ACW 16th January 17 by Azura International

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The weekly newspaper for air cargo professionals Volume: 20

Issue: 2

16 January 2017

Alibaba and WCA sign e-commerce agreement

CA and Chinese e-commerce giant alibaba.com have signed an agreement to allow approved WCA member firms integrated into Alibaba’s logistics platform for cross-border e-commerce shipments. The collaboration commences in January 2017, facilitating shipments generated by alibaba.com’s members to major exports including the USA, India and the UK. Global logistics network WCA will provide support in vetting and approving international logistics providers for alibaba. com customers, and approved providers will have full access to compete for logistics

orders on the alibaba.com platform. Statista forecasts China’s e-commerce market will be worth $840 billion by 2021, almost double the estimated size of the US e-commerce sales in the same period at $485 billion. China has a growing appetite for foreign products with a growing middle-class population and cross-border sales in China are set to surpass $150 billion by 2020. Retail e-commerce alone is expected to total $1.9 trillion in 2016 and will increase to $4 trillion in 2020. WCA chief executive officer, Dan March says: “The fact that Alibaba.com has recognised the quality, global strength and professionalism of WCA and its members will open up vast new

opportunities for business growth for independent freight forwarders. “Many of our member companies are already heavily involved in many facets of cross-border eCommerce logistics. The strict qualification process for our newly-formed WCA eCommerce network will provide reassurance that the services provided by our members can facilitate merchants on Alibaba.com to accelerate their global trading.” Alibaba Logistics director, Steve Su (pictured right) adds: “We are committed to offering premium services to global SMEs on our platform who are looking to scale up their business presence through cross-border trading. We are confident partnering with a leading global logistics alliance such as WCA will help us achieve that goal.” WCA chairman, David Yokeum (pictured left) says the world is rapidly changing and WCA is working hard to ensure members are equipped to take advantage of huge global growth forecasted in e-commerce. He adds: “We fully expect the business to flourish. We are putting both independent forwarders and Alibaba.com traders at the vanguard of change in this exciting and dynamic market.”

IATA: encouraging signs growth will continue into 2017 The International Air Transport Association (IATA) says there is encouraging signs that air cargo growth will continue into 2017 as it revealed its figures for November 2016. The association’s upbeat views of the peak season follows on from similar positivity last week from WorldACD and the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines. IATA says airfreight growth slowed slightly in November to 6.8 per cent year-on-year (YOY) but it is still growing at more than 2.5 times the average monthly rate seen for the past decade. Growth in November was slightly slower than in October, but was still well above the average monthly rate of 2.6 per cent over the past decade. IATA notes the growth coincides with an increase in silicon material shipments used in high-value consumer electronics shipped by air

and a turnaround in new export orders, while a modal shift following the collapse of Korea’s Hanjin Shipping Company in August may have helped. IATA director general and chief executive officer, Alexandre de Juniac (pictured above) says: “Air cargo enjoyed a strong peak season in November. And there are encouraging signs that this growth will to continue into 2017, particu-

larly with the shipment of high-value consumer electronics and their component parts.” He adds: “But, the trend in world trade is still stagnant. So it remains critically important for the air cargo industry to continue to improve its value offering by implementing modern customer-centric processes.” Africa saw the strongest FTK growth of 10.9 per cent, followed by Europe at nine per cent. the Middle East at 7.8 per cent, North America at 5.6 per cent, and Asia Pacific at 6.1 per cent. Latin America was the only region to decline, down 1.3 per cent due to weak economic and political conditions, particularly in Brazil. In November, Asia Pacific had a market share of 38.1 per cent, Europe 22.7 per cent, North America 21.1 per cent, the Middle East 13.5 per cent, Latin America three per cent and Africa 1.6 per cent.

