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The weekly newspaper for air cargo professionals No. 1,026
8 April 2019
Nordic Air Cargo Symposium Review
We were there so you Pages 6-7 didn’t have to be
Say hello to DSV Panalpina
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SV and Panalpina have agreed to join forces, with the Swiss firm accepting an offer of 4.6 billion Swiss francs (CHF). The public exchange offer to Panalpina shareholders has the support of those representing 69.9% of shares, including Ernst Goehner Foundation, Cevian and Artisan. If the exchange offer is successful, DSV and Panalpina will become one of the world’s largest transport and logistics companies with a combined revenue of 118 billion Danish krone and a combined workforce of more than 60,000 employees. Following completion, DSV is proposing to shareholders that the company name will be changed to DSV Panalpina A/S to reflect the long history of both companies. Kurt Larsen, chairman of the board of DSV says: “Together, we can present a strong global network and enhanced service offering to our clients, further
solidifying our competitive edge in the industry. It’s a great match on all parameters. Panalpina is a great company and we’re very excited by the possibility to join forces and to welcome Panalpina’s talented staff.” Peter Ulber, chairman of the board of Panalpina says that the board and management had assessed different strategic initiatives, saying: “The board of directors’ assessment is that the updated proposal of DSV is very attractive. We are now looking forward to joining forces with DSV and contributing to creating one of the world’s largest transport and logistics companies.” Ernst Goehner Foundation, Panalpina’s largest shareholder with a 46% stake is expected to become the largest shareholder of DSV, holding 11% of the issued share capital. DSV has recommended to its shareholders that a candidate proposed by the foundation will be elected to the DSV board of directors.
Demand continues to fall to fourth month in a row
Airfreight demand has continued to go down in February with freight tonne kilometres decreasing 4.7%, according to International Air Transport Association (IATA) data. This is the fourth consecutive month of negative year-on-year growth and the worst performance in the last three years. Demand is facing significant headwinds due to trade tensions, global economic activity and consumer confidence weakening and the Purchasing Managers Index for manufacturing and export orders has indicated falling global export orders since September 2018. Alexandre de Juniac (pictured), director general and CEO of IATA says that cargo is in the “doldrums” and with weak order books, deteriorating consumer
INSIDE rallycross to abu dhabi
etihad Cargo delivered all 17 rally cars and 200 cubic metres of spare parts for the region’s first ever ‘festival of racing’ FIA World Rallycross of Abu Dhabi ... page 3
Picture credit: Panalpina, courtesy of The Boeing Company extra budapest flights
The foundation has undertaken not to sell or dispose of its DSV shares for a period of 24 months following settlement of the public exchange offer, save for limited participation in share buy-back programmes. Thomas Gutzwiller, member of the board of trustees and chairman of the independent Panalpina committee of Ernst Goehner Foundation says: “Our Board of Trustees unani-
mously concluded that the proposed combination under the umbrella of DSV provides the best opportunities for Panalpina to meet future market challenges from a position of strength and to create value for all stakeholders. As an entrepreneurial foundation with a philanthropic purpose, we feel very comfortable with the announced solution both in terms of quality and security as well as earnings potential.”
confidence and trade tensions means it is “difficult to see an early turnaround”. He says: “The industry is adapting to new markets for e-commerce and special cargo shipments. But the bigger challenge is trade is slowing. Governments need to realise the damage being done by protectionist measures. Nobody wins a trade war. We all do better when borders are open to people and to trade.” Almost regions experienced a fall in February, while in Latin America volumes were up 2.8% due to a number of key markets performing well. North America was down 0.7% due to a sharp fall in trade with China, Europe by 1% due to weaker German exports, and the Middle East by 1.6% due to weaker trade with North America. Africa decreased by 8.5% but is still up 25% higher than the late 2015 trough. Asia-Pacific contracted 11.6% due to weaker manufacturing conditions, ongoing trade tensions and a slowing Chinese economy.
cargolux has doubled frequencies to Budapest Airport, and will now be flying to the capital of Hungary six times a week ... page 4 a private jet for your cargo
with a lack of operators able to urgently transport dangerous goods to remote locations, Aerocardel seized the opportunity to fill this gap in the ... page 9
new challenge for wood
the role at Doncaster Sheffield Airport came about as 32-year industry veteran Ray Wood was looking for a new challenge having worked with airlines ... page 10
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Etihad brings rallycross to Abu Dhabi
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tihad Cargo delivered all 17 rally cars and 200 cubic metres of spare parts for the region’s first ever ‘festival of racing’ FIA World Rallycross of Abu Dhabi. A chartered Boeing 777 Freighter flew the WRX rally cars from Liege, Belgium where the cars had travelled to from all over Europe, to Abu Dhabi. The Urban Festival will be held at the Yas Marina Circuit on Yas Island, and the three-day event includes two support races: Yas Super Street Challenge – Drag Racing, and the Monster Energy Emirates Drift Championship, before the inaugural FIA World Rallycross of Abu Dhabi 2019. Bader Al Ali, business development manager at Etihad Cargo says the airline is “immensely proud” to be part of the event, which has come to Abu Dhabi for the first time thanks to partners at Abu Dhabi Motorsports Management and Yas Marina Circuit. He says: “This is the perfect way to celebrate FlightValet, which we launched last year in response to growing demand as our experience and reputation for care, professionalism and ease of use has become more widely known.” Steve Hall, director of sponsorship at the Yas Marina Circuit says
Aid reaches Cyclone Idai victims
National Airlines has flown a Boeing 747-400 Freighter to Cyclone Idai-affected Mozambique with 70 tonnes of relief materials from the Canadian Red Cross Society. Cyclone Idai struck Mozambique on 14 March, killing and displacing thousands of people and causing widespread damage. The 747-400 flew from Toronto, Canada and Amsterdam, the Netherlands following a request from Air Charter Service to launch an urgent relief supply mission. National Air Cargo ensured aid agencies that the relief materials were swiftly getting to the people and is working on additional relief movements. Chris Alf, chairman of the National board says: “Our hearts and prayers are with those affected in Mozambique. National Airlines is and will always be committed to prioritising relief missions ahead of our commercial operations. The Mozambique mission request was received and activated within 24 hours.”
