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The weekly newspaper for air cargo professionals No. 1,011
10 December 2018
Not growing old after 95 years
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INSIDE LATAM FLIES TO HUNTSVILLE
LATAM Cargo has connected Bogota with Huntsville in response to Panalpina’s desire to cut down travel time between South and North America ... PAGE 2
IAG helps keep baby elephants warm
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ver wondered what happened to old airline blankets? In the case of IAG Cargo, hundreds get donated to help baby elephants. There are between 500-750,000 Asian and African elephants left, and their numbers are rapidly falling with 100 African elephants being poached each day for their tusks and meat. Since its foundation in 1977, the David Sheldrick
Wildlife Trust has fostered orphaned baby elephants that have lost their herds and mothers as a result of poachers and forceful separation. After three years of rehabilitation at the orphanage, the keepers work to reintegrate the elephants into the world. In the wild, elephants keep warm by staying in their herd but when an elephant is orphaned, they are unable to sustain adequate body temperature on their own.
Every year, IAG Cargo donates hundreds of airline blankets to the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, ensuring baby elephants are warm and protected from common diseases such as pneumonia before they are reintroduced into the wild. This year, hundreds of airline blankets will go to the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust to keep the baby elephants warm. Picture credit: David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust
IATA: Cargo demand picks up in October FREIGHT demand picked up again in October with freight tonne kilometres increasing by 3.1 per cent, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) says. The pace was up from a 29-month low of 2.5 per cent in September, though freighter capacity in available freight tonne kilometres rose by 5.4 per cent, the eighth month in a row it outstripped demand. Growing international e-commerce and an upturn in the global investment cycle supported growth. Demand was negatively impacted by a contraction in export order books in all major export
De Juniac
nations, longer supplier delivery times in Asia and Europe, and weakened consumer confidence compared to very high levels at the beginning of 2018. IATA director general and chief executive officer, Alexandre de Juniac says: “Cargo is a tough business, but we can be cautiously optimistic as we approach the end of 2018. Slow but steady growth continues despite trade tensions. The growth of e-commerce is more than making up for sluggishness in more traditional markets. “And yields are strengthening in the traditionally busy fourth quarter. We must be conscious of the economic headwinds, but the industry looks set to bring the year to a close on a positive note.”
SWIFT SERVICE FOR TAYTAY
ANTONOV transported stage and concert equipment for Taylor Swift’s Reputation Stadium Tour from Australia to New Zealand then onto Japan ... PAGE 5 HAE BULLISH IN MIDDLE EAST
FOR UK-based multi-platform air cargo industry services provider HAE Group, the Middle East is seeing many of the shifts in the industry being seen ... PAGE 6
AIR EUROPA TAKES CONTROL
AFTER almost a decade of having a GSA in control of its cargo product, Spanish low cost carrier Air Europa has taken the function back in-house .... PAGE 8
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LATAM connects Bogota with Huntsville
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ATAM Cargo has connected Bogota, Colombia with Huntsville, Alabama in response to Panalpina’s desire to cut down travel time between South and North America. The weekly service started on 2 December, taking approximately four and a half hours and providing 50 tonnes of cargo capacity per flight. LATAM Cargo Group chief executive officer, Andres Bianchi says: “The sustainability of LATAM Cargo’s relationship with its customers is founded on trust and collaborative work. We are continuously supporting them with their projects by offering the best alternatives possible. This allows us to fulfil our desire to be perceived as strategic partners and to expand their business together.” Panalpina senior vice president, head of airfreight/Americas region, Roberto Schiavone says: “During the design process LATAM Cargo worked very closely with us to bring this innovative product into the market. This new flight, supported by our exclusive and recently inaugurated Perishable Center in Huntsville airport, will bring a competitive advantage to our customers. “We will also use LATAM passenger flights from other countries in South America to feed our freighter out of Bogota, it is not only a service for the flowers from Colombia, but for all other perish-
able markets from the entire region. Together with LATAM Cargo, we are creating a new logistics import hub for the South American perishable products into USA market.” On 30 November, LATAM Airlines Group finalised its sale of Mexican company, Aerotransportes Mas de Cargo. It has operated as an independent company from 1 December. LATAM originally announced its intention to sell the company in April this year.