£40M MONTH AT AIR CHARTER SERVICE AMERICAS, ASIA AND TECHNOLOGY FOCUS FOR ECS DOUBLE DIGIT VOLUME GROWTH BUT YIELDS FALL QEP ACCREDITATION FOR ETIHAD

Single air cargo system for India INDIA will invest in a single window air cargo community system as part of a public private partnership (PPP) model. A report by the Ministry’s of Civil Aviation’s (MoCA) Committee on the National Air Cargo Community System (ACS) has outlined the plans to improve the efficiency of processing shipments and cutting costs. As part of the PPP model the Indian Government is set to hold a 51 per cent stake with the remainder distributed among airport operators and other stakeholders. The ministry’s senior advisor and committee chairman, Renu Singh Parmar explains: “India is one of the fastest growing large economies of the world and the Indian air cargo industry is poised for significant growth thanks to the landmark government initiatives like ‘Make in India’. “In order to support sustainable growth, it is of paramount importance that right physical and digital infrastructure is put in place in the country which can facilitate the ease of doing business in India. “As per IATA, each air cargo shipment on average carries around 30 documents and 100 copies resulting into significant documentation overheads, increased dwell times and supply chain opaqueness.”

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£40m month at ACS

ir Charter Service (ACS) has had a record month, with revenue passing £40 million ($48.6 million) in November. The company says all three main divisions: cargo, private jets and commercial aircraft saw marked increases, and the onboard courier team performed well. Group chief executive officer, Justin Bowman (pictured) says this is a major step in the goal of becoming a billion dollar company. He says: “This landmark month, combined with our new partnership with Alcuin Capital, means that this year is already shaping up to be an exciting one for everyone involved at ACS.”

NEWS WEEK WORLDNEWS THE International Air Transport Association (IATA) is using Descartes’ Global Logistics Network (GLN) to help small to medium-sized freight forwarders electronically communicate and receive air waybill data and status messages through IATA’s eAWBLink. eAWBLink, supported by Descartes’ GLN connectivity solution will make it easier for smaller forwarders to adopt the eAWB and benefit from the overall efficiency gains it can produce. dnata marked several milestones during the course of 2016 with steady growth across the world. It handled 419,133 tonnes of cargo at Dubai International Airport, an eight per cent increase from the previous year. At Dubai World Central where it developed into a regional cargo hub with a capacity to grow to 16 million tonnes per year, it now handles more than 117,000 tonnes of cargo.

Film logistics specialist acquired by Kerry

AA to start daily widebody SJU-PHL flights

KERRY LOGISTICS has expanded its European operations through the acquisition of Multi Logistics, a specialist in film and media logistics. The acquisition will add four offices to Kerry’s German network, bringing the total to seven, including its regional headquarters in Frankfurt as well as Bremen, Hamburg, Munich and Berlin. Each office offers local and multinational customers international freight forwarding, warehousing and distribution, customs brokerage and supply chain services. Kerry Logistics managing director of Europe, Thomas Blank says: “The expansion is in line with our strategy to accelerate the business development of the European market, and we are pleased to be able to provide our clients with enhanced network coverage, additional service offerings across Europe, and a further optimised local customer service in Germany.”

AMERICAN AIRLINES (AA) Cargo will add daily widebody San Juan – Philadelphia services to its network, providing capacity for goods including pharmaceuticals, mobile phones, medical instruments and aircraft parts. The daily Airbus A330-200 flights between San Juan Luis Munoz Marin Airport and Philadelphia International Airport will supplement the two daily narrow-body services and provide connections to AA’s widebody network in North America, Asia and Europe. American Airlines Cargo senior manager sales for its Eastern division, Linda Dreffein says: “Bringing in a daily widebody for this route will give us the opportunity to offer customers more capacity to and from both of these high-demand locations. “Plus, it will hugely benefit us in our ongoing efforts to enhance and evolve our already world class cold-chain program.”

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NEWSWEEK

Brussels and Liege continue their growth paths in 2016

elgium’s two air cargo hubs Brussels Airport and Liege Airport continued to grow their tonnage and expand services in 2016. Traffic at Brussels rose by 1.1 per cent to 494,673 tonnes, up on the 489,303 tonnes recorded in 2015. It came despite the impact of the terrorist attacks in March as the second half of 2016 offset the fall in the first half. Freighter cargo was up 14.3 per cent from 144,001 tonnes to 164,549 tonnes, and integrator/express freight was up 1.5 per cent to 203,982 tonnes from 200,988 tonnes. Belly fell sharply by 12.6 per cent to 126,105 tonnes from 144,314 tonnes. The airport was boosted by a strong December peak, handling 49,519 tonnes in the month, a 22 per cent rise on the 40,585 tonnes in the same month last year.

