Category Archives: International

Scan Global Logistics (SGL) has signed an agreement to acquire New Zealand Freight Forwarder Orbis Global Logistics Limited. Orbis will become the newest member of the SGL family on 5 October. SGL and Orbis are said to share an identical customer-centric business model rooted in providing entrepreneurial transport and logistics solutions to a diverse portfolio of customers. By this acquisition, SGL will significantly strengthen its position in the Pacific region, targeting significant growth in the coming years. Director of Orbis, Troy Hageman, explains how the acquisition will provide an even better value proposition for the customers, “The SGL acquisition of Orbis represents the next chapter in our dynamic growth in the NZ market. SGL is the perfect fit for us on a cultural level. It also gives us the ability to utilize their extensive network and infrastructure to expand within the Pacific Region and beyond, to the benefit of our customers and staff alike. The Orbis Team and Directors look forward to our next chapter with SGL, remaining focussed on providing our customers with the service and care that they are accustomed to, and with the additional capability that SGL brings.”

BBAM Limited Partnership (BBAM) and Lufthansa Cargo sign an agreement to lease two Airbus A321 passenger-to-freighter (P2F) aircraft on long-term leases. The Airbus A321P2F aircraft will be leased to Lufthansa Cargo on long-term leases from BBAM. In July this year, Lufthansa Cargo had announced that the company will offer its customers additional capacity in Europe from the beginning of 2022 by permanently converting Airbus 321 passenger aircraft into freighters. This new agreement is the first step towards its commitment. The A321P2F will offer customers in the eCommerce segment fast intra-European connections. With this the company is meeting their customers’ growing demand for same-day solutions and further strengthening its dense network of global connections as well as its product offering.

Logistics Capital Partners (LCP) announced the development of a logistics facility of more than 30,000 sqm, divided in two units of the same size, after the announcement of its first Belgian acquisition in Nivelles. The warehouse, which has an internal free height of 12m 20 and 40 docks (1 per 750m²), and is built according to the latest sustainable norms. Each unit will have its own office, social rooms, and mezzanine. The site will have 178 car parking spots, as well as bike sheds and an outdoor area. The project has already found its first tenant with Medi-Market. The upcoming pharmaceutical company needs more space for its logistics and will move into the new, larger building in Nivelles. The first unit of 15,000 sqm (with 1,500 sqm of offices) will be leased to Medi-Market as from October of this year. The second unit is still available for lease and will be ready for take-up by December 2020.

Emirates SkyCargo, the airfreight division of Emirates, plays a vital role in facilitating the movement of essential goods to and from Russia during the COVID-19 pandemic. From January to July 2021 – the air cargo carrier transported more than 8,000 tonnes of vital commodities to and from the country, including essential medical and food supplies, electronics and vaccines. The air cargo carrier continues to be a strong and reliable partner for Russian exporters, helping local businesses connects to international customers worldwide, by offering cargo capacity on its wide body aircraft fleet. The air cargo carrier currently operates one weekly flight to Domodedovo Moscow Airport (DME). Utilizing a wide-body Boeing 777F aircraft in addition to offering cargo capacity on its daily passenger flights. In the first half year of this year Emirates SkyCargo was officially ranked the second-most punctual airline in Sheremetyevo Airport’s ranking in the category “Cargo airlines (with number of cargo flights in SVO less than 500 in the first half of the year)”.

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) expands its cargo services with welcoming Hong Kong Air Cargo’s maiden Freighter aircraft, Hong Kong Air Cargo Carrier Limited (RH), to India. Hong Kong Air Cargo’s A330-200 Freighter holds overall capacity of 120 Metric tons. Through this haulage, CSMIA aided the export of 49 tons from Mumbai to Hong Kong. Currently, Hong Kong Air cargo’s freighter service is a scheduled airline operating once a week and will route its freighter flight to India from CSMIA. Headquartered in Hong Kong, China, the freighter airline has been operating in the blue skies of Hong Kong for over 3 years and provides reliable international scheduled and non-scheduled air freight transportation service for Hong Kong, Asia and beyond. Currently, Hong Kong Air Cargo operates a network of twelve destinations with its fleet of five A330-200F wide-body freighters.