Quote of the week
“Let’s kick some sea freight ass!” Pasi Nopanen of Qatar Airways telling delegates at the Nordic Air Cargo Symposium who the real enemy is.
Old News
Bhat up for Swiss challenge
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19 October 2015
wiss WorldCargo’s new head of cargo, Ashwin Bhat, has set his sights on enhancing the carrier’s strengths and is not looking to make any drastic changes. Bhat took over from Oliver Evans on 1 October, who was at the helm for 13 years, and is relishing his new role. He tells Air Cargo Week: “I have been meeting customers and the one thing they have been telling me is we should not change too many things and must continue the improvements, and working with customers. I do not believe in changing things for the sake of it. I have certain areas I would like to focus on.”
CH Robinson has named corporate controller Scott Hagen as interim chief financial officer while the company looks for a permanent replacement. Andrew Clarke left the role on 31 March. Senior vice president and chief financial officer of Air T, Brett Reynolds will leave the company on or about 12 April to accept a position at another company. The board of directors is looking for a successor.
this will be one of its largest public events, adding: “This type of event couldn’t happen without world-class logistics support, and for this reason we are delighted to be working alongside Etihad Cargo on this flagship project, continuing a longstanding association with one of our key partners.”
Unilode acquires AeroNet
Unilode Aviation Solutions has acquired the assets of AeroNet Services, a specialist ULD maintenance and repair organisation operating in France. The provider of outsourced unit load device management and repair solutions will take over AeroNet’s repair facilities at Paris Charles de Gaulle and Orly airports and continue to employ AeroNet’s 31 staff. The repair centres are EASA and FAA Part 145 certified and carry out over 1,000 container, pallet, colltainer, pallet net and horse stall repairs per month for airlines, ULD manufacturers and solution providers. Benoit Dumont, CEO of Unilode says: “AeroNet Services have demonstrated their high quality repair standards during the past few years while they have repaired Unilode’s ULDs as a sub-contracted repair partner. We look forward to welcoming the AeroNet Services teams to Unilode and growing our business with ULD repair services offered to airlines flying to and from two of Europe’s busiest airports.”
AA Cargo approves CSafe RAP American Airlines Cargo has approved the use of CSafe RAP temperature-controlled active containers, making it the latest airline to offer the product to life-science customers. The CSafe RAP offers what the company claims is unmatched operational performance in the most extreme ambient conditions between -30C and +54C, with VIP insulation, air recirculation technology and an autonomous temperature management system. Jeff Pepperworth, chief executive officer of CSafe Global says: “We certainly look forward to further partnering with American to serve our joint pharma customers and to continue the expansion of our global reach with this new active temperature management offering.” Tom Grubb, global head of pharmaceuticals and healthcare at American Airlines Cargo says: “American’s goal is to ensure ExpediteTC° continues to accommodate customer requirements in order to meet future demand for increasingly complex medicines around the world.”
CEVA Logistics has created a North Asia cluster, which will be one of its largest operations in the world. Multimodal services from Japan and South Korea via China to Europe and additional trucking services will be introduced and implemented during 2019. Icelandic ultra-low-cost-carrier Wow Air ceased operations on 28 March. Founder and CEO Skuli Mogenson says the airline ran out of time to secure funding and “will never be able to forgive myself for not taking action sooner”. Co-owner of S7 Airlines and one of Russia’s richest women, Natalia Fileva has died in an aircraft crash in Germany. The private aircraft is reported to have been on the final approach to Egelsbach Airport when it crashed into an asparagus field in Erzhausen on Sunday 31 March. Dachser Singapore has moved to the Synergy premises at International Business Park in Jurong District. The office was inaugurated on 29 March with an opening ceremony. Together with the existing airport office and company’s warehouse facilities, Dachser Singapore says it is well set up to meet the logistics needs of international corporations. It will be home to 46 employees and the home base of the Asia Pacific key account management team.
Were you fooled?
lasT week’s ACW carried an April Fool’s story. Were you tricked? Many readers were tricked by our page 3 exclusive: “Secret Heathrow third runway cargo plans revealed.’’ The clues were there as we changed the name of the popular and gregarious Nick Platts, head of LHR cargo, to Rick Platz. Later on, references to lawyers Sue, Grabbit and Runne and Transport Secretary Chris Grayling’s sucesses tipped off some readers that this was a joke. Editor James Graham did not have to go into hiding, real or imagained, as hundreds read the story on-line. One detail overlooked by many are the two secret words you can make from the first letter of each of the nine paragraphs APRIL FOOL.
He says he is keen to focus on increasing electronic air waybill usage, specialist cargo services and care intensive freight. Bhat says the carrier would like to improve infrastructure at stations making more facilities good distribution practice Bhat in 2015 compliant and create “quality corridors” with different cargo handlers through alliances. Bhat is expecting a tough end to 2015: “The market is soft and sluggish and pressure is on the yields. It is a perfect storm happening. Nobody is talking about the high season, there is not going to be one, just a few days. “It is going to be a tough winter.”