This the gateway notes can almost entirely attributed to the near doubling of the fullfreighter transport (+88.9 per cent). Belly cargo fell by 5.5 per cent compared to December 2015, while integrator traffic rose by two per cent on the same month in 2015. Brussels says it posted strong figures in the second half of the year, and the loss on the belly side was caused by the departure of Jet Airways and the impact of the terrorist attacks on 22 March. The airport also notes the transport of pharmaceuticals and perishable goods from and to Brussels rose sharply in 2016 on 2015. Meanwhile, Liege Airport handled 660,604 tonnes of freight in 2016 compared with the 649,829 tonnes it processed in 2015 - a rise of 1.7 per cent. The Belgian gateway is the 8th busiest ton-

nage wise in the European region and Belgium’s largest airfreight hub. Liege Airport managing director, Luc Partoune says: “There has been sustained business growth for all our companies with significant increases for CAL Airlines, El Al and Qatar Airways. In a transition phase following the buyout by FedEx, TNT continues to perform well and

remains our most important client.” The gateway is also building a new cargo hall in the north zone and pursuing its diversification strategy via its subsidiary - Liege Airport Business Park. A new 6,000 square metre cargo hall will be built in 2017 as part of a four million Euro investment and the airport says this demonstrates demand for freight is strong.

Europe’s gateways have a strong November EUROPEAN airport trade association the Airports Council International (ACI) Europe has reported that freight traffic grew strongly in November 2016 compared to the same month in 2015. ACI Europe says the region’s airports posted cargo growth of 6.5 per cent in November and this was largely driven by non-European Union gateways – in contrast with passenger traffic. Total belly aircraft movements were up 3.7 per cent in November compared to the same month in 2015, while cargo-only services were up by 4.9 per cent.

Among those seeing freight traffic growth were Istanbul Ataturk Airport with 16.1 per cent to 79,287 tonnes, Madrid-Barajas Airport by 9.4 per cent to 37,920 tonnes, Barcelona-El Prat Airport by 10.6 per cent to 11,863 tonnes, Zurich Airport by 10.5 per cent to 28,135 tonnes and Moscow’s Sheremetyevo International Airport by 26.8 per cent to 17,274 tonnes. Those seeing tonnage falls were Oslo Airport by 16 per cent to 8,310 tonnes, Frankfurt Airport by 1.5 per cent to 180,521 tonnes and Helsinki Airport by 5.3 per cent to 13,465 tonnes.

Bud’s tonnage soars 23% in 2016

BUDAPEST Airport’s cargo volumes have grown almost 23 per cent annually, transporting goods as varied as aircraft jet engines, a baby hippopotamus and several hundred calves. The airport handled over 112,000 tonnes in 2016, and on certain days it would have three Boeing 747 Freighters parked up. One interesting shipment was a baby female hippopotamus travelling to Jakarta, Indonesia via Dubai in the bellyhold of an Emirates Boeing 777-200 inside a standard

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size waterproof cage. The Hungarian gateway’s director of property and cargo, René Droese says: “Last year, we witnessed an outstanding 22.7 per cent increase in our cargo traffic – a clear indicator that the Hungarian economy is doing well, and the demand for export by air of high-value products like electronics or pharmaceuticals is growing. “Also, our foreign partners find more and more advantages in flying their cargo directly to Budapest, due to its central location in the heart of Europe.” In 2017, Budapest will finalise construction of two new offices and warehouse facilities for DHL and TNT Express as part of BUD 2020, a five-year development programme including the building of the Cargo City project with 16,000 square metres of warehouse and office space next to Terminal 2, scheduled to open by end of 2018.

Strong year for London hubs

eathrow Airport’s cargo volumes grew three per cent to 1.54 million tonnes in 2016 driven by trade with emerging market destinations, while Gatwick Airport (pictured) is making up ground lost in 2015. In December, cargo was up 5.1 per cent to 133,641 tonnes at Heathrow, which was driven by growth in emerging markets, with Brazil up 18.6 per cent, India 12.1 per cent and China 8.3 per cent. Heathrow Airport chief executive officer, John Holland-Kaye says: “Whether it was welcoming back a triumphant Team GB from Rio or giving that special Heathrow service to a record number of passengers, increasing Britain’s trade with the rest of the world or securing Government support for expansion. “Heathrow is Britain’s airport and we will continue to help all of our country thrive for decades to come.”

