 ... PAGE 2
CHARTERSYNC JOINS NAP
CHARTERSYNC has been invited to be a specialist in the network for Go-Now air cargo charters by the premier global network of leading ... PAGE 7 STRONG BRAND FOR SAA
WITH a strong and recognisable brand, South African Airways will use this to its advantage to turn around its financial position ... PAGE 10
STOP PRESS Nick Platts, Heathrow cargo chief, is to leave his role on 9 October. He has not revealed if he is remaining in the airfreight industry.
MANGA IN AIR CARGO
SOME 240 items of Manga artwork have been flown from Tokyo to the British Museum to form the largest-ever exhibition of Manga outside Japan ... PAGE 12
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Deutsche Bahn and Lufthansa settle cartel claim
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eutsche Bahn has reached a settlement with Lufthansa to end an air cargo cartel legal dispute that has been ongoing since 2013. Details of the settlement between Deutsche Bahn subsidiary DB Barnsdale and Lufthansa Group’s companies Lufthansa Cargo, Swiss International Air Lines and Deutsche Lufthansa, which was heard before the Regional Court of Cologne remain strictly confidential. Martin Seiler, member of the management board of DB for human resources and legal affairs says: “After intense negotiations with Lufthansa, we were able to find a good solution for both sides. Instead of continuing costly legal proceedings for years to come, it would be in the interests of all sides if we were able to reach an agreement with the remaining cartelists.” The European Commission and various other antitrust authorities imposed almost €800 million of fines against 11 cargo carriers, Air Canada, Air France KLM, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Cargolux, Japan Airlines, LAN Chile, Martinair, SAS, Singapore Airlines and Qantas in 2010. The commission alleges that a price fixing cartel in operation from late 1999 to early 2006 set the levels of fuel
and security surcharges. DB Barnsdale pursued damages on behalf of DB Schenker and other freight forwarders and shippers who assigned their claims to the company. In 2013, action for damages was filed at the Regional Court of Cologne and prior to Lufthansa settling, agreements were reached with Singapore Airlines, Air France KLM, Qantas and SAS. Proceedings continue before the Cologne court against Cargolux, Cathay Pacific, LAN Chile/LATAM, Air Canada, British Airways and Japan Airlines.
Quote of the week
“Business is much stronger than politics and it always finds a path to continue to operate” Chris O’Donnell, managing director UK of Air Logistics Group Read the full interview on page 8
Old Words
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During September, we are looking back at old editorial comments that were once a feature of Air Cargo Week
t would seem that everyone in the air industry is keen to get into bed with the Scandinavians. This might be a result of the smart new image the region’s main carrier has just released on an unsuspecting world. Although they haven’t sent us any photographs to show you yet, we believe SAS is now liveried in smart new misty grey and blue clothes and big red engines. And has repackaged its salt. You know you are travelling with the right airline when it starts describing the salt with the meal as “the colour of snow, the taste of tears, the enormity of oceans.” There’s more. Not wanting to get behind in the rush to form new airline partnerships, SAS says it is “analyzing the potential for synergies.” Are we alone in thinking that this kind of language would have provoked laughter or disbelief 10 years ago? It is not just the Scandinavians who are at fault here. Just about every announcement, product launch or company statement we now encounter is couched in a series of well-researched, eloquently created but ultimately hollow cliches.
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British Airways is working its way up a “strategic staircase” and regularly updates a “route map which sets out in detail what we need to do to deliver the objectives described in this staircase.” Air France Cargo, opening its new terminal in Paris last week, spoke as much about the philosophy of moving airfreight as about the practicalities. As clowns walked about on stilts and trapeze artistes swung down from the ceiling, we noted in our press packs that the carrier had chosen “a horizontal structure for its cargo terminal in order to optimise the fluidity of its operations and to facilitate human intervention.” At a time when forwarders and carriers are trying genuinely to improve their service and maintain their turnover in the face of a world downturn, it is ironic that potential customers have to struggle so hard to understand what’s on offer. Let’s promise in 1999 to keep it simple, and say what we mean.
Martin Roebuck, editor
26 October 1998
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K+N and AFKLMP integrate bookings
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uehne + Nagel and Air France KLM Martinair Cargo (AFKLMP) have joined forces to improve integration of electronic bookings. In a proof of concept that concluded in July, the two companies enabled total host-to-host connection through application programming interface (API) to match available capacity and demand. For the first time, a carrier and global logistics provider created a direct system-to-system connection to transform manual quotation and capacity booking process into a digital automated solution. Customers will benefit from AFKLMP Cargo’s digital offering including ad-hoc quotations, capacity availability inquiries, dynamic pricing and real-time e-booking functionalities. The service will be rolled out in Europe and South Asia Pacific. Ygnve Ruud, member of the managing board responsible for airfreight at Kuehne + Nagel says: “The successful conclusion of our proof of concept with Air France KLM Martinair Cargo is a further step forward in eTouch, Kuehne + Nagel’s digital transformation process and initiative to offer a seamless digital customer journey. Thanks to the new interface, we increase speed, accuracy and efficiency – to the benefit of our airfreight customers all over the
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Westdijk named Jan de Rijk CEO
ACWBITES US, European Union, Norwegian and Icelandic officials signed an agreement to level the playing field for US carriers to wet lease aircraft to European carriers on Tuesday 27 August. European regulations had previously limited US carrier ability to provide the services but EU carriers had faced no limitations under Department of Transportation regulations to provide aircraft and crew to each other or to US carriers. The DoT’s deputy assistant secretary for aviation and international affairs, David Short signed the agreement for the US.
globe.” Marcel de Nooijer, executive vice president of Air France KLM Cargo and managing director of Martinair says: “At Air France KLM Martinair Cargo, we keep innovating to provide connected and tailored solutions to our business customers around the world. In this context, enriching Kuehne + Nagel’s in-house systems with our digital services is another step towards the digitisation of our industry.”