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ACWBITEs
ACW 8 april 2019
3 04/04/2019 13:02
NEWS AirBridgeCargo adds flights to Rickenbacker
Cargolux doubles Budapest flights
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argolux Airlines International has doubled frequencies to Budapest Airport, and will now be flying to the capital of Hungary six times a week. The original Hong Kong – Budapest – Luxembourg route will receive an additional frequency, and will be complemented by two weekly connections from Zhengzhou with a stopover in Budapest. Domenico Ceci, executive vice president of sales and marketing at Cargolux says: “Our position as a prime operator to the airport for numerous years, and our long-standing relationship with the airport enabled us to seize the opportunity and enhance our connections to this destination.” Richard Forson, president and CEO of Cargolux welcomes the additional frequencies, saying: “Budapest has proved over the years, to be an important transit hub for cargo in Europe and an increasingly important destination on
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Cargolux routes. These enhanced frequencies will enable both parties to explore new markets while cementing Cargolux and Budapest airport’s positions as frontrunners in the European air freight market.” Budapest Airport representatives welcomed the additional flights, with CEO Jost Lammers saying: “Cargolux is one of the largest cargo airlines in the world, and several airports are competing for its presence. The capacity increase of Cargolux at Budapest is therefore a huge milestone contributing to our cargo success story.” René Droese, director business unit property and cargo at Budapest Airport adds: “The new Zhengzhou cargo route and the frequency increase from Hong Kong will be an important extension of our cargo network. Cargolux is an honorary long-time partner at Budapest, their contribution with boosted capacities in our cargo developments is highly appreciated.”
A year after starting flights to Rickenbacker International Airport, AirBridgeCargo Airlines will add a second weekly flight to serve customers in Ohio. AirBridgeCargo started flights in April 2018 and has seen stable demand to and from Rickenbacker, accommodating growing trade flows onboard the Boeing 747 Freighter services. The second weekly rotation is scheduled to start this month, complementing existing Thursday flights and offering customers wider connectivity options. Sergey Lazarev, general director of AirBridgeCargo Airlines says: “In 2018, our volumes tipped over 5,000 tonnes to/from LCK and we feel confident that our performance and customer feedback means our second weekly flight will also be well supported.” Joseph Nardone, president and CEO of
Columbus Regional Airport Authority says: “AirBridgeCargo’s expansion is further proof that Rickenbacker is one of the industry’s new global gateways. By moving imports and exports through Rickenbacker, businesses can eliminate hours and costs from their supply chain, creating better efficiencies and higher profits.”
Heathrow opens link to Chengdu Heathrow Airport has gained its 12th Chinese route with Air China launching thrice weekly services to Chengdu, home to the Giant Panda Breeding Research Base. The A330-200 service will have the capacity for 3,744 tonnes of cargo between China and the UK, and comes as CEBR research shows a significant rise in the value of Chinese exports via Heathrow. Heathrow’s Trade Tracker by economic analyst CEBR shows that while China’s exports have decreased, exports to China from Heathrow are not showing signs of slowing down. China is now the third most valuable export
destination from Heathrow, with exports growing 135% in 2018, totalling over £7 billion. The same analysis shows that on average, every operational hour at Heathrow sees nearly £10 million of exports fly across the world. Ross Baker, chief commercial officer of Heathrow Airport says: “Each plane flown from Heathrow to China not only carries passengers, but also the best of UK fashion, art and industry exports in its bellyhold. As we plan for a future outside of the EU, growing connections from Heathrow, the UK’s biggest port by value, to cities like Chengdu, is essential to keep our country an outward-looking trading nation.”
aircargoweek.com 04/04/2019 14:29
Lufthansa/Cathay Pacific partnership goes eastbound Customers of Cathay Pacific Cargo and Lufthansa Cargo are enjoying the advantages of the expanded joint business agreement with the launch of eastbound joint shipments. Under the agreement, Hong Kong is directly connected to Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Brussels, Dublin, London Gatwick and Heathrow, Madrid, Manchester, Milan, Munich, Paris, Rome and Zurich. In addition to cargo aircraft capacity, the belly space of passenger aircraft and the road feeder services of both partners are also available to customers. Customers will also benefit from having one single location for export drop-off and import delivery since the introduction of the Hong Kong and Frankfurt joint handling facilities in late 2016 and early 2017. As well as collaborating on network planning, Cathay Pacific and Lufthansa Cargo have worked closely together on IT and service enhancements since the signing of the cooperation in May 2016. Ronald Lam, director commercial and cargo of Cathay Pacific says: “Our cooperation with Lufthansa has reached an exciting new phase, which is of great benefit to our customers in Europe and undoubtedly strengthens
Brussels joins forces with MVD
Brussels Airport and MVD Free Airport have signed a memorandum of understanding to formalise their relationship of friendship and co-operation. As operators of international airports with similar missions to operate as air cargo hubs of regional relevance, seeing eye-to-eye related to challenges that the global pharma distribution is facing. They have worked on several initiatives including the launch of a GDP compliant route between Brussels and Montevideo to facilitate regional distribution to Brazil, Argentina and the rest of South America via Uruguay. Bruno Guella, managing director at MVD Free Airport says: “The way they’ve [Brussels] positioned themselves as a pharma gateway with state-of-the-art infrastructure, pharma-oriented processes and internal quality standards up to par with the most demanding has definitely helped share our mission and vision.” Nathan De Valck, cargo development manager at Brussels Airport Company adds: “When we first started exchanging ideas and information we were very pleasantly surprised to learn we were speaking the same language and that a lot could be accomplished together and also being part of Pharma.Aero as well. Today, we are very satisfied with the road we’ve travelled and looking forward to all that is yet to come.”