NEWS WEEK 76 Irish horses fly to China

SHANNON AIRPORT has handled 76 horses purchased for a Chinese businessman, with the Irish thoroughbreds flying to Beijing on board a Boeing 747 Freighter. The horses were purchased for Chinese businessman, Zhang Yuesheng by Kildare based bloodstock agency BBA Ireland, and at €3 million ($3.1 million), was the single Gatwick Airport’s cargo volumes grew by 13.3 per cent in December 2016 on the same month in 2015 to 7,375 tonnes, as it recovers from the slump in volumes seen in 2015 - boosting the year-end figures. Cargo volumes for 2016 were up 6.2 per cent to 77,995 tonnes, though 2015 had seen a yearon-year fall of 17.3 per cent from 88,737 tonnes in 2014 to 73,411 tonnes. Gatwick Airport chief executive officer, Stewart Wingate says the airport’s figures are 14 years ahead of industry predictions and are an impression conclusion to Gatwick’s 80th anniversary. He says: “Gatwick’s booming long-haul services and increased cargo volumes illustrate the vital contribution the airport continues to make to the local and national economy, in the airport’s busiest-ever December, as we continue to offer the UK Government a credible and deliverable option for runway expansion.”

biggest movement of Irish horses to China. Chief commercial officer for Shannon Group, Shannon Airport’s operator Andrew Murphy says: “We are well used to ‘firsts’ at Shannon but having a record airlift of Irish horses to China from here was very exciting for all concerned.” BBA Ireland shipping director, Ann Munnelly says: “Many experienced hands have been involved in this and it has been one of our most ambitious projects to date so we are very excited to have completed it.” A team of professional flying grooms and a vet, with a team of 30 handlers on the ground were involved in the three hour process of loading the animals at Shannon.

Vienna to spend €16m on cargo centre VIENNA AIRPORT is to spend €€16 million ($16.7 million) expanding its Air Cargo Center by one third, and will have one of Austria’s largest photovoltaic facilities on its roof to provide electricity. Space at the Air Cargo Center will increase by a third adding 15,000 square metres and should be operational by the end of 2017. Vienna Airport’s operating company, Flughafen Wien says the roof of the Air Cargo Center offers the possibility for one of the largest rooftop photovoltaic electricity generating facilities, doubling the existing 5,000 square metres already installed.

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Flughafen Wien member of the management board, Gunther Ofner says: “The expansion of our Air Cargo Center should further improve our good market position as a transshipment point for air cargo.” He adds the airport handles 800 tonnes of freight a day, and 280,000 tonnes annually. Ofner says half of the export production value of Lower Austrian industry, about €eight billion is transported by Vienna. He says: “These investments are designed to generate further growth potential at the airport site and for the Austrian economy, but above all to create new jobs in the logistics sector.”

ACW 16 JANUARY 2016

GLOBAL GSSAs

Americas, Asia and technology focus for ECS

he ECS Group made some key moves in 2016 as it acquired a majority stake in the AVS GSA Group and won a general sales and service agent (GSSA) contract with Singapore-based carrier Jetstar Asia. Chief executive officer, Bertrand Schmoll (below) says the deals have enabled it to develop its network and grow in Asia, a key regional focus for ECS and both AVS and Jetstar will be strong partners. “It is not just to get our flag in every country. It is important to have the best possible partners. With this

acquisition (AVS) we have really good people who are well known, which is most important for us. “The GSA remains local as the services are local. We want to have people who have knowledge of the local market and forwarders. We get this with this acquisition and AVS will be a strong future partner,” says Schmoll. Meanwhile, the Jetstar Asia contract it started on 22 October gives it a firm foothold in eight countries and 25 stations across the region, and Schmoll says it “matches perfectly” with the AVS acquisition, which itself has a strong presence in the Asian and Southeast Asian region. Chief operating officer, Adrien Thominet (pictured right) says in the first few months there were good signs and it will be good for ECS due to the synergies in Asia it provides, while the interline airline opportunities it creates will also prove “very interesting” which include with

