GLOBAL A
I
R
C
A
R
G
O
W
E
E
K
MANAGEMENT
A
I
R
C
A
R
G
O
W
E
E
K
WORLD AIRPORTS Sponsored.COM by FREIGHTERS.COM
FREIGH
FR
The weekly newspaper for air cargo professionals Volume: 20
Issue: 1
9 January 2017
Peak season hailed as the ‘best in years’
ir cargo had its “best peak season in years” and is shaping up to be one of the better ones in a long time, according to WorldACD. In its report for November, the market analyst says the USD-yield has gone up with a much larger percentage than in previous years, while the month showed an acceleration in year-over-year (YOY) volume growth for the fourth month in a row. WorldACD says worldwide, the USD-yield improved in November by 3.9 per cent over the previous month, while volumes increased by 6.9 per cent YOY, explaining: “Deviating from the trend in earlier months, the YOY growth in direct ton kilometers (DTK’s) was only slightly
higher this time (7.1 per cent), indicating a smaller shift towards longer haul traffic than in previous months.” One of the influencing factors the market analyst says was the boom in the relative shorthaul intra-Asia traffic in November (+15 per cent YOY) while exports from China and Hong Kong played a major role. In the main markets from Asia Pacific, between August and November the USD-yield to North America rose by 25 per cent, and to Europe by 30 per cent. WorldACD says air cargo has not seen such seasonal yield improvements since 2009 with volume increases since the summer were “spectacular” in markets from Hong Kong (+30 per cent) and Shanghai (+17 per cent), also higher
than in previous years. The market analyst adds revenue growth was “realised from a low basis”, but this year’s peak season can be called “a success”. Asia Pacific itself grew strongly in November with freight tonne kilometres (FTK) up 5.3 per cent helped by strong exports, according to the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA). In November FTKs rose by 5.3 per cent to 6.1 billion due to strong export orders, while capacity in available FTKs (AFTK) was up 3.2 per cent to 9.1 billion. Another boost was load factors across the region increasing in the month by 1.4 percentage points to 66.9 per cent. Cargo volumes rose 1.2 per cent to 60.1 billion FTKs during the first 11 months of 2016 while AFTKs were up 3.3 per cent to 96.7 billion, pushing the load factor down 1.3 percentage points to 62.2 per cent. AAPA director general, Andrew Herdman says: “The region’s carriers have seen a modest but progressive recovery in international air cargo demand this year, with volume growth of 1.2 per cent for the first 11 months of 2016. Air cargo markets picked up modestly during the course of the year, but rates remain highly competitive, reflecting soft global trade conditions.”
The Air Cargo Week World Air Cargo Awards 2017 will be held on Wednesday, 10 May at The Westin Grand Hotel in Munich. Voting will open on Monday, 9 January for the accolades, which are acclaimed in the air cargo community as the ‘Oscars’ of the industry as excellence is celebrated at a glittering gala event in Germany. The Air Cargo Week World Air Cargo Awards 2017 will be presented in 10 categories: • Airfreight Forwarder of the Year • Air Cargo Handling Agent of the Year • Air Cargo Charter Broker of the Year • Airport of the Year • Air Cargo General Sales Agent of the Year • Air Cargo Industry Customer Care Award • Air Cargo Industry Achievement Award • Information Technology for the Air Cargo Industry Award • Air Cargo Industry Marketing & Promotional Campaign Award
• Cargo Airline of the Year All votes must be cast by visiting www.worldaircargoawards.com – the official website for the Air Cargo Week World Air Cargo Awards 2017. For details on sponsorship opportu-
nities, or ticket reservations for the gala night, email sales@azurainternational.com or call +44 (0)1737 645777. Last year the awards were held in Shanghai, China. Delighted winners are pictured above after receiving their gongs.