Airfreight still feels the chill of recession THE success of air cargo is dependent on politics, as well as trade. Politicians can demand trade embargoes, or even worse - war. The Great Deception is a fascinating book, written by Christopher Booker and Richard North, where they question the likely survival of the European Union. As we go to press, it will be decided if the UK leaves the EU on 31 March 2019. As UK prime minister, Theresa May’s agreement with the EU will be put to the vote in the Houses of Parliament and is seen as a very unpopular agreement by many MP’s. One way or another May’s Brexit will have little effect on air cargo. The recession has had more of an impact on the global air cargo business. This took effect in Europe during 2008 but
was already beginning to bite throughout the US in 2006. Although we have witnessed several recessions since World War II, the latest has lingered for a decade. The peak season is Christmas and in the past new electronics such as state- ofthe-art computers or mobile telephones have often boosted us. Ideal gifts, urgently shipped by air. H o w e v e r, this year there seem to be no such products to boost the air cargo economy. One may be wise to keep a close tab on costs and continue to work hard with hope of better days to comes.
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ACW ON THIS DAY
TNT sells off logistics Vol 8 Issue 49
12 December 2005
FOLLOWING what TNT CEO Peter Bakker described as “a thorough strategic review of our business” over the past several months, the group has decided to divest itself of its logistics business, representing some 3.4 billion euros ($4 billion) in annual revenues. TNT’s core competency is “designing, implementing and running delivery network businesses,” Bakker said. “TNT wil continue to be customer driven, with an emphasis on innovation as the leading integrator in both Europe and Asia,” he added. The intended sale is expected for the second half of 2006, with TNT retaining some logistics activities fitting its core network strategy.
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Swissport streamlines regional structure
WORLDNEWS AIRFREIGHT volumes at Singapore Changi Airport grew by 2.1 per cent in October, reaching 190,000 tonnes. FedEx Express introduced eight freighter flights a week between Singapore and Sydney on 31 October. WOLFGANG Mayrhuber, former chairman and chief executive officer of Lufthansa died on Saturday 1 December at the age of 71 due to a serious illness. He started his corporate career in 1970 in Hamburg and held various management positions. Mayrhuber was chairman of the executive board between 2003 and 2010 and chairman of the supervisory board from 2013 to 2017.
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wissport International will streamline its regional structure from nine management regions to three, reducing overhead costs and speed up decision making. The Europe, Middle East and Africa region will be managed by Luzius Wirth, executive vice president UK and Ireland and member of group executive management. Glenn Rutherford, who is in charge of Swissport in Australia and New Zealand, will head up the greater Asia Pacific region. Group chief operating officer, Joe Phelan will temporarily head the Americas region until a permanent candidate is found. The three regional heads will report to Swissport International president and CEO, Eric Born, who says: “Our refined organisational setup brings executive management closer to our customers and our operations. More accountability will be delegated into the enlarged regions. The regional heads and their management teams will take full responsibility for commercial matters.” Senior vice president of Europe, Simon Messner will assume the
role of executive vice president for performance and innovation, driving operational standards, quality, health, safety and environmental standards. He will oversee commercial governance, and future product development, innovation and fleet management will also be his responsibility. The existing setup of nine regional management teams will be consolidated into three areas, with the regional heads replacing the chief operating officer on group level. The responsibilities of the chief commercial officer will move to the regional level when the changes take effect on 1 January 2019. As part of the scheduled succession plan, Joe Phelan and Nils Pries Knudsen will retire in the first half of 2019, but all other managers on group executive level will remain in their roles. Born says: “Joe and Nils are very accomplished Swissport executives with extensive industry experience. On behalf of the executive management and the Board of directors, I thank them for their vital contributions over the years.”
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THE board of Airports Company South Africa has appointed Bongiwe Mbomvu as acting chief executive officer while a replacement for Bongani Maseko is found. Mbomvu will fill the role while a permanent replacement is found once Maseko completes his term at the end of November. Mbomvu, who joined the company in September 2013, is group executive for governance and assurance at Airports Company South Africa, with areas of expertise including corporate governance, risk, compliance and governance of ethics. Brisbane Airport Corporation has appointed Jabine van der Meijs and Brad Geatches as non-executive directors. Van der Meijs is CFO and executive vice president of the Royal Schiphol Group, and a non-executive member of the board for Aeroports de Paris. Geatches is CEO of MATES in Construction, a charity providing mental health and suicide prevention services to construction and mining workers. He has also been CEO of Perth Airport and Cairns Port Authority.