Air France, British Airways, Lufthansa, China Southern, and Turkish Airlines. 2017 has already started with a bang as ECS has been awarded a GSSA contract with Finnair (above) from 1 January to manage its cargo space across six countries in Southeast Asia, while it is also eyeing up an acquisition in South America, which is yet to be finalised. Thominet notes the Finnair contract win will also help drive synergies in Asia and will boost business as the Finnish carrier has a strong network in Asia through services into the likes of Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. “It is very interesting and we are going to use Jetstar to feed into Bangkok and Singapore and then we can attract more airlines,” he adds.

The Americas

For now in Asia it is all about consolidation for ECS through the acquisition and contract win it made in 2016 as the region is a long-term focus for the company. Asia obviously remains a top target for growth in the year ahead, but the Americas is where ECS is looking to channel much of its energy into in 2017 with the likes of Chile, Bolivia, Peru and Ecuador on the radar. Schmoll says it is building up a partnership in South America with local people who are well known and it is set to tie up an acquisition of a GSSA in the region sometime this year, which he believes will happen sometime soon. He explains: “We need to have a global network and are in more than 46 countries and have the biggest GSSA network. It is important to have this wide network as we want to meet the requests of airlines and have global representation for them in all of those countries. We can only do this with a global network. We more or less have a wide network now.” Thominet notes North America is also an area it will look at especially Canada where it has no presence currently, which also fits into the Americas focus. Another major investment for ECS in 2017 will be in technology and it will invest in its own system this year, as it looks to meet the changing needs and demands of the air cargo industry. Schmoll explains investing in technology is vital to manage the growing number of offices and to provide a total cargo management (TCM)

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for airlines it works with and ECS wants to be ready. “We want to develop that (the system) and new technology is extremely important for us. In 2017 we will have our own system and we will then be able to provide this to airlines,” he explains. As part of this technological investment strategy, Schmoll says e-commerce is another important area and ECS wants to be compliant with the electronic air waybill (e-AWB): “E-business is a key focus and we need to be ready. The business for the GSSA will change and we need to give more and more services (to airlines).” He confidently predicts in five years ECS should be able to double the cargo tonnage it manages for airlines, while it is all about providing quality in solutions and services it offers to clients: “The word this year is quality, everywhere. We want to provide quality across everything we do.”

More of the same

But how do Schmoll and Thominet see the air cargo industry in 2017? “I expect the same in 2017 as 2016, and not any big changes. The areas the growth is concentrated is not the same. It is changing, but I think it mirrors where we are,” Thominet says. He adds: “We expect South America to grow, Asia remains strong, Europe is mature but good and the commodities are changing with perishables, flowers and pharma growing strongly. We are optimistic for the year ahead.” And Schmoll believes the US political situation with Donald Trump taking over as president in 2017 will have a bigger impact than any other political change like Brexit. He feels there is political uncertainty, but is positive about the year ahead, and says air cargo business will continue as normal, and is confident ECS will have a strong and successful 12 months.

GLOBAL GSSAs

Double digit volume growth but yields keep falling

such as taking action when shipments are delayed and solving claim issues. He says: “We personally supervise trucks, pallet build up, where ever we can do this - also during weekends. If any problem occurs during loading, offloading, or unexpected delays, we do inform customers at once and we offer our full support to find solutions immediately.” Kales believes the Group’s services offer many advantages, explaining: “Some airlines after some time think it’s so simple and easy, and start their own office, then realising that nothing comes easy.

fter a slow start to 2016, growth picked up in September with a surplus of business like never before in December, Kales Group chief executive officer, Peter Kales (pictured below) tells Air Cargo Week (ACW). He says volumes grew 15 per cent but yields narrowed month by month, and growth would have been stronger if the start of the year had been better. Kales tells ACW: “If the first six months had not been as slow, overall we would have had substantial growth in tonnage and revenue compared to 2015 – which remained almost flat compared to 2015, despite higher volumes.” As for 2017, Kales expects January to be strong due to the timing of Chinese New Year, though February could be weaker. Further ahead, Kales comments: “After this we have to see what President Trump really means to the world economy, but we expect business as usual.”