A
Voting opens for ACW World Air Cargo Awards 2017
AMERICAS ROUTE EXPANSION FOR QATAR AIRWAYS ACS NAMES MD FOR FRANCE OFFICE THE FAR EAST DRIVES LUXAIR CARGO TONNAGE BATTEN JOINS CARGO IQ BOARD
4
4
5
5
PEMCO acquired by ATSG subsidiary AIR Transport Services Group (ATSG) subsidiary, Airborne Maintenance and Engineering Services (AMES) has acquired PEMCO World Air Services. The companies say acquiring the heavy maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) and passenger-to-freighter conversion provider will offer strategic benefits including combining operational strengthens, expanded capabilities and cost savings. ATSG president and chief executive officer, Joe Hete says the deal will combine PEMCO’s conversion and MRO sales of Airbus and Boeing products with AMES’ existing offerings. He says: “Based on PEMCO’s existing domestic and international scale, this acquisition will expand access to maintenance service for customers of ATSG’s expanding fleet of Boeing 767 cargo aircraft. “It is consistent with our goal to diversify ATSG’s revenue and earnings, for an investment in the same price range as our planned and completed stakes in cargo airlines in China and Europe.” Hete adds that based on ATSG’s current estimates and outlook, the PEMCO acquisition is expected to be accretive to ATSG’s earnings starting in 2017.
aircargoweek.com
NEWSWEEK
Ethiopian’s new terminal to open in April
E
thiopian Airlines’ new cargo terminal at Addis Ababa International Airport is 82 per cent completed and set to be operational in April this year. The African carrier says the state-of-the-art facility will have an annual storage for both dry and perishable goods of 1.2 million tonnes and a capacity to handle eight Boeing 747800 freighters at a time. Construction of the first phase only will cost approximately $150 million and upon completion, Ethiopian says, adding the uplifting capability will be equivalent to the cargo terminals at Amsterdam Schiphol, Singapore Changi or Hong Kong. Recapping the airline’s performance in 2016, Group chief executive officer, Tewolde GebreMariam says 2016 has been an “exceptionally challenging year for the African aviation industry“ as commodity exporting countries in general and oil exporting African countries in particular have been hit hard by the global decline of commodity prices. But he adds Ethiopian has grown to new heights and introduced Africa’s first Ethiopian Airbus A350, and spread its wings to more countries on five continents. Ethiopian increased its fleet by eight aircraft in 2016 and has
closed the year with 82 aircraft in service. In 2016 the carrier launched new international flights to the Comoros Islands, Windhoek, and Newark and domestic routes to Hawassa, Kebridahar and Dembidolo. Ethiopian Airlines will also start a five-weekly direct bellyhold service from Addis to Singapore Changi Airport using a Boeing 787 from June this year.
MIA targets UK and Ireland MIAMI-DADE Aviation Department (MDAD) director Emilio T. González has hosted meetings with representatives from Ireland and the UK to strengthen ties with two of Miami International Airport’s (MIA) top trade partners. Among discussions were potential growth opportunities for cargo traffic between the two regions. González says: “The UK continues to be one of MIA’s most valued hub markets internationally, considering its connections to strategic points throughout Europe and beyond, and we look forward to expanding on these air service routes in 2017.” Ireland has been MIA’s top importer of pharma products over the last two years, shipping more than $132 million worth of materials in 2015 and more than $515 million in 2014. The UK ranks 11th in pharma import value among all MIA trade partners, with more than $4 million in shipments in both 2015 and 2014. The total value of pharma products transported through MIA has increased by 62 per cent since 2010 to nearly $3 billion in 2015. MIA partnered with Brussels Airport in 2016 to found Pharma.aero, the world’s first international pharma air hub association. MIA will soon welcome a belly service from Aer Lingus, which begins three weekly flights between Dublin and Miami on 1 September 2017 - served by an Airbus A330-200.
Turkish names chief cargo officer
TURKISH Airlines has appointed Turhan Özen as its new chief cargo officer – he joined the carrier in December 2016. He started his career in 1991 at IVECO, where he worked in sales, marketing, and logistics management positions before moving on in 2000 to TNT Logistics, where he moved up to operations director. Özen took on the same key role at freight forwarder CEVA Logistics in 2007, and he then became deputy managing director of commercial at CEVA in 2011. Between 2013 and 2015, he was CEVA’s Balkans-Middle East and Africa region business development and sales vice president. Özen then took on the role of CEVA’s global health sector president and was Middle East and North Africa region managing director for CEVA since the start of 2016 – his last position before joining Turkish.