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National goes with vMail
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ational Airlines has signed up with Descartes Systems Group to use its Descartes Velocity Mail (vMail) product to simplify mail transportation. The cloud-based Descartes vMail solution is a mail tracking system, automating the air mail shipment tracking process from route generation to account reconciliation, to simplify operational processes and improve efficiency for air carriers, ground handlers and postal authorities. Combining Descartes vMail with the Descartes Global Logistics Network, air carriers have one platform for the lifecycle of all shipments, including parcel packages and larger cargo. The combined solutions help carriers to meet
additional security requirements that many countries have introduced, including the Air Cargo Advance Screening Program affecting shipments arriving in the US from a foreign location. National Airlines business development manager – government and defense, Ryan Dereska says: “With Descartes vMail, we have a quality mail solution that enables us to better manage and grow our business.”
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Dachser obtains IATA CEIV in Frankfurt DACHSER has expanded its life science and healthcare services by obtaining IATA CEIV Pharma certification at its Frankfurt Airport branch. The certification process began in 2017, requiring internal and external training, review of procedures for handling temperature-controlled life science and healthcare products, and an extensive assessment of complex processes by two separate independent validators. CEIV Pharma covers specific requirements of shippers of pharmaceutical products for secure and efficient airfreight services. Dachser COO of air and sea logistics, Jochen Muller says: “The IATA certification is a key pillar of our global air-freight strategy. It attests to the highest service and quality standards for life science and healthcare customers through uniform processes and a compliant network.” Dachser head of global airfreight, Timo Stroh
adds: “We look forward to playing an important role in the shipment of life-saving medicines, and we will continue to expand our network capabilities as business field solution life science and healthcare over the coming year.” IATA global head of cargo, Glyn Hughes says: “IATA is very pleased to recognise the growing interest in aviation leaders such as Dachser to ensure the best standards are applied in the transportation of sensitive pharmaceutical products.”
90 years for OR Tambo robbery trio THREE men have been convicted for a total of 90 years for carrying out an armed robbery at Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International Airport. Three men carried out the robbery in March 2017, making off with 24 million rand in foreign currency by snatching 27 bags from a South African Airways flight. The court heard how the three men entered the airport wearing police uniforms and used two vehicles, one of which was marked as a police vehicle and the other was fitted with sirens and blue lights. According to News24, Sibusiso Job Mnisi was sentenced to 15 years for conspiracy to commit robbery, Frans Mathabatha Manaka received 30 years for two counts of robbery, and Prince Raphael Dube was given 45 years for two counts of robbery with aggravating circumstances, one
of theft and another of false representation for pretending to be a police officer. Airport operator, Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) applauded the South African Police Services and the National Prosecuting Authority on the conviction. It says: “Airports Company South Africa is most appreciative of the tremendous work of the investigative team and the prosecutors in bringing to justice those responsible for this serious crime.” The airport operator says security executives have followed the investigation and trial, to see what improvements need to be made. ACSA says: “Shortly after the robbery, certain procedures were changed, and we have considerably expanded monitoring of every part of the security system both inside and outside of the airport environment.”
Swiss WorldCargo hits the road in Japan SWISS WorldCargo is promoting its Boeing 777-300ER in Japan with a special livery on Road Feeder Service trucks operated by Hirano Logistics. Developed in partnership between Swiss WorldCargo and Hirano Logistics, the branded truck operates on different routes throughout Japan. The temperature controlled truck ensures the safe and effective handling of various goods including pharmaceuticals. It does not carry freight exclusively for Swiss WorldCargo, but it promotes the company and brand as it travels throughout Japan. Swiss WorldCargo head of cargo in Japan, Tango Tomonari says: “We are very proud of our
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collaboration in successfully developing and launching this initiative. It’s an excellent way for Swiss WorldCargo to continue positioning and promoting itself within the Japanese market. At the same time, the impressive pharmaceutical handling capabilities of this truck ensure that a diverse range of products can be delivered to various destinations for different customers.”