Doing something different

New year, new contract

2017 has started well, obtaining the European sales, reservation and administration contract for Saudia Cargo, supporting all aspects of airline operations. Kales tells ACW: “With a special team dedicated in a separate company in Frankfurt we offer centralised yield and space control for whole of Europe, which will help to increase the airlines yields, and optimise capacities.” He adds: “Many airlines use multiple sales agents, and, or have different offices quoting

different prices - which generally works in a counter productive way for controlling and increasing yields and load factors.” Kales believes that his company has market awareness “like no other” and will not walk away from responsibilities,

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“We are doing something different and have a relationship with many of our clients for so many years, and they know we take care and support them at any time…we think this makes Kales Group still unique – but airlines do not always realise this.” He does not see any major changes in the GSSA market, but comments: “As a GSSA we can offer all cargo services better, more professional, and most important much more cost effective and in the end - this will also remain the major target for the airlines - also for the future. Especially where yields remain under pressure more and more. “That’s why, we as a service provider being present in our markets for very long time (over 20 years) - will always find airlines who like to be represented by Kales Group and want to be successful,” he adds. Kales says his goal is to always improve services, telling ACW: “Our goal is to more and more extend our services to airlines, and serve them cost effective at the highest possible yields, offering active sales and marketing and investing in IT and operational supervision to ensure efficient and fast communication and guarantee capacity is used to the maximum.”

ACW 16 JANUARY 2017

FAR EAST

Lufthansa Cargo looking to China and India

hina and India are the targets for Lufthansa Cargo as it sees these being the strongest Far East markets for cargo in 2017. The carrier says it expects the strongest relative growth of export and import to come from both these countries. Aside from the Far East it will focus its attentions on the North and South American markets, where it sees expansion opportunities. Lufthansa Cargo is aiming and expecting to achieve high load factors throughout the year into the Far East with innovation and further digitisation key focuses in 2017. There are no network and infrastructure plans in the Far East at the moment, but the carrier notes it will keep a close eye on any market developments to meet customer demands and will react flexibly if it needs to. 2016 was a challenging year for Lufthansa

Cargo financially due to lower yields while operations were affected by pilot strikes, but it was boosted by a strong fourth quarter (Q4). Uplifted cargo volume was stable and demand was strong in Q4 for one or two-way shipments, but also with long term contracted business. The changes in capacity offered in 2016 were “outstanding” such as a Boeing 777 Freighter shared service from Tokyo Narita via Seoul to Frankfurt was introduced with a six/seven frequency replacing the MD-11 Freighter Narita to Frankfurt operation. Lufthansa says this offers overnight service to Europe and further options for main deck cargo with larger aircraft than before and successful capacity management together with Korea made this B777F flight to one of the best commercial routes within the Lufthansa Cargo worldwide network. The agreement with ANA in Japan is work-

ing out well with both offering their flights in a shared network on cooperation routes, while freight is also handled at numerous stations in shared warehouses both in Japan and Europe. Lufthansa Cargo says cross bookings have increased year by year for both and joint venture capacities works out very well, as customers use the capacity of the other party too, while in situations of service recovery or capacity changes the option is proving beneficial. For Lufthansa Cargo as a whole it seeing good

growth opportunities in pharmaceuticals and gaining the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) CEIV Pharma certificate has driven this. The carrier explains: “CEIV certification by IATA combined with further innovations and product improvements will help making us an even more attractive carrier to our customers and the pharmaceutical industry. “With our new products td.Basic and myAirCargo which are available online we offer innovative solutions.”

Incheon has record international cargo year INTERNATIONAL air cargo to and from South Korea via Incheon International Airport reached a new level in 2016 - despite a drop in the country’s overall imports and exports, the government explains. Incheon handled 2.71 million tonnes in 2016, up 4.6 per cent on 2015. This is 99 per cent of all international air cargo to and

from South Korea. The value of cargo handled is 27.6 per cent of overall trade. The rise was down to more outbound shipments to America, Europe and emerging markets in Asia. A rise in shipments of electronic devices to advanced markets and growing demand for South Korean made goods boosted tonnage to Asian markets.