2
ACW 9 JANUARY 2017
aircargoweek.com
1st converted CRJ200 SF delivered
B
ombardier has delivered the first converted CRJ200 Special Freighter to launch customer - Gulf & Caribbean Cargo - part of IFL Group. The passenger-to-freighter conversion was carried out by Miami-based Aeronautical Engineers (AEI), and the aircraft includes a 94 x 77 inch cargo door and up to 6.7 tonnes of cargo capacity. Bombardier Commercial Aircraft vice president asset management, David Speirs says: “CRJ100 and 200 jets are the assets upon which regional airlines have built their existence, however they are gradually being replaced in favour of larger aircraft and are
finding homes in secondary markets with modifications such as AEI’s freighter conversion.” AEI vice president sales and marketing, Robert Convey says: “To date, we have received commitments for 45 aircraft conversions from a variety of operators. “We fully expect to convert over 100 aircraft over the life of the program.” IFL Group president, Michael Church explains: “The reliability of the CRJ aircraft have made their mark in the highly-competitive and fast-paced world of regional airline operations and we’re confident that will continue in our air freight business.”
NEWS WEEK WORLDNEWS ANTONOV Airlines – operator of the Antonov AN124, AN-225 and AN-22 aircraft – has appointed Dreamlifts Limited as its general sales agent, replacing Ruslan International. Dreamlifts is based at Antonov’s new offices at Stansted Airport and the team includes Paul Furlonger, who continues his long association with Antonov, having spent the past 26 years working with the carrier’s world-famous aircraft. DUBAI International Airport handled 234,743 tonnes of cargo during November 2016, a year-onyear growth of 7.5 per cent compared to 218,323 tonnes recorded during the same month in 2015. Operator Dubai Airports says the year-to-date volumes after 11 months of 2016 reached 2,362,332 tonnes - compared to 2,287,167 tonnes handled during the same period in 2015, an increase of 3.3 per cent. Most of the cargo is bellyhold as many freighters were moved to Dubai World Central.
IAG donates blankets to Kenya
IAG Cargo has donated four pallets of blankets and sleeping bags to help keep Kenyan school children in Nairobi warm this winter. Working with humanitarian organisation The Order of Malta, and Blankets4Africa, which works with charities to distribute blankets to those in need, IAG Cargo collected over 400 cabin blankets and 150 crew sleeping bags. IAG Cargo chief executive officer, Drew Crawley says: “We understand the difference these blankets can make during the cold months and knowing that they will be put to good use to those who need them most really resonates with our staff.” “We have reached out to both our airline and trucking partners to make this shipment possible and are extremely thankful for all of the support given.” Sister Maria Rosa at Amani na Wema Children’s Home adds: “We express our immense gratitude for your support to our orphanage through you donation of blankets. We depend on donations such as these, as all our children have lost their parents and depend on support received by donors.”
New president at ABX Air
ABX Air’s president John Starkovich is to retire and will be replaced by David Soaper from 1 February 2017 with the appointment coming not long after 250 of the carrier’s pilots went on strike on 22 November. Starkovich joined ABX Air, a subsidiary of Air Transport Services Group (ATSG) in 1998 before holding a variety of roles in senior management, including chief labor counsel, and vice president of human resources and corporate services, before becoming president in March 2012. Soaper most recently held the position of president and chief operating officer at Connecticut-based Southern Air and before that was senior vice president of aircraft operations at Comair. ATSG president and chief executive officer, Joe Hete says: “John has brought immense value to this company through a diligent work ethic and prudent leadership style that set the standard among his peers. We’re grateful for the role he played in ensuring the safe and reliable operation of the airline during his tenure here, and we wish him the very best in the future.” Hete adds: “I am pleased to appoint Dave to lead ABX Air. I’m confident the airline will benefit from his substantial industry experience and steady guidance going forward.”