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Swift service for TayTay
cargo-partner conducts orchestra move
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ntonov Airlines transported stage and concert equipment for Taylor Swift’s Reputation Stadium Tour from Australia to New Zealand then onto Japan. Two Antonov AN-124-100s were used to ferry the singer’s light-show system and equipment from Brisbane to Auckland to Tokyo for the final leg of her global tour. Rock-It Cargo was the freight forwarder for the 2018 Taylor Swift Tour, and CEO David Bernstein says: “After evaluating all of the aircraft and air carriers capable of fulfilling the operational requirements of our client’s schedule, which required the uplift of 576 metric tonnes within 36 hours from Brisbane to Auckland, it became clear that the Antonov Airlines operated AN-124 aircraft was the ideal aircraft for
the mission.” He adds: “The roll-on, roll-off capability of the AN-124 combined with the impeccable planning and coordination provided by Graham Witton and the entire Antonov Airlines team, resulted in an early delivery of all the gear to the Auckland concert venue.” Antonov Airlines UK managing director, Graham Witton says the AN-124-100 was the obvious choice to transport the cargo. He says: “We met the challenge of an intense back-to-back concert schedule, and we sent out two crews to Australia to ensure that both aircraft could operate three rotations without any break for 24 hours.” The two aircraft flew nine flights with six taking off from Brisbane and three leaving Auckland for Tokyo’s Narita airport.
CARGO-PARTNER has transported all the instruments for an internationally renowned symphonic orchestra from Austria for their tour of Japan. The logistics provider was approached by a concert tour organiser to manage the shipment from Austria to Japan, having successfully collaborated on a number of projects before. The shipment comprised of the orchestra’s instruments and special equipment, which weighed 7.7 tonnes and had a volume of 46 cubic metres. Airfreight specialists used five PMC containers and one AKE to bring goods to their destination, with the shipment consisting of 63 packing units of various shapes and sizes containing shock and pressure sensitive high value instruments. Once the tour dates were set, cargo-partner worked out several transport options with the customer choosing PRIORITY airfreight from Vienna Airport to Osaka Kansai. cargo-partner’s staff in Vienna took care of packaging the instruments, handling and screening the shipment and obtaining Carnet
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ATA clearance to act as a passport for the orchestra’s tools. After cargo-partner handed over the transport to local agents specified by the tour organiser, the symphonic orchestra performed almost daily over 17 days in various Japanese cities including Osaka, Nagoya and Tokyo. To add to the challenge, return transportation had to be prepared before the final concert tour route was fully decided. Despite multiple changes in the schedule, cargo-partner was able to plan ahead and secure the necessary cargo space with several airlines in advance. When the final schedule for the concerts was set, the flight back had to be organised as quickly as possible because the instruments were urgently needed two days later in Vienna for other commitments. After the final concert in Sapporo, the instruments were transported back to Vienna on a direct flight from Sapporo New Chitose, including comprehensive support after the shipment’s arrival in Vienna.
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MIDDLE EAST
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Emirates helps Ecuador’s exports blossom Air cargo across the Middle East remains strong, acting as more than just a transhipment hub for global trade.
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mirates SkyCargo has celebrated five years of facilitating exports of Ecuadorian roses and other flowers and perishables with freighter flights to Quito. Weekly services were launched in December 2013, and due to demand, Emirates now operates four Boeing 777 Freighter flights a week from Ecuador’s capital city. Emirates SkyCargo has transported more than 50,000 tonnes of exports from Quito since the first flight, with fresh flowers forming the
bulk of export commodities. In 2017 alone, close to 12,500 tonnes of fresh flowers were flown from Quito to other parts of Emirates’ network in Europe, the Middle East and Asia. High season for flower exports lasts between August and February but the peak demand for roses occurs in late January and early February in the run up to Valentine’s Day, often requiring additional capacity. More recently, Emirates SkyCargo has also helped promote the growth of exports of perishables such as mangoes and baby bananas from Ecuador to markets such as Germany, the Netherlands, Hong Kong and Singapore. Emirates Fresh helps flowers and perishables from Ecuador retain their freshness and longevity during their journey, and B777Fs have temperature zones to ensure perishable shipments travel at the right temperature.