Shark fin cargo banned by Air China Cargo

AIR China Cargo has become the first mainland Chinese carrier to ban the transportation of shark fin as cargo as says it wants to play a role in a “more sustainable world”. More than 30 airlines have now joined the ban globally as the pressure has been growing on them to impose the ban on the trade. Shark fin soup is a popular traditional Chinese dish often served at special occasions such as weddings and banquets, or as a luxury item in Chinese culture. The freight arm of Air China did not

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specify when the policy would take effect but made this announcement on its website: “Air China Cargo has a long standing commitment to playing our role in a more sustainable world. We were one of the first airlines in China to raise the awareness of the unsustainability of the global shark trade. “We understand the community’s desire to promote responsible and sustainable marine sourcing practices, and this remains important to Air China Cargo’s overall sustainable development goals. “Therefore, on the issue of shark fin, we reiterate our “No Shark Fin” carriage policy.” Last year, low cost Hong Kong-based carrier HK Express became the first local airlines to implement a ban, and was joined in recent months by Cathay Pacific and Dragonair.

FAR EAST

Better than expected peak season for AF-KL-MP

he non-traditional peak has lasted much longer than expected, exceeding expectations helped by factors including product launches, modal shifts and an earlier Chinese New Year, Air France KLM Martinair Cargo (AF-KL-MP) tells Air Cargo Week. The airline group says since the global financial crisis, the peak lasts longer than the traditional four to six weeks from mid-October through November, and 2016 in particular has lasted much longer “and has belied most expectations”. It says the main factors for the better than expected peak demand are new product launches such as the Apple iPhone 7 in September followed by the MacBook Air/Pro in October and a lack of charter activities in key Asian markets such as Hong Kong and Shanghai. AF-KL-MP says Hong Kong International Airport has a new air traffic control system and the Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department has not granted ad-hoc charters in recent months while Shanghai has been congested, a continuation from the last few seasons, and there has been a push towards second tier cities such as Zhengzhou.

More strong growth at Changi

It has also seen the effect of modal shift following the collapse of Hanjin Shipping and to a lesser extent the devaluation of the Chinese Yuan.

Chinese New Year (CNY) will be early this year, starting 27 January, meaning a shorter window between the end of the peak season around 20 December and the pre-CNY rush about two weeks prior. AF-KL-MP says: “We are potentially looking at an upward tick for January 2017. Further on, a month-end effect also plays nicely towards a pre-CNY surge. This will come at the expense of a rather lukewarm to slow February 2017.” The airline says it is optimistic about 2017 as there will be a number of new product launches especially in the world of virtual reality and remote controlled reconnaissance and surveillance vehicles such as drones. AF-KL-MP warns: “While volumes will outshine 2016 numbers, the pressure on prices will continue and will further pressurise the declining airline yields.” AF-KL-MP offers maindeck capacity to Beijing, Hong Kong and Seoul. It also offers widebody bellyhold capacity to numerous locations across the region including China, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia.

CHANGI AIRPORT’s (pictured above) cargo volumes continue to grow strongly with a 7.9 per cent increase in November to 173,170 tonnes. Singapore’s airport has seen year-on-year growth in every month of 2016, proving particularly strong from June onwards. Every month since June has registered growth of at least seven per cent, with July the strong growing 9.4 per cent followed by October at 8.9 per cent. Cargo has grown 6.1 per cent to 1.8 million tonnes on a year-to-date basis between January and November. Changi has welcomed new services to India with four Air India Express flights a week to Kolkata from 20 November and daily Jet Airways flights to Bangalore. Among Chinese airlines, SilkAir launched four flights a week to Fuzhou and Xiamen Airlines increased the frequency of Xiamen services from 14 a week to 17. Additionally, Myanmar National Airlines increased Yangon services from seven times a week to 12.

AAT wins T’way Air contract

T’WAY AIR has chosen Asia Airfreight Terminal (AAT) as its cargo ground handling agent in Hong Kong for its three flights a week from Daegu in South Korea. The airline started the Boeing 737-800 service on 13 December providing connections with South Korea’s fourth largest city, which is known for its electronics industry. AAT will provide all services related to cargo and documentation handling to T’way in Hong Kong. AAT general manager, Kuah Boon Kiam says: “AAT has always been known to provide flexible, customised services to all our customers and we look forward to contributing to T’way Air’s cargo growth in Hong Kong through our commitment to high service standards and innovative ideas.”

