According to the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) latest projections, cargo revenue is expected to account for $191 billion of industry revenue in 2022 – slightly down from the estimated $204 billion in 2021 but nearly double the $100 billion achieved in 2019. “Overall, the industry is expected to carry over 68 million tonnes of cargo in 2022, which is a record high. As the trading environment softens slightly, cargo yields are expected to fall 10.4 percent compared with 2021. That only partially reverses the yield increases of 52.5 per cent in 2020 and 24.2 per cent in 2021, IATA said in its latest report. “Air cargo stood out as a lifeline for vaccines, supply chains, and airline revenues throughout the Covid-19 crisis. It has grown to be an even more vital contributor to revenues,” said Willie Walsh, Director General, IATA.

To meet the 2024 deadline, Adani group-led Navi Mumbai International Airport Ltd has commenced construction work on terminal 1 and runway of greenfield Navi Mumbai Airport. Recently, the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) evicted all structures in the project area and handed over the cleared land to the airport’s concession, said a statement. The Navi Mumbai International Airport is coming up on 1,160 hectares of land. “Work on Terminal 1 and the runway started last week after the entire airport land was cleared of human habitation. There were 224 structures in existence when we took over the job in 2020, and now they have been cleared. Work is in full swing,” statement added.

Saudi Ports Authority and DP World have signed an agreement to build a logistics park at the Jeddah Islamic Port. The 30-year agreement with an investment value of more than SAR500m ($133.33m), aims to establish a logistics park which spans over 415,000 square metres, with an in-land container depot capacity of approximately 250,000 TEU and warehousing storage space of 100,000 square metres, said an official statement. Potential future expansions could increase the storage space to 200,000 square metres, the statement added. The port-centric logistics park is expected to boost Jeddah Islamic Port’s re-export activities, reducing the time and cost of logistics for both importers and exporters. It will also provide an integrated platform of services that will link port-operations with last-mile activities, providing temperature-controlled storage for cargo, in addition to its processing, labelling, fulfilment, consolidation and de-consolidation.

Turkish Airlines is considering joint ventures and initial public offerings (IPO) for its cargo business and regional carrier as it weighs up options to grow both internally and through deals, said the official statement. The airline also plans to participate in international bond markets, including issuing Eurobonds, to finance future investments and growth, the statement added. According to the reports, the company was looking at strategies for its subsidiaries Turkish Cargo and regional carrier Anadolujet which flies to Northern Cyprus, Europe, Western Asia, and the Middle East. “Among those, we are evaluating different strategies such as joint ventures and IPOs. We’re also planning to renew AnadoluJet’s fleet with the new-generation narrow body jets.”

India plans to build new airports with integrated metro rail connectivity to allow smoother passenger transport and rail tracks to the closest seaports for faster cargo movement, said a government official. The new multimodal airports will boost trade and mobility. The announcement has been made following the bounce in air travel, and airlines capacity utilization has crossed 80 per cent at all major airlines.

The construction work for Mumbai’s satellite airport in Palghar district has begun as the Maharashtra government has selected Kelva-Mahim and Dapchari as two places for the airport. At Kelva-Mahim the district collectorate has begun work on the project by identifying three plots and has started data collection process which includes identifying government and private land at each of the sites. The alternative site is that is being looked at is at Dapchari, about 70 kilometers from Kelva-Mahim, said a senior official. According to the reports, three sites of 400 hectares each at Kelva-Mahim have been identified for the airport. The details will be soon submitted to the Maharashtra Airport Development Corporation (MADC). The Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) and MADC are believed to be jointly working on the airport plan.

LATAM Cargo adopts WebCargo by Freightos to offer real-time booking to over 3,500 forwarders, says official release. It is the first South American airline to adopt the tech platform. “Real-time bookings with LATAM Cargo are available for WebCargo customers on 27 lanes with the possibility of connecting in South America,” says release. “With LATAM Cargo, carriers representing over 36 percent of global air cargo capacity are available for booking on WebCargo, unlocking additional customer value and improving efficiency,” the release added. Carlos Cheeseman, Owner of Airgroup Miami, a Radiant Logistics Company, said in a statement, “Having LATAM on WebCargo and 7LFreight for real-time booking is an excellent addition to facilitate our moves to Latin and South America.”

To boost D2C brands last mile delivery, e-commerce logistics giant, Delhivery has launched its guaranteed same-day delivery (SDD) services in India across 15 cities. According to reports, Delhivery’s new solution will enable the D2C brands’ growth along two fronts. Firstly, the faster delivery – in a few hours – will improve the consumer experience and, thereby, brand loyalty. Secondly, the faster delivery time will reduce the return rates, improving the brands’ margins. “The logistics service provider will partner with brands and identify fast-moving SKUs, which will be stocked in warehouses within the city, close to the end consumer. When a consumer places an order on the brand’s webstore, Delhivery’s technology will show the fast-moving SKUs available for the ‘guaranteed same-day delivery. Once the order is placed, Delhivery’s technology will allocate the consumers’ orders to the nearest in-city warehouse. The platform will deliver orders received as late as 3 pm on the same day,” says an official statement.

According to the Housing and Infrastructure Minister, V. Somanna, the Mysore Airport at Mandakalli will be developed into an International Airport in the next two years. Both the Centre and State Governments will fulfil the task, said the minister. “There are grand plans to develop various airports in Karnataka and the Mysore Airport will get a particular focus. The upgraded Airports will boost those places as Industrial and Agricultural Hubs. In addition, new airports will be developed in Raichur, Davanagere and Koppal,” said press statement. The construction work has already begun with an estimated cost of Rs. 1,820 crore and the State Government has released Rs. 319.13 crore for land acquisition to increase the Airport runway length, the minister added.

The Tata owned airline, Air India has reportedly decided to procure the wide-bodied Airbus A350 aircraft. The first plane is likely to be delivered by March 2023, as per official reports. This will be Air India’s first wide-bodied plane from Airbus as the company only has Boeing wide body planes in its fleet. “Air India has deployed smaller single aisle Airbus A320 on domestic routes. The Airbus A350 has a bigger fuel tank that allows it to travel longer distances such as India-US routes. Also an Airbus is cheaper to own than the counterpart Boeing 777 and 787,” says reports. This will be first plane procurement for Air India since Tata took over the airline.