HAE bullish on region
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or UK-based multi-platform air cargo industry services provider HAE Group, the Middle East is seeing many of the shifts in the industry being seen globally. HAE Group regional commercial director Andy Watson says: “We definitely can see a shift in the airline industry, not just in the Middle East but well beyond. Airlines want leaner operations and the Middle Eastern carriers are seeing this also. “By having not only outsourced sales, but also back office, administration and so on, airlines want efficiency with the high cost of having staff in what can be expensive areas to have fulltime employees on the ground. GSSA companies such as ourselves who invest in technology and develop back office functionality offshore, are able to expand in the region with sales focused offices. This is why we believe there is still confidence in the Middle East.” From its UAE regional headquarters, the greatest area of growth has been GSSA activity. Watson says: “We can definitely see a steady stream of potential in the region over the
next five years, but we keep very aware of the geo-political landscape as this has a major bearing on how we expand our business. After our successes in Kenya and South Africa, we plan to expand into additional markets in North Africa and the Middle East as opportunities arise.” The group represents four major international carriers with complementing networks in the region. The group’s GSSA division is the foundation of its presence, says Watson. “GSSA [activities are] the cornerstone of our activity as the airlines we represent offer our customers the bandwidth to and from the region. Representing four carriers with combined international services globally, we offer our customers a variety of main deck and lower deck services throughout the ME/ISC/Africa/ Europe/USA and Asia network. Our solutions business feeds and defeeds from this programme. It is slightly more complex but has an unlimited potential. “With a mix of both ME/Africa/ISC and Asia, the region is very buoyant. In a lot of cases yields achieved to these markets compare to Central European rates. So we focus on a large amount of capacity we sell intra regional. “Our ME HQ is DXB, but in the UAE we also have SHJ and DWC. We have developed over the years a network of key relationships with like-minded companies in the region, and in countries where foreign ownership is difficult, we tend to work with these partners and have done for many years.”
Watson: keep very aware of the geo-political landscape
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Finnair Cargo not growing old after 95 years
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innair Cargo may be one of the oldest cargo companies but after 95 years is still one of the most modern ones, head of global sales Fredrik Wildtgrube tells Air Cargo Week. He says that 2018 has been a “massive implementation year” for Finnair Cargo, having worked on improving services, systems and performance. Wildtgrube promises that 2019 will feature “lots of great stuff” to strengthen Finnair Cargo’s position and performance. All of this builds on the success of 2018, which Wildtgrube describes as “pretty good”, adding: “there were some indications about a potentially declining market but from our point of view it has been strong, and with the growing maturity of our new terminal it means we can further optimise our capacity and operations and push for higher volumes than we did in the initial stages of the terminal transition.” Among the highlights for the year was celebrating 15 years of direct flights to Shanghai. The route accounts for 10 per cent of total cargo revenue, and upgrading the aircraft fleet has also helped. Wildtgrube says: “Since the Airbus wide-body A350-900 was added to the Helsinki–Shanghai route in 2015, fuel consumption dropped 24 per cent while cargo capacity increased 20 per cent – and revenue has jumped by 30 per cent.” Investing in new facilities and technology is very important for a company to remain competitive. Last year Finnair Cargo opened its COOL Nordic Cargo Hub at Helsinki Airport, and Wildtgrube says customer feedback has been “astonishing”. He says: “COOL is a state-of-the-art facility that is second to none and its dedicated zones for temperature-controlled cargo as well as the flexibility it provides for general cargo handling gives us a great platform on which to expand and grab what the future holds, which is plentiful.”
Wildtgrube says 2018 has been a “demanding implementation year” with the introduction of the SkyChain cargo management system. He comments: “It has meant significant modifications to our systems, processes and ways of working to ensure everything combines without friction.” It has been hard work but worth it, with Wildtgrube saying: “The implementation has not been simple, but COOL has already proved that this is tomorrow’s world, a new way of operating in air cargo, and there is no going back. She is firing all thrusters now and we’re on the verge of finding out just how powerful this is going to be.” The quality of Helsinki Airport, along with Finnair Cargo’s COOL terminal and data driven operations provides reliable solutions for customers. The most significant digital innovation is the Robotic Process Automation, ensuring shipments receive the correct Special Handling code. The correct code in cargo shipping
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documentation is essential to timely and successful transport but significant numbers of air waybills have issues, and making corrections is time and labour intensive. The robotics will solve this challenge. The results are already speaking for themselves, with Wildtgrube saying errors are being corrected 50 per cent quicker than before. He says: “By correcting inaccuracies from further up the logistics chain we are providing a better service for customers and ensuring the right handling and more efficiency. The benefit for customers is enormous given what a big problem this is for the industry.” The whole airline has invested significantly in data-driven processes, with Wildtgrube saying the COOL terminal is a perfect example. “The COOL Control Center located at the terminal is at the heart of our operations connecting everything together, data and humans, insights and actions. It is our jewel in the respect of digital, a vision of the future and it is at the heart of our data-driven processes.” The Cargo Eye can monitor activity in the COOL Control Center to help with decision making and allocating resources. Wildtgrube says: “It serves up all kinds of data from live trucking mapping, to cargo taxis, to live data from temperature loggers. We have sensors everywhere and systems in place to ensure there are not deviations in our storage and procedures.” After 95 years in business, Finnair Cargo will continue investing in operations, and developing new tools and ways of working. Wildtgrube says: “Digitalisation is an important ingredient in our operations. Our terminal is paperless, which drives efficiency. Our field is very competitive and customers easily change provider if things don’t work, which requires us to win their trust with each and every shipment. We are a company on the move.”