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extra flight to Rickenbacker International commenced by AirBridgeCargo Airlines
one of the world’s great trade lanes.” Peter Gerber, chairman and CEO of Lufthansa Cargo says: “We are pleased that our joint customers will now be able to take full advantage of our partnership. This is a superb basis for a long-term successful cooperation. Together, we can make air cargo even more appealing.”
dnata opens up in Brussels
dnata has launched operations in Belgium with a 14,000 sqm cargo centre at Brussels Airport, representing an investment of €8 million. The facility includes 4,500 sqm of warehouse space and is capable of processing 125,000 tonnes of cargo annually. It is equipped with the latest technologies and complies with the highest industry standards ensuring safe handling of all types of cargo. dnata already provides cargo and ground handling services to 25 cargo and eight passenger airlines at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. Erik de Geoij, CEO of dnata Netherlands and Belgium says: “Our bestin-class facility at Brussels Airport significantly increases our cargo handling capacity in the region, which we expect to stimulate the local cargo industry. We see solid demand for our quality services and are confident that this strategic expansion will bring significant benefits to our stakeholders.” Arnaud Feist, CEO of Brussels Airport Company says: “dnata has already positioned itself as a key cargo player at our airport with a dedicated infrastructure for pharmaceuticals and an active participation in our cargo community Air Cargo Belgium, consistent with Brussels Airport’s strategy to provide specialised infrastructure for vital sectors in our country, and to work towards mutual goals through collaboration.”
rally cars carried by Etihad Cargo for the region’s first ever ‘festival of racing’ FIA World Rallycross of Abu Dhabi.
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percentage year-on-year increase in cargo at Doncaster Sheffield Airport in the UK since April 2018
70
tonnes of relief materials from the Canadian Red Cross Society flown by National Airlines to Cyclone Idai-affected Mozambique
287
readers of ACW online who read our April Fool’s story in the first four days it was online
630
tonnes, the average seafood exports by air from Norway daily
13,000
feet, the length of runway 17C/35C at Dallas Fort Worh International airport whch reopened in February after a $133 million enhancemet project
Panda-monium sweeps across Denmark SAS Cargo transported Mao Sun and Xing Er the giant pandas from China to Denmark, on their way to their new home at Copenhagen Zoo. The VIP travellers flew on flight SK996 on 4 April from Beijing to Copenhagen, before being moved onto a specially decorated lorry for the final part of the journey. Leif Rasmussen, president and CEO of SAS Cargo Group says: “We are very proud to be appointed the official carrier of this very prestigious transport. We feel that being entrusted with bringing Mao Sun and Xing Er to their new home in Copenhagen is a big recognition of our continuous efforts in putting safety and quality at the forefront of all our operations. We have some very exciting days ahead of us now, planning for all the important steps in making this a safe and smooth journey for these two VIP travellers.” Bengt Holst, vice director and director of research and conservation at Copenhagen Zoo
ACWWEEK In numbers
SEKO Logistics to serve Peli BioThermal in Ireland
adds: “We are very pleased that SAS Cargo is our partner in securing that Mao Sun and Xing Er get a safe and secure transport to their new home in Copenhagen Zoo. It has been a great pleasure planning and preparing every single step of this transport together with SAS Cargo. We have felt through the entire project that we have an experienced partner that puts safety and quality first and helps us look at the pandas’ wellbeing as a top priority.”
SEKO Logistics’ Irish operation has won a threeyear contract to serve as Peli BioThermal’s network station and service centre in Dublin. The Master Services Agreement will see SEKO Logistics’ team service, refurbish, repair and condition Peli BioThermal’s Credo on Demand shippers, which are used to transport delicate biological life science materials. Work will be carried out in SEKO’s GDP compliant warehouse in Dublin by trained staff who have been certified by Peli BioThermal. Michael Daly, managing director of SEKO Logistics in Ireland says: “As Peli BioThermal’s sole service centre operation in Ireland, we will ensure their customers here receive the same level of service quality, worry-free management, availability and flexibility that is the hallmark of Peli BioThermal’s growing choice of network stations around the world.”
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readers who fell for our April Fool’s story last week on LHR’s third runway
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oting is open for the ACW World Air Cargo Awards 2019. Voting is secure, confidential and restricted to readers of Air Cargo Week and ACWDigital, plus other bona fide members of the worldwide air logistics community. All votes must be cast online using the official voting form on the website.