aircargoweek.com
ACW 9 JANUARY 2017
3
NEWSWEEK
Americas route expansion for Qatar Airways Cargo
Q
atar Airways Cargo has launched freighter operations to four new destinations in the Americas starting from 2 February 2017. The Boeing 777 Freighter will fly twice a week to Buenos Aires, Sao Paulo, Quito (subject to government approval) and to Miami in the US. The twice weekly freighters will depart from Doha via Luxembourg Airport, the cargo carrier’s European hub, with stops at Sao Paulo in Brazil, Buenos Aires in Argentina and Quito in Ecuador. On the return leg, the freighter will stop in Miami, Florida and
Luxembourg before arriving in Doha. The carrier says these new freighter services aim to meet the growing demand for import and export trade in the region and supplement bellyhold capacity on daily flights to Sao Paulo, Buenos Aires and Miami. Qatar Airways’ chief officer cargo, Ulrich Ogiermann (pictured) says: “We are excited to start the year 2017 with the launch of four new freighter destinations. These new destinations will connect the burgeoning import and export markets in the Americas region with the rest of the world. “Through our expertise in specialised solutions, namely QR Pharma for pharmaceuticals and QR Fresh for perishables, we are able to offer our customers a seamless and an unbroken cool chain for their temperature-sensitive products via our state-of-the-art fully automated hub in Doha.”
The launch of this new freighter route entails great business and network growth for Qatar Airways Cargo - as it brings its total freighter destinations in the Americas to 12 while offering belly services to 13 cities on the continent. Major commodities out of Sao Paulo, Bueno Aires and Quito are fresh flowers, perishables and pharmaceuticals, whilst imports into South America include a wide variety of products ranging from medicines, automotive, chemical products to high-tech commodities and equip-
ment for the oil and gas industry. Miami will serve as the distribution hub of airfreight payloads to and from the Latin American and Caribbean regions. The introduction of these new freighter services will also provide a huge impetus to the perishables and pharmaceutical exports out of these growing and key markets. The world’s third largest cargo carrier recently took delivery of its 11th 777F taking its total freighters in service to 21.
HKIA sets new monthly tonnage record HONG Kong International Airport (HKIA) saw strong growth in cargo throughput in November - a monthly record for volumes. During the month, cargo rose 7.1 per cent year-on-year (YOY) to 436,000 tonnes. November is the traditional peak period for air cargo. Imports, exports and transshipments all grew by seven per cent compared to the same month last year.
Among the key trading regions, traffic to / from Southeast Asia and Europe increased most significantly during the month. In the first eleven months of 2016, HKIA’s cargo throughput grew 2.4 per cent from the same period in 2015 to 4.1 million tonnes. On a rolling 12-month basis, HKIA handled 4.48 million tonnes of cargo, a YOY increase of 2.3 per cent.
ACS names new MD for France office
FRANCOIS-XAVIER Camus (pictured) has been chosen as Air Charter Service’s managing director of its French office, overseeing all three business divisions. Camus has worked at ACS for seven
4
ACW 9 JANUARY 2017
aircargoweek.com
years, coming in as head of the commercial jets team. Camus says he is excited by the challenge, commenting: “The office enjoys an excellent reputation and the team that surrounds me demonstrates every day its passion and enthusiasm. The development potential is strong and I will ensure that the personalised service and expertise remain the key elements that make the success of the ACS Group.” ACS Group chief executive officer, Justin Bowman says: “During his time at ACS François-Xavier has overseen significant growth of his team, with it becoming one of the largest departments across our 20 offices. François-Xavier has huge experience in the industry and has been with the Paris office since its infancy.”