Lufthansa Cargo invests in cargo.one LUFTHANSA Cargo is stepping up its cooperation with start-up cargo.one by acquiring a minority shareholding in the Berlin company. Cargo.one was founded in 2017 by Moritz Claussen, Oliver Neumann and Mike Rotgers, providing a platform for booking and marketing air cargo capacity. It focuses on offering dynamic spot rates and enabling their booking, making cargo.one the first platform of its kind. Lufthansa Cargo chief executive officer and chairman of the executive board, Peter Gerber says cargo.one is an important step towards digitisation of the air cargo industry.
He says: “We are pleased to have been one of the first airlines to recognise the potential of this multi-airline platform for our customers and to have made ourselves compatible. We are impressed with the technology and user-friendly product. We are also driving digitisation in our industry through cooperation with start-ups and financial investments such as that in cargo.one.” Cargo.one founder, Moritz Claussen says: “The investment in our technology signals to our customers that cargo.one is a strong partner with which to join forces to
drive air cargo digitisation. Air cargo capacity worldwide can be made available online through our innovative distribution technology. Accordingly, we want to grow to become
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a global leader. The minority investment by Lufthansa Cargo now also demonstrates that even a star player in the industry is impressed with our technology.”
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Air Europa revives in-house cargo control
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fter almost a decade of having a third-party GSA in control of its cargo product, Spanish low cost carrier Air Europa has taken the function back in-house. According to Air Europa Cargo general manager Jordi Pique Dalmau, the reason for this move, marked on November 1, which goes against much modern thinking in business which outsources non-core activities, is straightforward: “It has been definitely the expansion of Air Europa in recent years. Air Europa’s fleet now has 60 aircraft covering over 60 destinations in almost 25 countries, offering nearly 200 flights every day. We are in the middle of an expansion plan that includes new Boeing 787-8 and 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft to replace our Airbus A330 fleet and new routes such as Pan-
ama, starting new February. “This means cargo capacity is huge, covering high demand destinations in Central, South America, Caribbean and United States with most of the route operating daily. With the amount of weight carried in our aircraft last year, it doesn’t make sense to keep this important part of our business outside of Air Europa.” Air Europa had its own in-house cargo department until mid-2009. Then, its focus was primarily on serving key holiday destinations and passenger operations. This led to the move to outsource the cargo business. The airline will now directly manage a network of air cargo terminals and handling agents through the bases it operates from. Previously a Leisure Cargo customer, Air Europa parent Globalia undertook the move
with the aim of adding value to its brand and improving services for cargo customers. Air Europa Cargo is a new unit inside the company that has been created from staff switched from other departments and professionals recruited directly from the cargo business. Between the Air Europa Cargo unit and the dedicated full team created by its Spanish GSA, there are now over 30 employees involved in freight. Dalmau says: “Our team has many years of experience in the cargo and aviation business, and we have also integrated all company departments – including security, legal, operational and auditing – together to form a great team.