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ACW 8 april 2019
5 04/04/2019 15:05
nordic air cargo symposium
Salmon is in a hurry to reach export markets
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he air cargo industry returned to Oslo for the Nordic Air Cargo Symposium at the Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel on 29 March to hear about what is cooking in the region (spoiler alert, there’s a lot of salmon). Having recovered from the welcome cocktail reception the previous night on the 33rd floor in the Holmenkollen room, the welcome key notes started with Lars-Gunnar Comen, director of conference organiser Euroavia International saying a few words to the audience. With the recent strong growth of Oslo Airport, Comen said it made sense to come to the Norwegian capital. He reflected on his time organising shows, ever since that first one 20 years ago at Stockholm Arlanda Airport. Comen said: “It is difficult to believe that I’ve been doing this for 20 years now, it has been great. Attending conferences is very important for our business, it is about networking, meeting old and new potential customers and friends. I believe it will never be old fashioned. Some say doing conferences is a thing of the past but I don’t think so. This kind of meeting is actually very important.” Next on stage was Øyvind Hasaas, managing director of Oslo Airport, who explained that there has been a lot of work to develop the airport as an intercontinental hub. He said: “When I took charge in 2014 I was strongly advised to stand out from the crowd in cargo. We were not focusing on its but now we are focusing on it.” Norway is one of the wealthiest countries in the world and the second happiest nation after Finland according to the World Happiness Report of 2018. There is a lot of airfreight in Norway, with on average 630 tonnes of seafood exports every day. About 50% of Nordic airfreight is from Norway, and there has been 37% growth from 2017 to 2018 in Oslo, filling freighters and the bellies of passenger aircraft. Hasaas told the audience: “This growth is only the beginning, no one is in such a hurry as salmon to get to the market, getting a high quality of service from sea to shelf so it has a longer
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shelf life.” Norwegian seafood exports are expected to grow more than 500% and airport operator Avinor, the conference’s host sponsor, is expanding facilities to ensure that there is capacity for all the seafood exports. A seafood centre will be constructed at Oslo Airport, offering 200,000 tonnes of capacity a year and operated by WFS. Hasaas was followed on stage by conference chairman, Frederik Wildtgrube, head of global sales at Finnair Cargo. Wildtgrube, who has recently relocated to Shanghai, gave a friendly nihao to the audience, before saying that 2019 will be “quite extraordinary” with issues such as trade wars and Brexit, saying that forecasting and making predictions is more difficult.
Tough times ahead
Pasi Nopanen, vice president of cargo global sales at Qatar Airways gave a key note address where he spoke about the air cargo pendulum. It has been up and down over the years but consultants believe that it will be flat for the coming years. Many people are pessimistic about 2019, with Nopanen highlighting issues such as Brexit, US-China trade tensions and more closely to him, the blockade in Qatar, or “illegal blockade” as you must call it in Qatar. Ever the optimist, Nopanen said: “I have a choice of what kind of glasses I put on, positive or negative. If I have a positive attitude there might be positive things happening, and it is easy to handle negative things if you have a positive attitude.” Nopanen highlighted some words that obviously we’ve never heard before: transparency, communication and collaboration, saying that while we talk the talk, we also need to walk the walk. He asked the audience who is the competition, saying it is not fellow air cargo companies but the sea freight industry, telling them: “When I do a customer visit to a forwarder office I see the sea freight teams taking my business! I want to throw them out of the window!”
Saying that airfreight has a common enemy, Nopanen said: “Let’s kick some sea freight ass!”
Look at the big picture
Not calling for death to sea freight forwarders, Janne Tarvainen, managing director of Finnair Cargo was next on stage to review the current challenges and opportunities, sustainable procurement and forces of market demand in the session “Big Picture – Market Challenges”. Finnair Cargo has been adding Airbus A350s to its fleet, an aircraft he calls a “game changer”, and the airline is opening new routes with flights to Sapporo, Japan and Los Angeles, USA. Finland’s location also makes it very convenient for cargo and passengers, being able to fly to Asia and back in 24 hours. Aircraft are being utilised for 15 hours a day, and the shorter distance means lower emissions. Perishables are very important to Finnair Cargo, and Finland’s airport operator Finavia has been very supportive. The latest achievement is the opening of the Cool Cargo Hub at Helsinki-Vantaa Airport. 80% of shipments are transhipments and only 20% are either origin or destination in Finland. Tarvainen says: “It was a rough start, there were data related issues but it was a game changer. The way we manage operations from the cargo control centre was a big achievement for us. There is a strong focus on data, we believe very strongly in data and truly believe that working together gives the best results.” Quality of data is a recurring issue. Finnair Cargo has a team in Mumbai fixing the data, and while 65% is fine, the rest needs to be corrected. The next speaker on stage was Annette Kreuziger, vice president Eastern and Northern Europe for Lufthansa Cargo, who is responsible for all sales and handling in the region. Echoing previous speakers, she said that after two strong years, demand had slowed down and while Brexit might have an impact on the Norwegian fish trade, “other things are on the plate, there is still hope because we enable globalisation”.
aircargoweek.com
She told the audience that technology is progressing faster and faster, so there is the need for faster solutions, and while this is a challenge, Lufthansa Cargo’s long-term strategy will enable it to adapt to changes, be flexible but also maintain quality. 2019 will be a big year for the airline with new Boeing 777 Freighters joining the fleet, modernised infrastructure and expanded network through joint ventures with All Nippon Airways, Cathay Pacific and United Airlines. “Digitisation is a key part of the strategy along with automating processes, customer experience and new business models” according to Kreuziger. Line Spang, shipping manager at Kopenhagen Fur was next on stage to explain how the luxury brand moves its fur, primarily mink but also fox, chinchilla and swakara to customers around the world. These might be tough times but Spang says Kopenhagen Fur is “ready to rock”. To help customers with their logistics needs, Kopenhagen Fur created Global Fur Logistics, a company within a company. There is customer support in China, and it offers transparent and fair pricing. Spang says: “We have more than 5,000 tonnes of airfreight every year, everything is compressed into three weeks after an auction. Before each auction we make a forecast but you never know which customer will buy what. We choose airline customers carefully, we think we’re unique. We work with partners who share the feeling.”