AIRFREIGHT throughput at Singapore Changi Airport was down 7.2% year-on-year in July to 170,000 tonnes. Year-to-date Changi has handled 1.15 million tonnes, down 6% on this time in 2018. EGYPTAIR’s first Airbus A220-300 has completed its first test flight from the Mirabel, Canada assembly line. It is the first of 12 on order. The A220 has a range of 3,400 nautical miles.
red Westdijk has been appointed CEO of Jan de Rijk Logistics, succeeding Sebastiaan Scholte who left the company on 1 July. The 52-year-old who took up the role of 1 September, started his career in 1999 at KLM Cargo and subsequently worked at Exel Logistics, DHL Supply Chain and Jan de Rijk. He was director of contract logistics before taking up the role of CEO. Jan and Jacqueline de Rijk say: “After a careful selection procedure, it turned out that the right candidate for the position of CEO was already working within Jan de Rijk Logistics. Fred understands the challenges of international logistics and has the experience and knowledge that is in line with our strategic objectives.” Commenting on his new role, Westdijk says: “I am honoured that I have the opportunity to lead this wonderful company. Jan de Rijk Logistics has strong assets: motivated loyal people; an experienced management team; a very healthy financial position, a clear vision of the future and the right strategy to achieve it.”
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Hourcade transforms TIACA
eline Hourcade will join The International Air Cargo Association (TIACA) as project manager, supporting the transformation program. Initial priorities for Hourcade will be the development of TIACA’s Sustainability Program including the Sustainability Award, and delivering the Cargo Service Quality objectives for the tool. She will also head up projects to roll out transformation initiatives as part of an ongoing drive to grow the organisation and reinvigorate the value proposition for members. Steven Polmans, chairman of TIACA and director of cargo and logistics at Brussels Airport Company says: “With her industry knowledge, her passion for air cargo, her experience and expertise, she will be a great addition to the current TIACA team. It was, and is, our clear ambition to transform the organisation and deliver more content to our members.” Hourcade says: “I am thrilled to join the TIACA team and work with Steven [Polmans, TIACA Chairman], Sanjeev [Gadhia, TIACA Vice Chairman] and Vladimir [Zubkov, TIACA Secretary General] to put sustainability and diversity at the top of its agenda.”
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Budapest organises Chinese e-commerce workshops
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udapest Airport has organised workshop events in Shanghai and Hong Kong for representatives from Chinese air cargo and e-commerce companies, in partnership with AirBridgeCargo Airlines. Discussions at the workshops covered topics from e-commerce to the Belt and Road Initiative, new routes between Budapest and Chinese airports, and competition from direct Chinese train services. The workshops gave attendees the opportunity to learn more about Budapest’s services and developments including BUD Cargo City. Speaking at the conference, Budapest Airport’s chief property and cargo officer Rene Droese commented: “Budapest Airport is right on track to becoming the main cargo hub for China in the Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) region. In the last few years the e-commerce market in CEE has increased to €80 billion per
Gebrüder Weiss takes over KK+M
GEBRÜDER Weiss has taken over Koler, Kuhn & Merk Speditions (KK+M) after owner Dietmar Koler wanted to retire and had no successor. The purchase agreement was signed on Tuesday 27 August and applied retroactively to 1 January 2019 for the Reutte, Tyrol-based company. The two companies have a long-standing partnership and have agreed not to disclose the
purchase price. Hannes Mayr, regional manager West at Gebrüder Weiss says: “Acquiring the freight forwarder KK+M in Reutte enables us to cover another important region in Tyrol and southern Germany for our customers. We will retain all the employees and would like to continue expanding there.” KK+M has been a fixture of Tyrol’s freight forwarding industry for 57 years and has 10 employees offering logistics services covering land transport, air and sea freight, customs, removal and parcel services. Koler will remain on hand to support the company as a consultant. As of 1 January 2020, KK+M will be run as Gebrüder Weiss’ Reutte subsidiary and report to the Hall branch. Together with locations in Innsbruck, Hall and Wörgl, Gebrüder Weiss has four offices in Tyrol, employing 300 people.
Cargojet delivers voting shares to Amazon CARGOJET has entered into a strategic agreement with Amazon.com NV Investment Holdings, giving the retail giant voting shares in the Canadian airline. The agreement is in conjunction with Amazon and Cargojet’s existing commercial agreement for overnight air cargo services, and will incentivise growth to deliver to Canadian customers. Cargojet will issue warrants to Amazon to purchase variable voting shares that will vest based on the achievement of commercial milestones. The first tranche of warrants allows Amazon to acquire up to 9.9% of Cargojet’s variable voting shares at C$91.78 per share, which is expected to vest over six and a half years, and will raise C$400 million. Amazon will receive additional warrants to acquire up to an addition 5% of Cargojet’s variable voting shares with vesting tied to
the delivery by Amazon of up to an additional C$200 million in business volumes after the first tranche of warrants is fully vested. Ajay Virmani, chief executive officer of Cargojet says: “The commercial relationship the Cargojet team continues to build with Amazon has now allowed us to further strengthen and align our long-term strategic commercial interests. Our continuous commitment to provide value added services enables us to earn all of our customers’ trust as the leading overnight air-network operator.” Adam Baker, vice president global transportation at Amazon says: “Cargojet has been a key player in our Canadian middle mile operations for several years. We’re thrilled to build a longer-term relationship that will allow us to provide even faster service to Amazon customers in Canada.”