An exciting new project
“We are very excited about the new project. It has been months of hard work to have everything ready for the launch on the 1st November, and our team, our GSSA and our GHA are ready to deliver a quality service to our customers.” Dalmau says: “We have appointed more than 30 different GSSAs covering all our on-line stations and some off-line countries too. In America alone we received more than 100 proposals, and we’d like to thank all the participants in our RFPs for the great responses we had. It was hard
Dalmau
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work making the decision on our GSSAs but in the end we now have a great sales force.” Was the launch date of November 1 planned to attract peak cargo demand? “Actually no! The main reason was due to current agreements ending on October 31st. That said, we have had a great response from agents currently working with Air Europa and interest in increased collaboration so we expect to have high volumes from the start of operations,” notes Dalmau. “Yield management is another of the key approaches we have implemented. Every market and product needs its own rate level and this is what we have established. We started with just a few products but our rates are always based on the demand and the service we are providing, with quality as our priority.” Madrid is the airline’s main hub. The carrier has been working to make Madrid as important a transit point as a destination for cargo. The airline, part of the SkyTeam alliance, has several interline agreements that will provide opportunities for alternative options serving Europe and America. “One of the things that we have put in place is an allotment program to share our capacity with all the freight forwarders community, giving better usage of our capacity. We want everyone to have the opportunity to collaborate with our company and offer the best possible service,” notes Dalmau. “Each route is different, with cargoes varying from fruits, flowers and other perishables out of America to pharmaceuticals, tools and textiles from Europe. Particularly high demand is seen on routes such as Lima, Bogota, Sao Paulo and Quito.”
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Airfreight faces German labour stress GERMANY’s air cargo sector faces being limited not just by the lack of infrastructure –such as extra runways at key airports - but by widespread labour shortages, industry sources have said. “It’s general, in the general workforce…. but it goes all the way up to middle management,” CHI Deutschland Cargo Handling CEO Kai Domscheit told Air Cargo Week in the sidelines of a meeting in Bangkok. Some 2,500 workers were needed across the Frankfurt Airport cargo eco-system he estimated. There are several explanations as to why this has emerged. Workers have not only to be certified but need to
speak German and are regularly tested which limits the pool of potential workers, Domscheit said. There is also a three-month qualifying period, he added. “To pass these tests it’s a hurdle for them,” he said. Germany’s tight labour markets means
different companies are chasing the same restricted pool of labour. The impact on the cargo industry is “humungous” he said. It is felt all the way through the supply chain with not enough truckers to deliver cargo. “The sheds don’t have enough
labour,” he added. Another deterrent is the cost of living in Germany, added, Munich Airport’s Cargogate managing director Claudia Weidenbusch. Attempts by Munich to ease its labour shortage by recruiting foreign workers foundered on the cost of living in Munich, Weidenbusch told Air Cargo Week. Workers found that twothirds of their salaries were going on rent and, unable to save or remit funds, quit.
Europe key for HAE Group
GEFCO staff get on their bikes and raise £50,000
A GROUP of 47 cyclists from GEFCO UK has smashed their fundraising target of £50,000 after successfully cycling 300 miles from Coventry to Paris for BBC Children in Need. Several members from the GEFCO UK cycling team joined the BBC Midlands Today team at Wolverhampton Grand Theatre for the BBC Children in Need live broadcast on 16th November, to celebrate their achievement with other fundraisers from the region. “At GEFCO UK, we are hugely supportive of team building initiatives, especially when they are focused on raising money for a worthwhile charity like BBC Children in Need,” said GEFCO UK director of human resources Helen Grover. “We are extremely proud of our cycling team who pulled together to train on weekends and complete the challenge with flying colours, despite many of them not knowing each other before. “Appearing on BBC Midlands Today for the live Children in Need show was an honour for the team and it was a fabulous end to our fundraising challenge.” The GEFCO UK cycling team were supported by fitness trainers from Freestyle 360 during the challenge, which was also part of GEFCO UK’s commitment to encouraging health and wellbeing and team building amongst its staff. “The Coventry to Paris cycle challenge not only resulted in £50,000 being raised for charity, but led to new friendships being formed, healthy lifestyles being adopted and a strong sense of community amongst our GEFCO UK sites,” added Grover. “The Coventry to Paris cycle challenge was a huge success and we are looking forward to further team building activities in the future.” The team of cyclists set off from GEFCO UK’s Coventry headquarters at Prologis Park on Friday 7 September and made pit stops at Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, and a pub owned by DJ and television presenter Chris Evans, The Mulberry Inn in Chiddingford, Surrey, before arriving at GEFCO’s Courbevoie facility in France on Monday 10 September.
