“Leading airline operators are readying for fleet expansions to enhance both pax connectivity and cargo capacity,” says Pradeep Panicker, CEO, GMR Hyderabad International Airport (GHIAL). “A significant step for advancing these goals is the upgrade of logistics infrastructure, distribution centers, and freight corridors, coupled with investments in research and development for pioneering solutions. It is crucial to adopt state-of-the-art technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain, Automation, and the Internet of Things to maximize operational efficiency in India’s dynamic cargo industry,” he adds.   

  CargoAi announced a strategic partnership with MASkargo, the cargo airline and subsidiary of Malaysia Aviation Group to revolutionize airfreight booking and payment processes across nearly 100 countries worldwide through CargoWALLET, CargoAi’s innovative payment solution. This partnership integrates MASkargo’s extensive airfreight services into CargoAi’s ecosystem, arming freight forwarders with the ability to book and pay for shipments directly through CargoWALLET. Matt Petot, CEO of CargoAi, expressed his enthusiasm about the partnership, stating, “We are thrilled to collaborate with MASkargo to bring our innovative CargoWALLET solution to a broader audience. This partnership underscores our commitment to streamlining the airfreight process, reducing transaction costs, and facilitating global trade. By integrating MASkargo’s services into our solution ecosystem, we are providing our common users with enhanced access to a vast network of destinations and seamless payment options at the lowest cost.” Chief Executive Officer of MASkargo, Mark Jason Thomas, said: “We are thrilled to announce the partnership between MASkargo and CargoAi. This collaboration signifies a resounding success for us in simplifying customer transactions through the CargoWALLET platform. Not only does this partnership elevate MASkargo’s position in today’s digital world and technology era, it also streamlines the process for customers, enabling them to easily track from the initial stage to acceptance within an incredibly innovative ecosystem. Our joint solution promises to make processes easier, faster, more cost-efficient, and ultimately deliver maximum value to our customers’ experience.” From its hub in Kuala Lumpur, MASkargo is significantly accelerating the digitalisation of air cargo in the APAC region by offering all its worldwide cargo capacity, belly, and freighters on www.CargoAi.co. The new synergy between CargoAi and MASkargo will open up a more extensive network to all forwarding agents worldwide. CargoWALLET’s …

The upcoming greenfield Noida International Airport will soon have multi-modal cargo hub (MMCH). Spanning across 80 acres of land, the upcoming cargo hub will provide quick, convenient and intermodal connectivity to and from manufacturing hubs in the country. The cargo and logistics infrastructure and ecosystem will cater to a differentiated catchment and several upcoming industrial clusters in NCR and Uttar Pradesh, creating a cargo gateway for Northern India. The MMCH will comprise an Integrated Cargo Terminal combined with an Integrated Warehousing and Logistics Zone. This unique logistics zone will offer a transhipment center, as well as a warehouse zone for freight forwarders and integrators. The MMCH will also provide for transportation facilities to support road-to-road, road-to-air, and air-to-road movements. Overall, the infrastructure at Noida International Airport’s MMCH is focussed on efficiency, scalability, seamless process flows as well as common digital infrastructure and systems. Christoph Schnellmann, Chief Executive Officer, Noida International Airport, said, “We are convinced that our novel approach to planning and developing a multi-modal cargo hub with integrated facilities and seamless processes supports the cargo and logistics industry in North India. The Noida International Airport cargo hub will help Western Uttar Pradesh and the NCR fully develop its cargo and logistics potential. The multi-modal cargo hub will bring predictability in operations and address existing logistics bottlenecks through digitisation and enabling seamless and fast processes. We are confident that Air India SATS (AISATS) is the perfect partner to bring this vision to life, owing to their global footprint and long-standing experience. We look forward to this strategic partnership with AISATS to make NIA a preferred cargo hub in Northern India.

  Bangalore International Airport Ltd (BIAL) also has plans to invest in domestic cargo facilities, expand international cargo operations and enhance cool port facilities. Satyaki Raghunath, COO, BIAL shared exclusively with Cargo Talk, “Our focus for the future includes investing in a new domestic cargo facility, expanding our international terminals, enhancing our cool port facilities, establishing a large automated truck parking facility, and implementing a fully paperless system. Transitioning from a concession model to a joint venture (JV) model with a 26% stake in each cargo entity reflects our commitment to making cargo a focal point of our business. We are optimistic about the prospects ahead and aim to reach 1.2 to 1.5 million metric tons by the mid-2030s, representing a significant growth from our current volume. These initiatives underscore our dedication to advancing and solidifying our presence in the air cargo industry.” He added, “Our upcoming plans revolve around strategic partnerships and significant investments to drive the growth of our cargo business.”