EUROPEAN CARGO HANDLERS
The Far East drives Luxair Cargo tonnage in 2016
F
reighter rotations were up 9.7 per cent to 5,400 turnarounds in 2016 for Luxair Cargo at Luxembourg Airport (LUX), which helped drive tonnage. Executive vice president, Laurent Jossart (pictured) says 821,000 tonnes were handled last year, an uplift of 8.2 per cent compared to 2015, with the third quarter up eight per cent and last quarter up 16 per cent. He notes the region which developed best into and out of LUX was again the Far East, partly due to the dual-hub strategy of Cargolux, but also because it remains the most important market for airfreight. The volumes between LUX and China increased in 2016 by 13 per cent. However, there were several big challenges, Jossart says: “First the short term announcement of Qatar Airways to triple their presence here in LUX and the further expansion of the fleet at our biggest customer Cargolux, now operating 26 Boeing 747s. “We hired more than 150 staff in about a three months period and had to train them before starting their new job in the operation. Our aim was to absorb the additional volume without penalising our performance.” Luxair he says added one complete build-up lane including immersible ULD build- up/break down positions and constructed a new fast lane truck-loading terminal for ULDs. Jossart explains outsized business increased in parallel to the overall tonnage, so it extended the dedicated handling area and started building an additional 3,000 square metre shelter for the intermediate storage of big and heavy shipments. He adds: “Then of course the unforeseeable end of year season, which exceeded the already optimistic forecasts by far. The last two months have brought us record volumes with December being +27 per cent compared to the same month in 2015. “In order to cope with those volumes, we cancelled a high number of leave days to assure a maximum of presence
from our experienced staff.” But what are the plans for 2017? Jossart says its main project will be replacing its current cargo management system (CMS) with a new one, which will implicate process optimisations in its dispatch as well as in the warehouse. “In a first phase, all activities from truck to build-up and storage inside of our stacker system (and vice versa) will be managed though the new CMS and in a second phase, the stacker system
as well as the ramp handling activity will follow. Automated and paperless environment will help to reduce the workload of our staff by streamlining processes. Real-time data will improve the steering of the operation of which all our customers will finally benefit from,” Jossart observes. He explains investments will include expansion of the ramp handling area and the addition of four widebody aircraft parking positions with construction starting in 2017 and being finalised in 2018 - increasing handling capacity by 50 per cent. Jossart says: “Being now close to the capacity of the Cargocenter, which is estimated at about 900,000 tonnes per year, the further expansion of the Cargocenter will then has to be analysed as well. That step will have to be carefully analysed on how the concept of such an extension should look like and what latest technology will have to be incorporated to assure maximum automatisation.” Jossart expects growth to be moderate this year: “We do not consider the end-of-the-year-season 2016 as being the start of a new overall excessively upturn in the market, but more back to normal in terms of a seasonal pattern.”
Batten joins Cargo iQ board
WORLDWIDE Flight Services’ (WFS) interim chief executive officer (CEO) for Europe John Batten (pictured) has joined the board of Cargo iQ. Batten has 35 years’ experience in the air cargo industry, was previously an observer to the Cargo iQ board of 12 airline and freight forwarder representatives. Cargo iQ is a not-for-profit membership group supported by IATA with the mission of creating and implementing quality standards for the air cargo industry. He explains: “Cargo iQ has a vital role to play in continuing to drive improvements in the industry. It is an exciting time to be joining the board as we take next steps towards the launch of our Smart Data project, and new audit and certification scheme, and I am looking forward to working with the team for the roll out of these important developments.” Cargo iQ executive director, Ariaen Zimmerman says: “John’s knowledge and advice has already been invaluable as an observer. We are very pleased to be welcoming him to the Board as we develop.” More than 80 Cargo iQ members worldwide, including airlines, forwarders, ground handlers, IT companies, and airports collaborate to measure success and continuously improve the value of airfreight for customers. The IATA-interest group’s Smart Data project will allow members to generate customised reports to compare their performance to the industry and offers customised certification for members on shipment control, quality management, and compliance to its standards. This year will see the launch of its new audit and certification scheme.