UK-BASED HAE Group has a great range of activities across Europe, says HAE director, UK & Ireland, John Ward. He says: “Our solutions division has customers throughout Europe who benefit from the import, export and cross-trade services which we can offer to them, leveraging our airline relationships from across the globe. Our European customers also benefit from our cargo handling services, as we partner with them to connect their European originating cargo on board the UK’s vast intercontinental aircraft capacity.” The company’s solutions product has the greatest potential for growth within its existing markets, Ward notes. “Through our state-of-theart software application we can seamlessly join the services of our airline principals, the first and final mile delivery capabilities of our ground based partners, and our network of customs experts into an integrated wholesale solution. For our GSSA division, our software realises significant benefits to our airline partners, making them increasingly easy to use, helping them to be the first-responder to their customer’s requests, enhancing service and accuracy, and through the gathering of market, quote and booking data, helping them to shape future sales strategies.” As a British company, it cannot be avoided but HAE Group is watching the developing Brexit moves with concern. Ward says: “We have already seen a marked increase in volumes to transatlantic destinations since the Brexit vote. I see more growth to countries with favourable trade terms with the UK being met post-Brexit with reduced volumes to/from European states. In the event of a no-deal Brexit, ground-based services between the UK and Europe may suffer in terms of increased transit times, and the long-term impact of this may be some mode shift from road to air. It’s very difficult to predict, but we are working to cover all eventualities by increasing our customs capabilities in the UK, allowing us to handle increased amount of customs controlled cargo, whether by road or air, through our facilities.” The GSSA division has achieved seven per cent growth of European volumes versus 2018. Its solutions division, as a result of news products, is growing rapidly.
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Best practice theme of TCL conference MEDICINES AND VACCINES COMBINE TO CREATE SOME OF THE MOST VALUABLE AND PERISHABLE CONSIGNMENTS IN THE COOL CHAIN
approach the issue. He will also cover how to improve the level of competency, operational and technical preparedness for temperature-sensitive airfreight shipments as well as speaking about the IATA CEIV Pharma certification programme and how it can revolutionise distribution strategy. The conference follows “a journey from the beginning of the pharmaceutical supply chain, to the end. With presentations, interactive activities covering planning, transportation, execution, last mile and post-distribution,” say organisers. TCL 2019 programme director Katherine Gordon said: “Our goal is for each and every delegate who attends TCL is to leave understanding what best practice planning and execution looks like at every stage of their cold and ambient supply chain. It will be an unmissable few days for all whose profession revolves in part or wholly around pharma logistics and temperature control, and who wish to remain properly informed and at the top of their game.”
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he International Air Transport Association is among a group of speakers who will be talking about key air cargo issues at a leading Pharma event in the UK in January. IATA cargo specialist manager for Europe Francisco Rizzuto, will be presenting at the annual Temperature Controlled Logistics (TCL) 2019 conference which takes place at Twickenham stadium, London on January 28-31. The event aims to bring together supply chain, logistics and quality experts from around the globe to experience four days of workshops, case studies, panels, interactive discussion groups and technology showcases. Appearing on day one of the main conference, Rizzuto is set to speak about the present global status of pharma cargo community collaboration in airfreight, and will discuss how best to
Indian move to boost South Africa pharma
A SIGNIFICANT upgrade of an air cargo lane is likely to emerge soon, attendees at the recent Clear View Thought Leadership conference in Bangkok were told. India’s Hyderabad, long considered the country’s pharma hub, is planning to start regular charters to Port Elizabeth in South Africa where there is an active manufacturing sector, an attendee said. “They will do it big time,” the attendee said. The route is already significant with companies in South Africa importing pharmaceutical products but regular charges would be a significant gearing up. The products are flown into Johannesburg, the economic capital of South Africa and then trucked 1,100 km to Port Elizabeth, Siginon Aviation general manager Maarten Klijnstra, said. “That’s an overnight trucking service,” he pointed out. Arriving in Port Elizabeth at around noon the chemicals are then cleared and ready for delivery by two pm he said. In the factory they are used to make retrovirals (for HIV sufferers) and anti-malarials. “There’s an advanced pharmaceutical transformation in South Africa,” Klijntstra said. One restraint on the pharma side is vaccines which are sensitive to even slight changes in temperature. “That’s something we need to look at,” Klijnstra said. The issue is not so much ambient temperature but the lack of power to provide a continent wide cool supply chain. “The only way the continent can grow is to be able to develop the infrastructure that is necessary – that is one of the challenges we have,” Klijnstra said. This is not just power to cool the pharma chain but roads to allow goods to be moved promptly and without congestion in the big cities. “Ease of doing business must improve,” said Kilijnstra.
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