AIR Canada Cargo will extend its collaboration with GTA dnata in Toronto to cover all AC Cool Chain shipments from 16 September. From that date, in addition to pharmaceuticals, shipments booked with AC Fresh going through Toronto will be handled by GTA dnata.
The facility is fully equipped for handling temperature-sensitive shipments with dedicated environments for perishables and separate coolers for specific ranges. Vito Cerone, senior director – sales and commercial strategy for Air Canada Cargo says: “Our collaboration with GTA dnata has been extremely successful for pharmaceutical shipments, so the addition of perishables is the natural next step. We’re excited to be adding a world-class facility and experienced team that will help us meet our customers’ growing needs with regards to these sensitive shipments.”
annum, and from its central location, Budapest can supply the entire region.” Szilárd Bolla, consul general for the consulate general of Hungary in Shanghai says: “The newly launched Shanghai Airlines-operated direct flight between Shanghai and Budapest and its cargo capacity is a serious advantage for Hungary, which comes at the best possible time to gravitate the ever growing e-commerce business into the CEE region.” Budapest’s connections with China have increased with Cargolux flights to Zhengzhou Xinzheng International Airport and passenger flights to Shanghai. Droese says: “Budapest Airport is set to become the ideal e-commerce environment for Chinese trade, and with BUD Cargo City opening this November, we will not only be supporting growth in the air cargo industry at large, but helping to meet regional demand for Chinese imports and exports.”
Zoetis joins Pharma.Aero as shipper member ANIMAL health company Zoetis has joined Pharma.Aero as a strategic pharma shipper member, joining fellow pharma shippers Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson and MSD. The addition of another pharma shipper strengthens Pharma.Aero as a cross-industry collaboration and reinforces its role in the pharmaceuticals air supply chain. Rita O’Sullivan, head of global transportation at Zoetis says the supply chain plays an important role in transporting products. She says: “Of specific interest to Zoetis is how we can partner with airlines, GSA’s and freight forwarders to continually enhance and improve the cold chain service offerings, which are critical to the animal health sector.” Nathan De Valck, chairman of Pharma.Aero says shippers are at the core of the association’s cross-industry collaboration initiative.
He says: “We are very happy to welcome Zoetis into Pharma.Aero and look forward to their active participation in our project groups. We will continue to listen to the expectations of our four pharmaceutical shipper members.”
RICKENBACKER International Airport welcomed its first weekly flight operated by Asiana Cargo and freight forwarder APEX Logistics on Saturday 24 August. The flights start in Wuhan, China before connecting Asiana’s hub in Incheon International Airport with Rickenbacker in Columbus, Ohio. Asiana Cargo joins AirBridgeCargo, Cargolux, Cathay Pacific Cargo, China Airlines Cargo, Emirates SkyCargo and Etihad Cargo operating up to
20 scheduled weekly freighter services, in addition to charter flights. Elsie Qian, chief executive officer of APEX says: “APEX Logistics has a long-term vision to grow and connect Asia directly to the Midwest U.S. market through Rickenbacker and Chicago International Airport. Rickenbacker’s unparalleled geography and speed to market, along with the freight-friendly mentality of the region, will set us apart from competitors.” Joseph Nardone, president and CEO of Rickenbacker’s operator, Columbus Regional Airport Authority says: “By focusing their growth strategy on Rickenbacker, APEX and Asiana Cargo are able to connect China and key Asian origins directly with nearly half of the U.S. and one-third of the Canadian populations from one convenient, reliable location.”
Asiana adds weekly Rickenbacker flights
Air Canada and GTA dnata keep cool ACI: 2019 could be a tough year
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AIRFREIGHT is continuing to go down, and may well end 2019 in the negative, according to Airports Council International (ACI) World. After falling 2.8% year-on-year in May, the global freight market was down 5.1% in June, pushing the total for the first half of 2019 down 3.2%. The airfreight figures are in contrast to the passenger sector, which has grown 3.6% in the first half of the year. Angela Gittens, director of ACI World says: “The trade tensions that persist between several major economies – and the accompanying GDP growth slowdown – have had more impact
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on the air freight industry, which could possibly end 2019 in the negative.” International freight struggled with June down 6.5% year-on-year, and a 5% decline yearto-date, the domestic sector faired less badly with June only down 1.4% and year-to-date up 1.3%. Year-to-date, only Africa and North America saw total airfreight volumes increasing, up 1.6% and 0.5% respectively. Asia-Pacific saw the largest fall, down 5.9% year-to-date followed by Europe at 4.4%. The Middle East declined by 2.7% in the first half of 2019 and Latin America-Caribbean was down 1.9%.