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PHARMA NEWS ROUND-UP

CEIV Pharma certification awarded to Rio’s gateway

IOgaleão Cargo has been awarded the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) Center of Excellence for Independent Validators (CEIV) Pharma certificate. The freight arm of Rio de Janeiro International Airport becomes the first hub in Latin America to gain CEIV and says it confirms it as one of the leading gateways for pharmaceutical products in the region. CEIV Pharma certification confirms compliance with international pharma handling standards and best practices and significantly reduces logistics costs and risks for the hub’s clients. The certification comes after the opening in 2016 of the airport’s ‘TECA Pharma 2’ facility, which tripled cold storage capacity to 17,000 square metres at the cargo terminal, offering 1,400 additional pallet positions. The facility features a fully automated cargo storage system and comprises two temperature environments (+2° to +8° and +16° to +22° degrees Celsius) as well temperature-controlled anterooms and docks. Approximately 25 per cent of RIOgaleão Cargo’s revenues are

related to temperature-controlled pharma freight and it is Brazil’s main hub for government vaccination initiatives. RIOgaleão Cargo director, Patrick Fehring says: “Airfreight provides the pharmaceutical industry with the speed and efficiency high value and temperature sensitive products require. “Our CEIV Pharma certification demonstrates to our customers we operate to the highest international standards and it gives us a strong competitive advantage over other airports in the region. “Together with our airport and airline partners we can now offer our pharmaceutical customers a CEIV Pharma certified trade lane, giving them peace of mind from origin to destination.” IATA’s director in Brazil, Carlos Ebner adds: “Air transport, nowadays, requires special capabilities for the handling of pharmaceuticals. CEIV Pharma is a program that seeks to implement international standards of supply chain management, addressing chain challenges, including the latest achievements in the transportation of pharmaceuticals. ‘The program is proof that the air transport industry is truly committed to its challenges and we are very proud of RIOgaleão’s CEIV Pharma certification.”

QEP accreditation for Etihad

tihad Cargo has received Qualified Envirotainer Providers (QEP) accreditation from Envirotainer at its Abu Dhabi hub and five other stations across its network. It is accredited at Abu Dhabi International Airport, Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai, New York John F. Kennedy International Airport, Manchester Airport, Melbourne International Airport and Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport. Etihad’s Temp Check premium product is dedicated to handling pharmaceuticals and life science products and is available at more than 70 certified locations and is pursuing QEP accreditation at all Temp Check locations. Etihad Cargo senior vice president, David Kerr (pictured) says: “Envirotainer’s QEP Accreditation is proof of our reliability within the temperature-controlled freight industry, and the result of hard work and dedication to our customers.”

va-Q-tec supplying Swiss Post

PHARMACEUTICAL packaging firm va-Q-tec started supplying Swiss Post from this month with a fleet of multiuse thermal boxes. They will be used for the nationwide temperaturecontrolled distribution of pharma products initially in the controlled room temperature (+15°C to +25°C) temperature range. Swiss Post has selected an advanced va-Q-tec thermobox, which is being introduced by va-Q-tec in Germany for shipments of pharma products to pharmacies. In the first stage, va-Q-tec will supply a fleet of multiuse boxes to Swiss Post. Thereafter, va-Q-tec will provide services for preconditioning, processing and dispatching of boxes in Switzerland.

Pharma initiative website launched THE TEAM-UP pharma-logistics initiative has gone live with a new website www.team-up.global as it seeks to provide the business case for a more integrated supply chain. Launched in October, the initiative has been founded with the aim to improve corporate efficiencies, better overall sector performance and enhanced patient/user safety. It was announced at the International Air Transport Association AirPharma Conference in Brussels on 12 October and is modelled around supply chain models from other sectors. The TEAM-UP website sets out the proposition from both a logistics-supplier and a pharma-shipper perspective. A member’s only section is now being worked on to provide participating companies with exclusive access to a wide range of TEAM-UP resources and other services.

ACW 16 JANUARY 2017

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ACW 16 JANUARY 2017