Prospects for seafood exports
After the coffee break, it was time to talk seafood in the session “Seafood Exports – Prospects for Future Growth”. Highly prized Norwegian seafood must reach the market in the best possible condition, and in case of crabs, alive. Svein Ruud, CEO of Norway King Crab was the first speaker, who explained that his produce must reach its destination in less than 30 hours, wherever in the world it is travelling. In
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nordic air cargo symposium
the early 2000s, 100% of produce was frozen but now they are shipped alive. With an annual turnover of €125 million, King Crab has a hotel outside Oslo’s Gardermoen airport. His biggest problem is when crabs get left at the airport and has no information. Ruud said: “There is uncertainty for the customer. Of 700 shipments 17 get left at Gardermoen, when I check the tracking it says the cargo is on the plane when it isn’t. Where is the Uber, AirBnB or Tesla? We need disruption, if I could have information from the flight that would make my day.” Andreas Mikalsen, managing director of Mowi Markets Norway, the country’s biggest food producer was the next speaker. It produces 70-80,000 tonnes of air cargo a year. He explained that 98% of the world’s food is grown on 2% of landmass, and salmon is a small proportion of protein produced compared to poultry or pork. He questioned why we are so reliant on so little land. He added: “People want transparency, in the digital age it is possible to show transparency for the consumer. Wellbeing and feeling good are important and so is having a sustainable healthy product, this is valuable for consumers in the western world. They are searching for something more than food, they want something special and are willing to pay for it.” Gertjan Roelands, vice president Europe for Air France KLM Martinair Cargo (AFKLMP) was next on stage. The group handles 35% of the perishable volumes at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, and has 55 trucks per week from the Nordics, of which 25 are full of salmon, the equivalent of three freighters a week. AFKLMP’s online portal, myCargo, is proving popular, with the number of quotes online growing. Roelands says the next big thing will be booking perishables, particularly salmon. He says: “This gives a great opportunity in the spot market, providing full visibility with the best rates available up to nine days in advance. Perishables are not the most reliable, there is a drop off of 30% in the last 24 hours, this means you need to overbook, this affects quality.”
Seafood Logistics
“Why?” is the word that Sverre Søraa, CEO of Coast Seafoods trains his staff to use, to challenge them to understand “what the heck is happening”, he told the audience after lunch in the session “Seafood Logistics – Network Development and Connectivity”.
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His company is responsible for 102,000 tonnes of seafood a year, not just salmon but other fish including fjord trout. While there are about 1.3 million tonnes of seafood exports annually, 290,000 tonnes of ice and water is also being exported. “It is madness”, he Søraa told the audience, “and you are part of it, maybe I’m at fault but we can’t export 290,000 tonnes of ice and water. It’s crazy.” He bought a subchiller and put it into his factory in Bergen. It requires no ice, and after 14 days the temperature is still only two degrees. The first four kilos of ice are required to bring the fish down to freezing, but Søraa hopes to convince the industry to change its ways. Jonathan Celetaria, sales director for Europe at AirBridgeCargo Airlines was next up. The airline operates two flights a week from Oslo, and with the fleet destined to grow in the future, there is the potential for more flights. There are challenges such as being quick, reliable and making sure everything is done perfectly once the cargo arrives at the destination. He said: “You can fly from A to B in a certain amount of time but you still rely on handling agents. Once the truck has arrived at the origin, you must store the produce properly, same at the destination. You must make sure the paperwork is all done on time so the consignee can pick up the shipment.” Celetaria added: “With the current fleet development and fast growing perishables market, we are definitely able to create value for the Norwegian community and for everyone with a taste for salmon and king crab.” Next up was Martin Langaas, director traffic development and cargo at Avinor, who said that the way to open up and compete around the world is through connectivity, as well as being transparent. About 50% of air cargo out of Oslo is seafood, it is low value but the dominant product. Salmon exports dominate at 92.2%, followed by trout at 6.7%, shellfish at 0.7% and the rest is crabs. The US alone is worth 45,000 tonnes, enough to sustain several freighters. Langaas explained: “A competitive market depends on logistics. If you take all the fish boxes exported in a year, you can walk all the way to Shanghai. This industry is huge.” Not enough is flying from Oslo, with Langaas saying: “My problem is only 39% of Norwegian seafood is exported by air, the rest travels as far as London to be flown out. We want to make it
aircargoweek.com
attract and cost effective to send seafood from Norway.” Facilitating growth is very important for Norway. Langaas said: “Every tonne from a Norwegian airport is worth 26,000 krone to the country. More facilitation is better for the country. One weekly intercontinental passenger flight is worth 250 million krone, this is important for our economy.”
Goodbye Oslo, hello Copenhagen
Following closing remarks from Comen, we had to bid farewell to Oslo. Next year’s show will take place at the Radisson Blu Scandinavia Hotel in Copenhagen, Denmark on 20-21 April. See you there.
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the americas
How can you improve? Break some records
A
fter a very positive year in 2017, could American Airlines Cargo improve further? Of course, by having a record-breaking year in 2018. Vice president of cargo sales, Roger Samways says that American Airlines Cargo broke all-time records across three major categories, which he says “speaks volumes about our team, especially during a year of high volumes”. The airline had its best flown-as-booked performance in history whilst moving higher volumes than ever before. Samways says: “We also generated more than $1 billion in revenue for the first time – a testament Samways to the efforts of the whole
team.” He has high expectations for 2019, with service enhancements such as the iCargo platform, and new routes, not only within the Americas but internationally, on the way. People are also very important, with Samways saying: “Regarding our team, we’ve also added a number of key, new faces to our leadership team, who will help us continue to focus on delivering an industry-leading customer experience from booking to pick up — and that’s key in such a fiercely competitive industry.” American Airlines Cargo has an extensive network, with approximately 6,700 flights a day. The network includes an increasing number of widebody flights connecting domestic hubs, offering the ability to connect much of the world with as little as one stop. The aircraft fleet is very important, with Samways saying: “The most effective facilitators of trade are of course the 150 widebody aircraft in our fleet, including 20 Boeing 787-8s, 19 787-9s and the 47 787s we have on order, alongside our 777 equipment.” Narrowbody flights that primarily operate within the US and the Americas compliment widebody services, and are suited to the ever-growing e-commerce business.