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The planes in Spain are carrying tonnes of cargo
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aragoza Airport (pictured) has seen the most substantial growth among European airports in the past 10 years. Spain as a nation has been experiencing major increases at a number of its airports, according to research by CP Cases. Freight and mail volumes at the airport located in Spain’s Aragon region increased by 843% between 2008 and 2018, reaching 201,959 tonnes. Valladolid Airport, serving the capital of Castile and Leon registered the second highest 10-year growth of 837%, handling 281 tonnes in 2018. As a country, Spanish airports have grown significantly in 10 years, with Adolfo Suarez Madrid-Barajas, Barcelona El Prat, Vitoria, and Valencia all up over 100%. Vitoria led the way with 181% growth to 48,644 tonnes, followed by Madrid-Barajas at 173% to 972,398 tonnes, Barcelona El Prat at 171% to 293,898 tonnes and Valencia with 135% to 23,781 tonnes. CP Cases, which commissioned the research
to study not only where the largest hubs are, but also the up and coming ones, is a leading manufacturer of modern protective cases and racks used for commercial and military equipment transport. Fiona Haggerty, commercial director of CP Cases says: “While we still see products being utilised to transport equipment to the major freight hubs in Europe, we’ve noticed that some key new players are becoming increasingly popular, providing a more localised option for freight logistics.” Among the top five freight and mail hubs elsewhere in Europe, Leipzig/Halle has had the strongest 10-year growth, up 172% to 1.23 million tonnes. Frankfurt Airport remains the busiest hub in Europe but has only grown 4% in the decade to 2.25 million tonnes. Paris Charles de Gaulle has grown 61% since 2008 to 2.24 million tonnes, followed by London Heathrow at 28% to 1.78 million tonnes and Amsterdam Schiphol at 8% to 1.73 million tonnes.
LATAM adds Colombia and Peru flights
LATAM Cargo will strengthen its position in Colombia and Peru with extra freighter flights to the US and upgrading passenger flights to Spain. LATAM Cargo Colombia plans to add 12 frequencies between Bogota and Miami, with imports into Colombia increasing with eight freighter flights a week between Miami and Bogota. The expansion of Colombian services will take place between September and December. Operations into Peru will increase with two freighter services a week between Miami and Lima.
In December, LATAM Airlines Peru will upgrade passenger services from Madrid to Lima from a Boeing 767 to a Boeing 787-9, tripling cargo capacity. Andres Bianchi, CEO of LATAM Cargo says: “The new services to Bogota and Lima, and the expansion out of Colombia, will enable us to consolidate our network as the most comprehensive into South America. Combined with LATAM Group’s passenger network we plan to continue to provide our customers with more and better options to, from and within Latin America.”
Sonoco Thermosafe and Aerotuf bring Pegasus ULD into service SONOCO Thermosafe has created the Pegasus ULD temperature-controlled device manufactured and supplied by Aerotuf. The Pegasus ULD integrates Aerotuf’s patented AeroTHERM composite material technology and will be the first passive bulk temperature-controlled container for pharmaceutical use that is an approved ULD. The new product was designed to fulfil a gap in the market for passive bulk packaging solutions. Aerotuf’s patented materials will deliver a lighter and more damage-resistant unit than traditional metal containers. The first Pegasus ULD will be the lighter AKP size, which fits a full US pallet and shares the same footprint of the AKE size without the over-
hang that accounts for over 80% of AKE/RKN transit damage. Christopher Day, director of marketing, innovation and business development for Sonoco Thermosafe says: “The rugged, lightweight composite design of this unit load device enables the pharmaceutical supply chain to cost-effectively ship globally across the Americas, EMEIA and Asia-Pacific regions.” Tom Pherson, president of Aerotuf says: “With our patented materials and expertise we continue to innovate the ULD, delivering more versatile, and damage resistant solutions across the industry, and this new partnership will see us further expand the AeroTHERM range in 2020, helping to protect more temperature sensitive shipments.”
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Atlas Air pilots ordered to negotiate new JCBA
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tlas Air pilots have been ordered to negotiate for a joint collective bargaining agreement (JCBA) following an arbitration decision on Monday 26 August. The collective bargaining agreement (CBA) applies to Atlas Air’s acquisition of Southern Air, and Atlas says it confirms their position that the union, Airline Professionals Association – Teamsters Local 1224 violated the existing CBA by refusing to follow the merger provisions for a new JCBA and failing to present an integrated pilot seniority list. Separately, the union was found to be in violation of the Southern Air CBA for refusing to follow the merger provisions for the JCBA on behalf of the Southern Air pilots. William Flynn, chairman and chief executive officer of Atlas Air Worldwide says it is time the pilots received a new contract, something that has been the goal since the Atlas/ Southern merger in 2016. He says: “The recent decisions by the arbitrators have made clear that the existing collective bargaining agreements provide the appropriate path for the merger and should have been followed.”
Arbitrators have ordered the union to proceed with contractually required negotiations for a new JCBA, and must submit an integrated seniority list, followed by a period of bargaining, after which any unresolved issues must be submitted to timely, inter-
est-based arbitration. The union has expressed anger at the latest decision, with recently retired Atlas Air pilot Captain Robert Kirchner saying the company is in “complete turmoil”, and the ruling will “do nothing to restore shareholder confidence or more importantly, pilot morale”. The executive council chairman for Atlas Air pilots of Teamsters Local 1224 says: “Atlas Air has waged a vicious legal battle with its pilots for more than three years and squandered opportunities of reaching a reasonable agreement through direct, good-faith negotiations. Teamsters Local 1224 will pursue all remaining legal options to avoid a contract that is resolved by an arbitrator and that robs pilots of their right to vote on it and ratify as needed.” He adds: “Pilots have witnessed a short-sighted litigation war that’s caused their faith in management to deteriorate completely. The company must do right by all invested parties — current pilots, future pilots, investors — and settle a fair, industry-standard contract now.”