aircargoweek.com
ACW 9 JANUARY 2017
5
CANADA
Edmonton developing itself as gateway to Asia
E
dmonton International Airport (EIA) is focusing on trade with Asia taking advantage of being home to the only freighter between mainland China and Canada. The airport says developing itself as the gateway to and from North America and China/Asia is not an accident, telling Air Cargo Week (ACW):
“EIA is home to the only freighter operation between mainland China and Canada, interline connections to/from all of Canada with Cargojet and Westjet Cargo combined with 5th freedom rights Air China Cargo maintains, EIA is a developing gateway to and from North America and China/Asia.” EIA says its advantages include sitting on the
third largest known oil reserves in the world, with three major oil refineries based within one hour of the airport, and a fourth due to open soon. Edmonton describes itself as the ‘hub of Alberta’s North America pipeline network’, saying: “We continue to expand pipeline infrastructure on and off airport to improve the service offering and cost to air carriers, all matched with our excellent positioning on the Trans Pac Polar routes.” EIA Cargo has registered its seventh consecutive year of growth helped by new services from Air China Cargo and Air France KLM Cargo, with a particularly good fourth quarter helped by the strengthening of the oil and gas sector. “Although the economic performance of the province is weak, Edmonton continues to be resilient and lead the province in most economic measures.” Though oil and gas has been strengthening, something new is the introduction of agrifood shipments, which had previously travelled by other modes or by road carriers to US airports. EIA says: “As the EIA Cargo network expands and continues to establish itself, increasingly shippers of all sectors are recognising the value of these carriers serving the prairies through the efficient gateway airport of EIA.” Pharmaceuticals and perishables have also been contributing to growth; with the former benefitting from a new 800,000 square foot R & D, processing and distribution facility of medical marijuana facilities on site, while the latter has been helped by Edmonton’s geographic position.
Edmonton’s catchment area includes British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, and EIA tells ACW: “In 2016 cherries from Washington State, swine from Manitoba and multiple perishables products, blueberries, honey are increasingly utilising the air cargo carriers at EIA.” The airport says it remains bullish for 2017 and to facilitate and attract new cargo for consolidation at EIA, it says: “we continue to aggressively build out our cargo village.” EIA has big plans for 2017, with Runway Developments due to complete construction of a 30,000 square foot multi-tenant groundside facility for freight forwarders and shippers by the summer, Aeroterm to complete construction of their 50,000 square foot airside facility about the same time and an 800,000 square foot pharma and e-commerce warehouse scheduled for the fourth quarter. Added to this, Rosenau Transport’s road carrier hub and 211,000 square foot warehousing facility is now operational improving services to/from EIA’s Western Canada catchment area. EIA says its biggest opportunity comes from its geographic position, its economic might and expanding air cargo network to the continued success of attracting business, trade and logistics investments. It says: “All of this of course aligned to our air carrier route offerings. Our partner air carriers have made significant investments into our market, it is our responsibility to invest wisely, even while ensuring we stay slightly ahead of their infrastructure requirements in order to maximise their success at EIA.”
Yangtze River operates charter flights to Halifax
HALIFAX International Airport Authority (HIAA) has welcomed another new freighter service, this time from Yangtze River Express Airlines. The first of five Boeing 747-400 Freighter charter flights left Halifax at 18.50h on 7 January transporting fresh Nova Scotia lobster for Chinese New Year. Over $15 million of Nova Scotia seafood has been shipped overseas this holiday season rising to $25 million by the end of January. HIAA vice president business development
6
ACW 9 JANUARY 2017
aircargoweek.com
& chief commercial officer, Bert van der Stege says: “We are excited to welcome Yangtze River Express to Halifax Stanfield, in time for them to export fresh Nova Scotia lobster for the upcoming busy Chinese festive season.” “Our investment in a new 17,000 square metre cargo pad is providing us with additional capacity, making Halifax Stanfield an even more attractive airport for cargo exports.” Yangtze River Express Airlines president, Jevey Zhang says: “Nova Scotia lobsters are in high demand in China. We’re happy to provide additional capacity between Halifax and China, ensuring fresh lobsters arrive here in the shortest possible time.” Yangtze River is just one of a number of airlines that transported seafood this season, along with Air Canada, CargoJet, Korean Air Cargo, Qatar Airways Cargo, CAL Cargo Airlines and FedEx.
TRADEFINDER Airlines
Airports
Cargo Handling
Turkey
Lithuania
United Kingdom
Freight Forwarders Iraq
Spain
Freight Forwarders Hong Kong
United Arab Emirates
USA
GSSA Wanted
Industry Events
aircargoweek.com
ACW 9 JANUARY 2017
7