American Airlines already serves more destinations in Mexico and Latin America from the US than other carriers, and the network will be expanded further in 2019. The airline is a big player in the Brazilian market, with Samways explaining: “Through our collaborative work with shippers and forwarders, we’re hoping to take on an even greater amount of automotive related shipments as well as speciality fruit heading to Europe and fish heading to the US.” On transatlantic routes, American Airlines plans a second daily flight from Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) to Paris Charles de Gaulle and Madrid this summer. The Pacific routes are well positioned for shipping goods between Asia and Latin America with a stop in the US. One new route must be highlighted, Samways says: “We’ll also start new service from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport to Durango International Airport (DGO) in Mexico starting June 6, making us the only U.S. carrier to serve DGO.” Samways sees nothing but a strong future for American Airlines Cargo, due to its extensive network and ability to feed cargo to destinations across the Americas. He says: “We are expanding service to and many of these locations, such as DFW, where we will operate 900 flights per day in summer 2019, giving us the ability to further develop our products and services.” Maintaining its market position will be an ongoing challenge, but Samways has confidence in the team, saying: “We’ve set the bar very high and, thanks to our great cargo teams around the world, we have developed a reputation for delivery in all locations, both domestically and internationally.”
Avianca Cargo consolidates position
For Avianca Cargo, international tonnage and domestic business in Ecuador and Peru remained almost unchanged in 2018, and this year load factors are expected to remain strong. The airline handled more than 481,000 tonnes of cargo in 2018, and though 2019 has got off to a “relatively weak start”, Avianca Cargo believes that it can maintain strong load factors in key lanes without penalising yields. On intra-American routes, consolidated cargo has fallen 14% and general cargo by 12% though other products are doing better. Flowers were up 1%, asparagus by 10% and seafood by 33%. To the rest of the world, asparagus was down 15% though general cargo was up 8%, fruit and vegetables by 29%, flowers by 31% and mangoes by 40%. The plan for 2019 is consolidation, Avianca Cargo tells Air Cargo Week: “Avianca Cargo´s expansion strategy is focused in consolidating our current operation in Latin America, Central America and the Caribbean and strengthening its presence in Europe and Asia by developing new routes using its own capacity or by entering into strategic partnerships with other carriers.” There challenges doing business in the Americas, such as exchange rate exposure to the US Dollar, political instability in Venezuela and weakness in Argentina and Brazil. There are also great opportunities, such as developing stronger links to underserved markets including Africa and Australia, along with ever-growing demand for e-commerce. Avianca Cargo sees the market getting more competitive, with jet fuel prices and exchange rates possibly affecting business. The airline says: “As days go by, we are witness of all the incremental capacity and how markets do not grow at that same rate. Having said that, our challenge is to be a completely aligned company which easily adapts itself to all industry’s changes.”
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the americas
The customer is at the core of everything
C
,
argo may have contributed $865 million to Delta Air Lines’ top line revenue, but it’s not all about the money, the customer is at the core of everything says vice president Shawn Cole. Delta Cargo had a successful year in 2018, with record on-time performance and significant investments in products, processes, technology and infrastructure. 2019 should be a good year too, with Cole commenting: “There is general optimism in the industry and we expect this to continue based on economist reports and public information.” Pharma has been a major area of growth, with 40% growth in the last three months alone. Cole says: “We have expanded our coolers at the Atlanta warehouse and the rollout of the CSafe RAP container has been an important customer enhancement.” The trans-Atlantic partners Air France, KLM and Virgin Atlantic also have CEIV and WDA certification, providing customers with extensive options to ship pharmaceuticals. Cole says: “Delta Cargo and Virgin Atlantic Cargo are the first joint venture providing true end-to-end compliance and assurance for customers moving pharmaceuticals, medicines
and life science shipments between the US and UK.” Customers are demanding greater transparency so that is what Delta Cargo is offering. DASH Critical for the domestic market, which is popular for organ and cord blood movements, and Critical for international shipments have GPS technology and are marked as high-priority. ULD Bluetooth tracking is going well, with 70% of the fleet being tagged in 10 months. Delta Cargo has installed readers at 115 locations on six continents and is working with off-airport customers to offer readers in customer warehouses. The new look DeltaCargo.com website has been well received by customers, with Cole saying: “Since introducing the website we have seen a 20 percentage points increase in global online bookings compared to 2017, the website is now Delta Cargo’s number one global booking channel compared to other Delta booking channels.” The website will receive further enhancements, with enhanced tracking to include real-time visibility if a shipment is within a Bluetooth equipped ULD, as well as live SMS notifications for booking changes and tracking notifications. That’s not all, Cole says: “A dangerous goods
Cole
enhancement will be launched so customers can have their shipments, at the piece level, checked against aircraft limits, station capabilities and Delta policies during the booking process.” E-commerce is another area of growth, Cole comments: “People are increasingly shopping on-line which is driving demand to move e-commerce products in a timely manner --- with air freight providing global access for online shipping.” There are challenges ahead, such as the strong US dollar, but Cole is confident about the future of Delta Cargo, saying: “As trucking improves with in the US and the need for Just-in Time support decreases – the need for Air Service becomes challenging. This provides opportunities for more specialised products and services.”