Chairman Agnew passes away Qantas welcomes 747-8F to fleet
ROBERT Agnew, chairman of the board of directors for Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings has passed away earlier in the week, the company announced on 23 August. Board member since July 2004 and chairman of the board since 2017, Agnew served on the nominating and governance committee, and previously was the chair of the audit committee. The aviation leader was also president and chief executive officer of Morten Beyer & Agnew, an aviation consulting firm experienced in the financial modelling and technical due diligence of airlines and aircraft funding. Describing the late chairman as a “wonderful
director and even finer human being”, chief executive officer William Flynn says: “His extensive knowledge of the aviation industry and depth of corporate expertise made him a tremendous asset to the Board and to our Company. He was a great leader, a passionate advocate for Atlas, and a good friend to us all. On behalf of Atlas Air Worldwide, we extend our deepest sympathies and condolences to Bob’s family.” Flynn has been elected chairman of the board with immediate effect, a role he was due to take up on 1 January 2020. Board member retired General Duncan McNabb USAF has been named interim lead independent director.
QANTAS Freight has welcomed the first of two Boeing 747-8 Freighters to its fleet, to be operated by Atlas Air. The aircraft, which touched down in Sydney on Tuesday 27 August, offers 20% more freight capacity and space for seven extra cargo pallets compared to the 747-400F. Paul Jones, executive manager of Qantas Freight says: “These aircraft have a far better environmental footprint, producing less carbon emissions and offering greater efficiency, something that we know is really important to our customers.” The two freighters will operate between Australia, China and the USA and the second 747-8F entered service later in the week.
The aircraft will be painted in Atlas Air livery with Qantas Freight’s logo on display either side of the nose and underneath the nose cargo door.
Panalpina downsizes executive board
THE executive board of Panalpina is being downsized with a number of senior roles being eliminated. The positions of chief commercial officer, chief legal officer, chief information officer, executive vice president airfreight and executive vice president ocean freight have gone. CCO Karl Weyeneth, CLO and corporate secretary Christoph Hess, CIO Ralf Morawietz, EVP airfreight Lucas Kuehner and EVP ocean freight Peder Winther have given up their executive board roles. Hess will continue in the group legal position in DSV Panalpina and has been nominated by the former board of directors to serve as an observer to the DSV Panalpina board of directors for up to 12 months. Kuehner has been appointed EVP charter network and perishables at DSV Air & Sea, Weyeneth is expected to continue in a senior position, while Morawietz and Winther have left the company.
This is the summer of cargo for Emirates SkyCargo
EMIRATES SkyCargo has had a busy summer, moving over 150,000 tonnes of perishables and 27,000 tonnes of pharmaceuticals through Dubai between April and mid-August. Infrastructure at Emirates SkyCentral DXB and DWC has been upgraded with extensive cool chain facilities and dedicated storage space for pharmaceutical cargo. The terminals have a combined capacity of over two million tonnes per annum, and sees close to 5,000 shipments per day including during the summer season. Since 2017, pharma volumes have increased 7% during the summer months and 14% overall, with over 190,000 kg travelling through Dubai every day. Every day, around 1,100 tonnes of food and
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other perishables move through Dubai, an increase of 6,000 tonnes compared to 2017. Food includes Italian Parmigiano Reggiano and Buffalo Mozzarella cheese from Rome and Naples, Vignola cherries and kiwi fruit from Bologna and Modena, strawberries, fish and clam from the Venice area. In 2018, close to 3,000 tonnes of Italian perishables were flown to the Middle East, Australia, New Zealand and other East Asian destinations. India is another important point of origin, with Emirates moving around 4,000 tonnes of fruit, vegetables and other perishables including mangoes, guavas and okra. Specialist services, Emirates Pharma and Emirates Fresh have met considerable success with customers.
The carrier has a fleet of over 40 Cool Dollies for pharma and 17 for perishables to ensure produce is not exposed to temperature changes when being loaded or unloaded or transported
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to and from the terminal. White Covers on pharma and perishable shipments also provide first level protection against thermal fluctuations.
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CharterSync joins Neutral Air Partner as Go-Now specialist
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o-Now air charter platform, CharterSync, have been invited to be a specialist in the network for Go-Now air cargo charters by the premier global network of leading air cargo architects and aviation specialists, Neutral Air Partner. With a network of 250 like-minded air cargo specialists from over 90 countries, the addition of CharterSync to Neutral Air Partner greatly expands and strengthens CharterSync’s reach. “We are opening more and more options for freight forwarders and growing choices for them with time-critical air charter. Neutral Air Partner is one of the most respected and trusted names in air charter and having them on our platform is a testament to the stability, efficacy and value of our platform,” CharterSync co-founder Ed Gillett (pictured right) said. “Neutral Air Partner is a network for the best. If any partner in the network wants to charter a time-critical air charter, CharterSync will be there to assist.”
Ethiopian adds Bangkok and Hanoi flights
ETHIOPIAN Cargo has launched freighter flights to Bangkok and Hanoi, with the first flight taking off on 16 August. Flight number ET3628 leaves Addis Ababa on Fridays at 11.55 and lands in Hanoi at 21.30 local time using a Boeing 777 Freighter. It then leaves Vietnam at 23.30 and lands in Bangkok at 01.00 on Saturday, before flight ET3629 departs for Addis Ababa at 03.00. Tewolde GebreMariam, CEO of Ethiopian
Group says the cargo services will supplement daily passenger flights and give Asian customers greater access to over 60 African destinations. He says: “The commencement of these flights makes Ethiopian the first African carrier to operate cargo flights from Bangkok, and will also create better opportunity for Thai and Vietnamese exporters to have a one-stop access to the 60-plus African destinations Ethiopian serves.”
