APM Terminals Pipavav has secured a new weekly service, CIX (China India Express) connecting India to the Far East Asia, South-East Asia, Latin America, Oceania Countries and US West Coast. The weekly service is launched jointly by WAN HAI Hapag Lloyd and EVERGREEN Lines. The first vessel M.V.WAN HAI 360 V-001E of the service called at the port Pipavav. The new service connects port Pipavav to – Nhava Sheva – Port Kelang – Singapore – Kaohsiung – HONG KONG- SHEKOU. The service will transport a range of commodities like clay, ceramic tiles, handicrafts, crated stone, marble, agri commodities, dehydrated foods, potatoes, onions, rice, brass items, white goods, seafood, among others. The Service is one of the fastest services to and from Asia to West Coast India with a transit time of 9 days from Pipavav to Port Klang, 17 days to Kaohsiung and 20 days from Sekou / Hong Kong. Commenting on commencement of the new service, Girish Aggarwal, MD, APM Terminals Pipavav said, “”We are delighted to receive the first vessel of the CIX service at our port. The well-established and highly quality service provides weekly connectivity to the trade and opportunity to our customers in north-west of India to trade with the global markets. The new service reinforces our commitment to customers by enhancing the port’s connectivity to the global markets thereby supporting the growth of the region.”

The contract logistics arm of Jeena & Company has raised its warehousing capacity with the inauguration of its largest and strategically significant new warehouse in Bhiwandi, Mumbai. This facility has an area of over 1.10 Lac square feet, has a clear centre height of 50 feet and a 30 feet shoulder height. Making this stand-out is it’s infrastructure design with G+7 and G+6 heavy duty pallet racking system and the G+7 multi-tier shelving system. The warehouse is equipped with all types of necessary amenities such as forklifts, stackers, and hand pallet trolleys. The flexible design of the warehouse will allow optimized storage space and empower sellers to boost their business. This warehouse is easily accessible from major bus stops, railway stations, Nhava Sheva port and the airport. Businesses in Pharma, FMCG, apparel, e-commerce, personal care sectors will be benefitted from Jeena’s new facility. Sam Katgara, Partner, Jeena & Company said, “We are pleased to introduce our latest warehouse. This is another concrete step towards our commitment to providing high end-storage facility for all 3PL and warehousing needs supported by technology. With our investment and focus on technology, we are all set to offer world-class services at competitive pricing. The highlight of this warehouse is the ability to customize on-site storage capabilities as per the requirements of our clients and their business necessities.”

Boeing and Nordic Aviation Capital (NAC) have recently signed a contract for one 737-800 Boeing Converted Freighter (BCF). The conversion slot for the 737-800BCF is for a 2026 induction. NAC is increasing its footprint in the 737-800 market and this is NACs first converted freighter order with Boeing, as per a recent company release. As a leading global aerospace company, Boeing develops, manufactures, and services commercial airplanes, defense products, and space systems for customers in more than 150 countries. As a top U.S. exporter, the company leverages the talents of a global supplier base to advance economic opportunity, sustainability, and community impact. Boeing’s diverse team is committed to innovating for the future, leading with sustainability, and cultivating a culture based on the company’s core values of safety, quality, and integrity

Within domestic air cargo, e-commerce has taken a big leap and is continuing to expand from the tier 1 cities into tier 2 and tier 3 cities,” says Videh Kumar Jaipuriar, CEO, Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL). Transshipment of air cargo through Indian Airports is another big opportunity, with India being strategically located geographically to serve as a hub for the global trade market, connecting the fast-growing economies of Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Middle East, he adds. Delhi Airport has taken the lead in transshipment by developing a dedicated facility for handling such cargo, and transshipping cargo from Bangladeshi to other countries. The Government of India plans to add 33 new domestic cargo terminals by 2024-2025. Indian carriers are increasing air cargo capacity, and adding new aircraft, whereby increasing belly capacity significant.

Nordic airline Widerøe has added its cargo capacity to online booking portal WebCargo. The airline is the largest regional carrier operating in the Nordic countries and has a fleet of more than 40 Bombardier Dash 8 aircraft and three Embraer E190-E2 aircraft. It serves more than 40 domestic and international destinations with its turboprop aircraft. Widerøe said that WebCargo’s CO2 emissions calculator was important an important factor in its decision as it has a focus on emissions reduction. “We are very happy to finally be able to offer our capacity on the WebCargo-platform. The CO2-emissions calculation done by the platform is something that we in Widerøe welcomes, it enables the customers not only to take an active choice when it comes down to the price, but also the impact on the environment,” said Thomas Lone, cargo manager at Widerøe. WebCargo said that the calculator helps its freight forwarder users make an informed decision on which flight to select based on emissions. Meanwhile, booking portals in general help improve aircraft utilisation which can help improve environmental performance.