A private jet for your cargo
With a lack of operators able to urgently transport dangerous goods to remote locations, Aerocardal seized the opportunity to fill this gap in the market, CEO Ricardo Real tells Air Cargo Week. The Chilean private jet operator received certification to transport cargo and dangerous goods in 2017, and Real says Aerocardal’s versatile fleet meant the company knew it could be an important player in the market. He says: “Schedule carriers can transport some categories of dangerous goods on large aircraft, but timing is somewhat an issue and sometimes there are some elements that can’t be mixed with passengers.” The main items of general cargo are spare parts for mining, forestry and fishing companies. Real says: “A company is willing to invest more money to move a key spare part for their operation, considering the large amount of money they are losing each by the minute.” Aerocardal had extensive experience in the jet charters, medical flights and maintenance before moving into cargo, and this new business sector has a bright future. For cargo flights, Aerocardal has two Gulfstream G150s, one Pilatus PC-12 and three Dornier 228s. Something that Aerocardal offers is the ability to depart in just two hours. A customer calls up, the team analyse the conditions of the
flight in 30 minutes, talk to the client and can be departing less than an hour after cargo arrives at base. Real says: “We can deliver this service because we have full-time pilots based at our headquarters. This is a competitive advantage from normal legacy carriers that only depart two or three times a week to a certain destination. We can entirely adapt.” Sustained growth is expected over the coming years, driven by increased trade between the hemispheres. Real says: “This is only good news for spot players such as Aerocardal, continuing to offer the same specialised service but within a much more mature market, which will comprehend the true value of urgent cargo and dangerous goods transportation.”
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ACW 8 april 2019
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world airports
New broom relishes new challenges
RAY WOOD HAS TAKEN OVER CARGO AT THE UK’S DONCASTER SHEFFIELD AIRPORT. HE TELLS AIR CARGO WEEK WHY THE COMING YEAR LOOKS BUSY
T
he role at Doncaster Sheffield Airport (DSA) came about as 32-year industry veteran Ray Wood, head of cargo, was looking for a new challenge having worked with airlines for about
20 years. “The role at DSA is unique in as much that the airport has insourced the cargo handling operations as well as attracting commercial airlines to the airport,” Wood says. “The opportunity of being able to build upon a fresh cargo operation,
with some early successes under its belt but a fairly low baseline, was very attractive to me. “I think firstly there is a need to reflect on the great accomplishments of the previous year and of the team themselves. DSA insourced the cargo handling operation from April 2018, that set some expected challenges, which have been met and overcome, leading to achieving a record year where our tonnage has grown 42% yearon-year from 12,600 tonnes to 18,000 tonnes.
Operational continuity
The year ahead is planned to be busy and DSA has landed “some new contracts, some of which are set for the summer season,” he says. This means the airport is in a confident position to discuss lengthier operations. “This brings new operators to DSA for the first time and others
adding further to their existing scheduled services. The plan is to build upon the baseline of our existing scheduled cargo carriers and ensure operational continuity throughout the year,” says Wood. Unlike many commercial airports where the increased capacity of summer passenger-based operations take precedence over cargo and freight, DSA has the capacity, and will, to manage fluctuations between a summer and winter scheduling, he notes. “DSA is very freighter friendly, which is one of the many things that attracted me to the role, and our core focus is on pure cargo operations. It is one of the unique virtues of DSA, that we can manage various industry verticals which enable us to specialise in the handling of specific cargo types, such as perishables, automotive, and aerospace.” DSA has a 20-year masterplan with an ambition to grow cargo volumes up to 176,000 tonnes per year. With that comes major investment from owners, the Peel Group, and their vision around the airport’s wider site as a major logistics hub. The site offers over 280,000 sq m
of development space for multimodal logistics facilities, The Masterplan has received support and strong engagement from stakeholders such as the Sheffield City Region Local Enterprise Partnership.
THREE-YEAR trials at Adelaide Airport in conjunction with state-owned utility SA Water have shown the cooling effects of lucerne can drop air temperatures by more than 3C on warm days. In warmer, less dense air, aircraft can struggle to produce the lift needed for take-off. When a runway lacks the distance required to reach these speeds, an aircraft’s weight can be lowered by removing cargo. There is also a threshold temperature above which aircraft such as the Airbus A330 and Boe-
ing 737 simply cannot take-off. Greg Ingleton, SA Water environmental opportunities manager, said: “We’re getting a lot more momentum now. We’ve been contacted by some interstate and international airports. “The extensive hard surfaces and cleared land around airports means they can often become heatsinks, which has impacts on both terminal and airside operations that need to be managed.” Lucerne, also called alfalfa, can be cut into hay and sold as a premium stock feed.
Wood: Core focus on freighter operations
Where the grass is cool
DFW Runway 17C/35C: Ready for takeoff THE busiest runway at one of the busiest airports in the world reopened to air traffic in February after an innovative $133 million enhancement project at Dallas Fort Worth International (DFW) Airport. Opened in 1983, Runway 17C/35C was under construction since May 2018 to resurface more than 13,000 feet of pavement with high-tech, weather-resistant asphalt.
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At 13,401 feet, Runway 17C/35C handles approximately 40% of DFW arrivals. The rehabilitation required more than 200,000 hours of labour and 220,000 tonnes of asphalt, creating DFW’s first asphalt runway. The runway includes enhanced LED lighting and pavement markings. The project was funded through $80 million in FAA grants.
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TRADEFINDER Airlines
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