ECS Group enters Portugal with Porto office ECS Group has established its presence in Portugal with an office in Porto, staffed by three employees. The three staff, led by Susana Pacheco will set up the new entity at Francisco Sá Carneiro Airport and be tasked with setting up a long-term presence in the Portuguese market. Sauro Martinelli, regional manager Europe at ECS Group says: “Opening an office in Portugal was a necessity in order to meet growing
Commenting on the association with CharterSync, Christos Spyrou (pictured left), CEO of Neutral Air Partner said: “We are delighted to welcome innovators such as CharterSync into our global platform of air cargo architects. Our NAX 24-7 time-critical sub-industry group advances the interests of the time sensitive and emergency logistics industry. Our members are leading and independent, future-ready, time-critical logistics firms committed to delivering innovative time-sensitive supply chain solutions with no boundaries, and CharterSync can provide great value to our members by providing advanced digital charter solutions.” The CharterSync platform provides time-critical air charter booking services to freight forwarders maximising air cargo operator’s capacity and staff availability. The service is a time efficient solution to a time constrained challenge. Quotations are generally completed from request to quote in under three minutes enhancing charter autonomy for freight forwarders and providing price transparency.
Glushnev takes over at ABC
NIKOLAY Glushnev has been appointed general director of AirBridgeCargo Airlines as Volga-Dnepr Group restructures following a disappointing first half of 2019. The group, which consists of AirBridgeCargo, Volga-Dnepr Airlines and Atran Airlines says cargo volumes were down 6% to 2.5 billion freight tonne kilometres, 20% below expectations and budget. The slow air cargo market,
overcapacity and operational hurdles prevent the group from being profitable so the board of directors has introduced a restructuring plan to enhance quality, reduce costs and develop specialist services. Glushnev’s appointment as general director, bringing more than 14 years of air cargo experience in various roles at AirBridgeCargo is aimed at restoring customer confidence.
B&H Worldwide has upgraded its ISO accreditation to EN AS 9120b, the specialist industry standard for the aviation, space and defence industry. The award includes ISO 9001:2015 following an audit by BSI. The standards that BSI uses were developed by the International Aerospace Quality Group to provide consistency and address regulatory, safety and reliability requirements
demanded by the aerospace sector. Stuart Allen, group CEO of B&H Worldwide says: “By becoming accredited through BSI we are showing that our global management system meets the highly exacting requirements of the aerospace sector. Our heads of department and team members across the business pulled together to successfully deliver on this outstanding achievement.”
EN AS 9210b accreditation for B&H
market demand on the Iberian peninsula, to offer even more options to our clients, and, of course, to continue our group’s development in Europe.” Martinelli adds: “Our on-site team is made up of highly qualified employees who are truly motivated by the challenges that setting up a new office brings. There is no doubt in my mind that they will give their very best and rise to the challenge.”
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UK & IRELAND
Businesses adopt a wait and see approach
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O’Connell: “Business is much stronger than politics and it always finds a path to continue.” usinesses may have adopted a wait and see approach but whatever the future holds, trade will continue to flow says Chris O’Donnell, managing director UK for Air Logistics Group (ALG). He says the UK market has softened significantly since the end of 2018, and though Brexit is partly responsible, it is also part of the natural economic cycle happening across the world. The first half of 2019 has been challenging due to unpredictability with Brexit, trade wars, currency volatility and economic tension all playing a part, something that is expected to continue for the remainder of the year. Though Brexit is causing uncertainty, O’Donnell comments: “Business is much stronger than politics and it always finds a path to continue to operate and grow for the needs of the ever-expanding number of people that we have on the globe. Brexit is a bump in the road that brings opportunity for the air cargo industry.”
Air Logistics Group, which is celebrating its 25th birthday this year, has offices at London Heathrow, East Midlands, Manchester and Dublin airports, which O’Donnell says helps cover the whole of the UK and Ireland.
Portfolio of airlines
He says: “Our sales teams are regularly ‘on the road’ to meet key clients across the UK, while being based in the major cargo hubs in the UK means we are close to the action on a day-to-day basis.” O’Donnell is happy with Air Logistics Group’s portfolio of airlines in the UK. He says: “We have a great portfolio of airlines in the UK, representing carriers both online and offline with a mix of wide body and narrow body aircraft. Air Logistics manages over 45 daily flight departures from the UK.” Looking to the future, O’Donnell confidently expects
to see continued consolidation and airline customers requiring additional services such as business intelligence, fiscal and IT solutions. O’Donnell comments: “The demand for more digitalisation is a challenge that Air Logistics has embraced head on. ALG has invested significantly in IT and back office functions over the years to offer a cost-effective solution to airlines in a multitude of cargo fields such as sales, revenue accounting, trucking management and business intelligence.” The e-commerce boom will also continue, and O’Donnell predicts airlines will turn to GSSAs to invest in digital services. He says: “Airlines and their suppliers will need to continue to evolve to deliver on the demands of the large e-commerce companies that bring huge influence into the airline cargo industry. The airlines that have invested into e-commerce will emerge to be the market leaders over the coming years.”
Birthday boy Brunel Air Cargo’s Brexit preparations on track BRUNEL Air Cargo Services was formed in July 2014. It secured two aircraft charters within two weeks along with arranging dedicated airside transport at LHR for a major airline, all before it had even found a home to trade from. Part of the Brunel Group of companies the air freight division was formed to provide expert advice and dedicated teams to assist existing ocean and road freight customers, recalls Mark Scanlon, director. “With support that is required whilst keeping everything in-house, this also enables the company to have greater control and transparency of shipment information to our customers. “We at Brunel do not accept second best, all our staff are the best in the business with many years of experience and are committed to giving our customers exceptional service with unrivalled levels of business communication throughout. “Our unique selling point has and will always be a ‘customer first’ philosophy to that effect with are responsible to our customers’ requirements and we aim to fulfil these and in most cases exceed, each customer’s ambitions.