Ground handler Swissport International has opened a new temperature-controlled facility at Dublin Airport to cater to Ireland’s position as a major pharma hub. The new dedicated pharma facility, which was built in partnership with Celtic Cooling, measures 400 sq m, can hold up to 200 palettes and is the first of its size at Dublin Airport. The warehouse is operated at a temperature of between 15-25 degrees Celsius but also offers a unit that can be operated from two to eight degrees Celsius. Swissport UK and Ireland chief executive Karen Cox said: “We are delighted to open this brand-new facility which will play a vital role in the supply chain of pharmaceutical goods in Ireland. “Our customers from the pharmaceutical industry can now also rely on our professional services for temperature-controlled freight at Dublin Airport, supporting them with high-quality handling services along the cool chain.” Swissport said the facility “significantly adds handling capacity for major pharmaceutical suppliers in the region and supports Ireland’s position as one of the largest net exporters of medicinal and pharmaceutical products within the European Union”.

The International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations (FIATA) President, Dr. Ivan Petrov and Federation of Freight Forwarders’ Associations in India (FFFAI) Chairman, Shankar Shinde met recently in Mumbai to strengthen logistics collaboration. FFFAI Chairman and other Office Bearers along with EC Members & Board of Advisors discussed various trade related aspects including government policy matters, infrastructure, IT & digitization, skill development, etc for the benefit of the CB & Freight Forwarding community in India. Both the leaders emphasised on the long-standing relationship between the two Federations and initiatives for future cooperation pertaining to the members’ benefits. Dr. Petrov urged for more participation of FFFAI leadership & Members in the multifarious Committees of FIATA and acknowledged the contribution of FFFAI representatives on FIATA committees stating that: FIATA is composed of 109 Association Members Over 6,000 Individual Members. Overall representing a multimodal industry of 40,000 freight forwarding and logistics firms. FIATA advocates for trade facilitation and actively contributes to the functioning of the supply chain through close collaboration with relevant stakeholders. Dr. Petrov also emphasized the requirements of the individual companies i.e. the industry stakeholders from the International Federation. According to him, there is a need for an awareness programme to highlight the benefits of individual members/companies who are very important components of FIATA. According to the FIATA President, geopolitical challenges have made it impossible in some global regions to rely on one mode of transport. Seamless integration of different transport modes necessary to provide efficient and sustainable transport solutions.In his opinion, international cooperation, trade agreements and infrastructure development can facilitate connectivity between all transport modes Further stating that that regulatory frameworks, customs procedures and infrastructure gaps hinder smooth flow of goods.

Etihad Cargo reviews the reciprocal block space agreement with SF Airlines announced earlier this year to explore opportunities and expand it further based on Abu Dhabi’s strategic location. Etihad Airways and SF Airlines entered into an expanded Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to cement their commitment to strengthening ties and further cooperating to increase cargo capacity between China and the rest of the world via Etihad Cargo’s hub in Abu Dhabi. In April 2023, Etihad Cargo and SF Airlines signed a reciprocal capacity agreement to connect their respective networks. The new partnership saw the launch of two weekly freighter services between Abu Dhabi Airport and Wuhan Tianhe International Airport in the Hubei Province of China and added a fourth Chinese gateway destination to Etihad Cargo’s expanding global network. The new flights have given Etihad Cargo’s partners and customers greater accessibility to 25 domestic Chinese destinations, including Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Chengdu and Nanjing. SF Airlines, via the agreement, has expanded its Middle Eastern footprint and benefits from Etihad Cargo’s global network for its express product, supporting the airline’s vision of growing its parcel delivery capabilities around the world. The new MoU, signed on 16 June 2023, expands the cooperation between the two airlines and strengthens their commitment to exploring additional opportunities to achieve mutual growth and expand their respective networks via the Abu Dhabi and Wuhan mega-hubs. Future plans include expanding cooperated flights to Ezhou Huahu Airport, China’s first cargo-focused airport. This move would make Etihad Airways the first international airline other than SF Airlines to operate flights to the airport.

Maersk announced an eCommerce fulfilment solution in India with which all elements of an eCommerce fulfilment solution will be available through a single window at a flat rate of Rs 80 per order. This solution has primarily been targeted at a typical small or medium eCommerce business in India that relies on multiple logistics partners for different activities. With this solution, Maersk is taking the complexities out of its customers’ supply chains by providing single-window access to all required solutions, such as storage in warehouses, last-mile deliveries and executing return orders, all while providing end-to-end visibility at unified pricing,” said Maersk, in a release.

Boeing announced the launch of SAF Dashboard, a tool that tracks expected sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) capacity over the next decade. “Based on data collected by BloombergNEF, the Dashboard aggregates total SAF capacity announcements by suppliers on a global scale and can filter anticipated supply by production pathway, location and other metrics. The tool is accessible on Boeing’s new Sustainable Aerospace Together hub,” says an official release. Boeing released the tool at the 2023 Paris Air Show to support discussion and action among industry stakeholders regarding the existing SAF footprint as well as future production levels required to meet the commercial aviation industry’s goal of net-zero emissions by 2050, the release said.