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International (SVPI) airport, Ahmedabad will have a new, semi-automated integrated cargo terminal by the end of this year. As part of its mega expansion plan, the city airport is expanding passenger as well as cargo handling capacities. The new terminal, located opposite the India Meteorological Department (IMD) office on the airport campus, will cover a built-up area of 33,000 sq m and have the capacity to handle 2 lakh tonnes per month. It is designed to handle future growth in cargo volume. The facility will manage domestic cargo, international cargo, express courier, cold-chain pharmaceuticals, and other perishable goods. Manoj Singh, Chief Officer Cargo shared exclusively with Cargo Talk that in terms of growth aspect and the potential, it’s a big pharma zone, there’s a need of a good airport cargo infra, and that’s where as part of the Adani Group, we intend to have a world-class integrated cargo terminal, which caters to almost around 300,000 tons of cargo capacity. This is where we are intending to move, and on 1 November, we intend to start, go live with our integrated cargo terminal.”  

  Navi Mumbai International Airport will soon have an integrated cargo facility to enhance cargo operations. “As a group, we are very keen and focused on creating the best infrastructure in India. First integrated cargo terminal is coming up at Navi Mumbai. Eventually, with 90 million passenger growth and infrastructure on the airport level, we would be catering around 2.62 million tons of cargo, and it will be a fully integrated automated and world-class facility which has integration of international cargo, domestic cargo, as well as the express industries,” says Manoj Singh, Chief Officer Cargo, Adani Airport Holding Ltd.  He adds, “ With this facility, we see huge potential, for growth for the next 20 years. Along with air cargo facility, we are intending to have a logistic park as well, closer to the airport premise, which will really cater to the world- class environment, and we’ll create that ecosystem that is a one-stop solution to our customers. I’m sure all the big stakeholders who are involved in the air cargo logistics would definitely get benefited from Navi Mumbai Airport.”

Mangaluru International Airport (MIA) has also commenced international cargo operations from its integrated cargo terminal with flight IX 815 ferrying 2,522 kgs of fruits and vegetables to Abu Dhabi.  The formal launch was done in the presence of the AAHL Cargo team, the leadership team of the Mangaluru International Airport as well as representatives from Customs, Airlines – IndiGo and Air India Express – and Airport Security Group of CISF.  Working with regulatory authorities and airline partners, the airport, in the interim, vigorously pursued its status as Customs Cargo Service.

Online air cargo booking portal WebCargo by Freightos has integrated digital insurance service Breeze onto the platform. The integration will give WebCargo’s forwarder users the option of adding insurance when they make a booking. “With this collaboration, freight forwarders will have instant access to an insurance quote when they place a booking, removing the need to source insurance separately and streamlining the entire process,” Breeze said in a press release. The service will be available for forwarders in the US and UK. “Forwarders rely on WebCargo to book hundreds of thousands of shipments every quarter,” said Manuel Galindo, chief revenue officer, Freightos. “By partnering with outstanding companies like Breeze, we’re excited to add more services to our platform. This allows forwarders to focus on what matters most — customer relationships — rather than time-consuming pricing calls for services like insurance.”

“With the country’s current cold chain market size at US$35 billion and expected to reach US$50 billion by 2027, strategic investments are more critical than ever,” says Swarup Bose, CEO and founder, Celcius Logistics. He adds, “Prioritizing cutting-edge cold chain warehousing and transportation solutions in the budget is essential. These investments will not only bolster key sectors such as agriculture, food and dairy, processed food, pharmaceuticals, and healthcare, but also help reduce losses and improve the hunger index. By adopting advanced technologies like automation, AI-powered analytics, and blockchain, alongside a focus on environmentally conscious practices and regulatory compliance, we can enhance productivity, promote sustainability, and build resilience against supply chain disruptions. Furthermore, this strategic support will facilitate the growth of quick commerce, ensuring rapid and efficient delivery of goods. Celcius, in collaboration with the government, is dedicated to ensuring that the allocated resources unlock the full potential of our cold chain infrastructure, driving future efficiency and innovation in the industry.”

“National Logistics Policy (NLP) will bring the transformative change in the Indian logistics sector in terms of developing multimodal infrastructure, deploying technology and automation and data based decision making,” said Dr. Surendra Ahirwar, Joint Secretary, DPIIT, GoI during his speech at the ongoing India Warehousing Show (IWS) 13th edition. He added, “Distribution and Decentralisation is also on the govt agenda. The government is ready with master plans for improving infrastructure and the results will be seen on the scale of efficiency. Even many Indian states have also formulated their own NLPs, which will boost growth. Consensus for Digitalisation in international trade transactions is also done by the government, which will boost growth.”