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“Over the past five years we have enjoyed solid and consistent growth and our plan for the next five years is to continue investing in our people, IT and Infrastructure. “ The Heathrow-based forwarder works with partners to better service new and existing customers in the UK. With Britain’s exit from the European Union fast approaching, Scanlon believes the company has taken all necessary steps to ensure that it is setup to manage clients supply chains seamlessly. “For our imports we have added customs clearance badges at Belfast, Birmingham and Manchester airports as we feel that with the ever increasing wide-body flights into these key airports will release congestion around the traditional route via London Heathrow and provides quicker deliveries to the end client,” he says. “The same philosophy has taken with Manchester for our exports in the north of the UK, we have added to our sales team in Manchester as well as having an operation handling cargo from this airport.”
UK & IRELAND
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HAE Group supports regional growth
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ulti-platform air cargo service provider HAE Group has a philosophy of supporting regional development, managing director Colin White tells Air Cargo Week. The service provider, which was founded in 1997 at East Midlands Airport has had a strong start to 2019, with business in Ireland up 20% year-on-year and the UK by 15%. In the past 12 months, HAE has started to sell Oman Air products in the UK and has been appointed for Silkway West Airlines in the UK and Ireland. White says HAE has performed solidly, with organic growth and new products. He says: “We have also expanded our solutions portfolio which gives our forwarding customers more ways to use our partner airlines by supporting them at destination.” Though HAE has experienced a slow-down in the summer, White says this is seasonality, and the company is looking forward to the key months between September and December. The pharma sector has done particularly well, especially out of Ireland. E-commerce handling and flown sectors continue to grow and White says volumes are consistent across all regions. HAE Group, which in addition to providing GSSA services also offers solutions for more complex shipments, aircraft and cargo handling, and training has a wide presence across the UK with operations at London Heathrow, East Midlands, Manchester, Glasgow, Belfast and Dublin. White says: “Our philosophy is to support regional development in the UK, as many of our legacy contracts were regional, however we still have market leading sales activity in the south. This means we are able to work with multinational forwarders, local heroes and SME’s,
providing them GSSA services on behalf of our airlines and a range of solutions beyond that.” With this wide coverage, White says there are no plans to add more offices. He says: “We may add additional field sales people if the business requires, but our face to face call rates are already higher than the average we believe.” No new offices will be opened but HAE has moved to Donington Court at East Midlands, which is now fully operational. White says: “The extra space and modern facilities allow for expansion and the transition was very smooth. “We have also expanded our warehouse footprint at EMA to expand our cargo handling activities which was a challenging project but was completed on time.”
The challenge of Brexit
A challenge the air cargo sector has to face is Brexit. At the time of writing Prime Minister Boris Johnson says the UK is leaving the European Union on 31 October deal or no deal. The Queen had just agreed to suspend parliament days after MPs return after their summer break. The lack of clarity has been an issue for the whole logistics sector, but White is confident that HAE knows what it needs to do, saying the team are working through the additional costs and other contingencies that may be required. White comments: “Economic uncertainty, we hope, will be removed with a finalisation of the Brexit position. “We believe pent up demand will be released either way and we are therefore optimistic of the future years for the UK and Ireland.”
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A strong brand will turn around SAA’s financial position
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ith a strong and recognisable brand, South African Airways will use this to its advantage to turn around its financial position. Justice Luthuli, acting general manager of South African Airways Cargo tells Air Cargo Week that the flag carrier of South Africa is a well-known brand, and also benefits from its track records in service, reliability and safety. He adds that the airline is also known for its compliance with all cargo and aviation regulatory requirements, standards and regulations. He says: “Part of SAA’s plans is to leverage its strong brand to turn around its financial position.” So far in 2019, Luthuli says international stations have performed well despite the economic downturn, and the reduction in London flights impacting transhipments from Africa to the UK. Regional and domestic services were restrained by a reduction of capacity. He says: “In the regional markets SAA has
reduced the number of destinations as a measure to optimise its capacity. In the domestic market, the cancellation of operations on the loss-making routes of the overnight freighter services plus the reduction of the line flights negatively impacted performance.”
Strong performance
Year-to-date performance has improved due to strong performance on the Johannesburg Cape Town - Johannesburg overnight network. Re-introducing overnight freighter services for Durban, Port Elizabeth and East London will also improve momentum, Luthuli says. On intra-African services, Lusaka, Nairobi, Lilongwe, Accra and Lagos remain the most active. Internationally, trade routes to Germany, UK, Hong Kong, USA and Sao Paulo have all shown strong load factors. Luthuli says: “Supplementary services in the form of POCs and interlining have been used to
provide for European and Asian markets such as the Benelux countries and Asian islands.” Luthuli is confident about South Africa’s future. Citing LPI ratings, he says South Africa is ranked the third most competitive market for logistics performance among upper-middle-income economies after Thailand and China. The rating measures logistics competence, tracking and tracing, infrastructure, customs, timelines and international shipments. He says: “Over and above this, the investment in infrastructure is key and SA has done very well in respect of road, rail, air infrastructure developments however there is room for improvement.”