Cargo volumes at the Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru (KIAB/ BLR Airport/ www.bengaluruairport.com) continued to see impressive growth, achieving its highest monthly throughput since commencement of operations. Under challenging circumstances due to the pandemic, BLR Airport has processed 37,319 Metric Tonnes (MT) of cargo in August —the highest ever since the Airport commenced operations in 2008. International cargo (both imports and exports) continued to be growth drivers, accounting for 24,304 MT, also the highest ever. Of the total international cargo, exports also achieved a significant record, an all-time high throughput of 15,224 MT. BLR Airport is the third busiest airport in India and has the highest cargo processing capacity. This has resulted in a 41% market share (industry estimates) in South India, making BLR Airport the preferred gateway for air cargo for shippers from the southern states of India. Key factors that have led to this transformation include, a conducive geographic location with easy access to manufacturing hubs in South India, adequate airline capacities to service key sectors across the globe and world-class cargo infrastructure, operated by Air India SATS and Menzies Aviation Bobba, Bangalore.

FedEx Express launches FedEx International Connect Plus (FICP), a new FedEx Express International, day-definite, e-commerce shipping service. This is said to combine competitive speed with attractive prices, in the Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa (AMEA) region. FICP further enhances FedEx e-commerce capabilities as businesses are increasingly looking for more diversified, cost-effective solutions to meet consumers’ ever-changing needs. Shipping costs and delivery options are two of the most significant drivers of cart abandonment – about 40 percent of consumers won’t complete checkout if the delivery costs are too high. Another 10 percent will abandon their cart if a package cannot be delivered on time or flexible delivery options are not available. With FICP, e-tailers across ten markets including Australia, Hong Kong, India, Japan, mainland China, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand are now empowered to provide their customers with an international shipping solution with prices that offer value-for-money, while ensuring shipments will be delivered within 1 to 5 business days within AMEA.

BlueBoxSystems GmbH announces the launch of BlueBoxAir with an aim for worldwide unique system to retrieve up-to-the-minute data from over 130 airlines and more than 1,600 airports. This allows not only the answer to the question where a specific shipment is exactly at this moment, but also if it is delayed, why and where the delay has occurred. BlueBoxAir offers much more information: ATA/ETA, Chargeable weight, Delay, Airline, Aircraft type, Henning Flaspöler BlueBox: Paket#2-Content Osnabrück, 02.04.2021 Transshipment Port, Split Shipment are just a few examples of information you get per shipment. Additionally, one can create detailed reports based on all data: Get an up-to-the-minute overview of chargeable weight, performance of the respective airlines and/or tradelanes, best in class. The perfect basis to not only optimize your supply chains, but to establish the best supply chains.

Air Transport Services Group, Inc. subsidiary PEMCO Conversions, global leader in narrow-body passenger-to-freighter aircraft conversions, has delivered a second Passenger-to-FlexCombi converted aircraft to Bahrain-based Chisholm Enterprises, an internationally recognized provider of tailored aviation and business solutions in the Middle East. Chisholm subsidiary Texel Air, a non-scheduled cargo airline, will operate the Boeing 737-700FC (FlexCombi) from Bahrain International Airport. “We have shared a very successful history with PEMCO Conversions,” said John Chisholm, chairman and owner of Chisholm Enterprises, “having received and deployed the first B737-700 FlexCombi in August 2020, as well as four previous B737-300 converted freighters.” The PEMCO B737-700FC currently offers three configurations: a 24-seat cabin plus a 2,640-cubic-foot cargo hold for up to 30,000 pounds of payload in six pallet positions; a 12-seat cabin plus a 3,005-cubic-foot cargo hold for up to 35,000 pounds of payload in seven pallet positions; or full-freighter mode consisting of a 3,370-cubic-foot cargo hold for up to 40,000 pounds of payload in eight pallet positions. The available positions will accommodate 88-inch by 125-inch or 88-inch by 108-inch pallets, with the eighth position accommodating a slightly reduced height pallet in full cargo mode.

France based GEODIS, a worldwide logistics company, upgrades its AirDirect services between Europe, the United States and Asia with its own leased A330-300 full freighter aircraft. Operating between Amsterdam, London, Chicago and Hong Kong, and proudly flying under the GEODIS brand, the aircraft will also serve the China – Europe route for the peak season. The first flight will take off in September. Marie-Christine Lombard, GEODIS’ CEO, commented, “With the continued strain on airfreight capacity, we wish to ensure a more sustainable supply of air cargo space for our clients and are therefore investing in this, our own, first dedicated freighter. Our aim is to constantly find dependable solutions to secure our clients’ supply chains, which are critical to their business growth.” The Freighter, which GEODIS is leasing for several years, will be integrated into the GEODIS AirDirect global schedule. Initially, it will fly three times per week between Amsterdam/London and Chicago (AMS/ STN–ORD) and will additionally be deployed on weekly rotations connecting Amsterdam and Hong Kong (AMS–HKG).