Challenges
Luthuli admits there will always be challenges, saying: “The transport logistics sector is faced with challenges such as infrastructure, high logistics costs, and unskilled workforce. For the sector to thrive these must be addressed
to avoid adverse effects on businesses that rely heavily on cargo logistics to succeed.”
and freight forwarders.” Volumes have been growing as airlines add services to Durban’s King Shaka International Airport. Qatar Airways upgraded its four times a week Doha-Durban flight to use an Airbus A350-900 in July. British Airways has also added flights, increasing connectivity to European and North American markets. The company says: “We expect that we will
continue to see growth in our cargo volumes for 2019, as we are confident in the fact that there is an untapped potential in the market for more volumes of airfreight, both in an out of our market.” Ship spare parts are increasingly being flown into Durban, with Dube TradePort commenting: “As Durban is a major African port city, efficient movement and supply of ship spares are vital to support the maritime industry.” Dube TradePort sees major opportunities in the growth of manufacturing through the establishment of Special Economic Zones similar to the one in Durban. The establishment of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement with the prospect of the Single African Air Transport Market will provide access to the rest of the continent. Dube TradePort says: “The challenge that the continent will face in the growth of the aviation sector is being able to provide efficient, safe and modern facilities as well as ensuring that the operations of the cargo stakeholders work seamlessly within the operations of the airports, across the continent.”
Dube TradePort looks to unlock further efficiencies
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ube TradePort is focusing on unlocking efficiencies through greater automation, having upgraded equipment. The business entity of the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government in South Africa, which is located 30 kms north of Durban has upgraded screening equipment to dual-view x-ray machines. An RFID tagging system has also been implemented, enhancing the ability to track and trace
the movement of every piece of cargo within the Dube Cargo Terminal. Serving ratings from customer airlines may be over 97% but Dube TradePort is still looking for improvements. It says: “The one area where we have been investing in is in the training of our staff, where over 95% of our staff have IATA certification, which has been invaluable in our operations and the services we provide to our airline partners
Nexxiot becomes Unilode partner ...
INTERNATIONAL enabler of the digitised supply chain, Nexxiot, is now an official partner of Unilode Aviation Solutions. The aim of this co-operation is to implement a global project: the entire fleet of Unilode loading devices is to be digitized within the next 18 months. All ULDs (Unit Load Device) of the fleet will be equipped with Bluetooth sensors. The data will then be processed, analysed and made available by Nexxiot for Unilode. This enables, for the first time anywhere in the world, continuous, automated tracking of ULDs both on the
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ground and in the air. Both companies have signed a contract to further strengthen their existing co-operation. The first joint trials between the two companies have been running since September 2018. By 2021, all 125,000 ULDs supported by Unilode will be fitted with a digital twin. Currently, around 10,000 ULDs are equipped with the corresponding Bluetooth technology and can be activated digitally by Nexxiot. For the first time, Nexxiot is now working independently of its own sensors and will thus integrate external data on its platform.
ACW 2 SEPTEMBER 2019
... as Unilode successfully completes trials for in-flight tracking solution UNILODE Aviation Solutions has achieved another important milestone in the implementation of its digital transformation programme. The company has successfully completed an in-flight trial of its ULD tracking solution. Unilode, in collaboration with its strategic partner OnAsset Intelligence, tested its smart-phone app which allows
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tracking of its Bluetooth-equipped ULDs by connecting to an aircraft’s commercial Wi-Fi network. The trial, which was conducted on a flight from Hong Kong to Zurich, demonstrates that the Bluetooth connection between container tag and smartphone is functioning across flight decks. Data transmitted throughout the flight included - besides geolocation - information on temperature, humidity and light in the aircraft’s belly. The trial signals also that the non-proprietary Bluetooth technology selected by Unilode will be able to bring affordable and reliable IoT technology to the world of ULD management. Benoît Dumont, Unilode CEO, said: “We at Unilode are proud to have developed with our strategic partner a mobile application, which meets the customers’ needs and underpins Unilode’s ambition to bring affordable supply chain transparency to the aviation industry.”
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! A G N A M
HE PRETENDS TO BE AN EXPERT ON MANGA
g co llide in ll te y r to s d n ld where art a A graphic wor
How IAG Cargo delivered the world’s largest-ever exhibition of manga art outside of Japan
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ome 240 items of Manga artwork have been flown from Tokyo to the British Museum to form the largest-ever exhibition of Manga outside Japan. After more than three months spent assembling the artworks, including a 17m theatre curtain (pictured above) on what is likely to be its last-ever appearance outside the country, British Airways used special packing techniques to protect the works as they were flown in the hold of a B777 from Tokyo to London. Daniel Johnson, head of product at IAG Cargo and his team took great care of the priceless and irreplaceable works of art as they travelled 9,000 km. According to the Museum: “Manga are comics or graphic novels created in Japan or by creators in the Japanese language, conforming to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century.
Tokyo, Japan
They have a long and complex pre-history in earlier Japanese art. The term manga in Japan is a word used to refer to both comics and cartooning.” Johnson says IAG Cargo has been the official logistics partner with the British Museum since 2015 and handles one exhibition of this scale a year.
The eyes have it
Like many shipments out of the ordinary, this shipment of Manga items, including artwork, books, paintings and the theatre curtain, required planning and security arrangements out of the ordinary. “All the consignment was carried in the hold in specialised secure devices with added security,” says Johnson. “There are also additional security checks on the handlers involved in such
a movement. “The consignment was witness-loaded in Tokyo and again when it arrived in London for unloading,” he says. The group flies many priceless artworks, often worth millions, yet Johnson is discrete enough in his role to refrain from mentioning any artwork by name. However, he is not shy in the prestige and kudos the British Museum partnership brings to IAG Cargo. He says: “It is a huge honour to support these operations. We know that our shippers have many alternatives. We feel we are selected for our security measures.” These movements, being one-offs, require a range of bespoke requirements that IAG is happy to accommodate, notes Johnson. He says: “There is a lot of bespoking in these shipments that we are happy to accommodate.”
British Mueum, London
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