Category Archives: Aviation

SpiceXpress is creating unique propositions in the Indian Logistics field by inaugurating the first of its kind Airport Based Free Trade Zone Warehouse in GMR Hyderabad international Airport, Telengana. At a time when India and the state of Telengana in specific is looking forward to promote the export and import of goods and help the manufacturers and traders boost their business we at SpiceXpress have taken the initiative of creating the Free Trade Zone at GMR Hyderabad International Airport, which is the right solution. A free-trade zone (FTZ) is a class of special economic zone. It is a geographic area where goods may be imported, stored, handled, manufactured, or reconfigured and re-exported under specific customs regulation and generally not subject to customs duty. “Most of our free trade zones are on the sea port side helping the manufacturers and traders who use the sea mode. Manufacturers and traders using Air mode, specifically Pharma, E Commerce, Aero Space, Perishables, etc had logistical challenges using these free trade zones. We at SpiceXpress are the first ones to set up a Free Trade Zone (FTZ) Warehouse on the Airport Side.”said Sanjiv Gupta, CEO, SpiceXpress

Air France KLM Martinair Cargo (AFKLMP Cargo) and Total Touch Cargo Holland BV (TTC) join hands within the framework of the airline’s sustainable aviation fuel programme. Under the partnership, AFKLMP Cargo will use sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) on selected cargo flights from Nairobi – Kenya to Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, carrying TTC’s fresh agricultural and horticultural products. Cargo CEO/owner Harry van der Plas was at the AFKLMP Cargo headquarters at Schiphol to sign the formal documents. The agreement includes a fixed annual investment from Total Touch Cargo that will allow AFKLMP Cargo to further expand development and procurement of SAF. TTC’s contribution will be used to cover the cost differential between conventional aircraft fuel and SAF.

With just weeks to go until one of the biggest events for the air cargo sector, IATA’s World Cargo Symposium has now moved to Dublin. The symposium will take place at the Convention Centre Dublin, from October 12-14. The three-day event had originally been scheduled to take place in Istanbul but due to difficulties in travelling to and from Turkey, it has now been moved to Dublin. “IATA’s World Cargo Symposium is moving to Dublin, Ireland,” the airline association said on its website. “Dublin is picturesque, historic, and filled with stories at every turn. We had hoped to bring you to Istanbul, but circumstances changed.” The event had originally been scheduled to take place in Istanbul in March 2020 but was later rescheduled due to the outbreak of covid-19. The symposium has become the largest annual event in the air cargo calendar, attracting more than 1,000 attendees and 40 exhibitors.

Replacement of aging airplanes and freighters in-demand for e-commerce and other services is likely to create a demand for 2,610 freighters in the next two decades, according to the new Boeing Commercial Market Outlook. “Of these, 890 planes will be production freighters. The remaining 1,720 freighters are forecast to be passenger-airplane conversions. The freighter fleet will increase by 70 percent from 2,010 airplanes in 2019 to 3,435 airplanes by 2040,” the report said. Air cargo traffic declined 9 percent in 2020 following a 3 percent decline in 2019 due to the economic downturn and disruptions caused by the pandemic, Boeing said in its statement. “Air cargo traffic is now above 2019 levels. Accelerated e-commerce growth, supply chain disruptions, and severe maritime challenges are contributing to a robust air cargo market recovery.”

The volume of freight handled at Leipzig/Halle Airport (LEJ) reached the figure of 1,025,187 tonnes and already exceeded the 1 million mark in the month of August since the beginning of the year. This represents an increase in the amount of cargo of 18.4 percent compared to the same period in the previous year. Approximately 125,050 tonnes were processed at the airport in August alone this year. That represents an increase of 15.1 percent in comparison with the same month in the previous year. The total amount of freight handled in the previous year set a new record at more than 1.38 million tonnes. The number of air cargo flights rose by 25.8 percent to more than 40,000 during the first eight months of the year. Leipzig/Halle Airport is one of the cargo airports with the dynamic growth rates in the world. LEJ is the first airport in Germany to have registered more flights in August than before the Covid-19 crisis (August 2019).

As part of its digitalization agenda, MASkargo, a Malaysian Cargo Airline, has entered into a distribution agreement with e-booking platform cargo.one. The aim is to bring a smooth digital booking experience to MASkargo’s customers and to expand its presence in key cargo markets. “At MASkargo, our strategy is to deliver a first-class customer experience by way of a continuous innovative digital solutions cycle. We are delighted to partner with cargo.one to augment our domestic digital offering to a premium global presence by bringing our real-time rates and capacities to this innovative and rapidly growing online booking platform”, Mark Jason Thomas, chief commercial officer at MASkargo, explains.

Emirates SkyCargo is taking the digital way for customer satisfaction experience. Working with WiseTech Global, a leading provider of software solutions to the logistics industry, Emirates SkyCargo will be providing direct access to its flights and inventory for cargo customers through the CargoWise platform. Customers will now be able to make cargo bookings direct on the platform for a majority of their cargo requirements after completing a short registration process. “At Emirates SkyCargo, we are always looking at ways to make every stage of the transportation process more efficient – from the time of booking the shipment to the delivery of the cargo to the consignee. We are delighted to work with WiseTech to connect the CargoWise platform to our own Emirates SkyChain system, allowing customers enhanced direct access to search for flights and make bookings directly with Emirates SkyCargo without requiring any other touchpoints. This will save time and effort for our customers and for our global teams and at the same time help avoid any unnecessary confusion and inefficiencies in the booking process,” said Nabil Sultan, Emirates divisional senior vice president, Cargo.

Global Transportation and Industrial Park of Oklahoma (GTIP) is being created on more than 200 acres of shovel-ready and build-to-suit land at the former U.S. Army Air Force base in Ardmore, Oklahoma. Representatives of GTIP have begun discussions with airlines, freight forwarders, integrators, and beneficial cargo owners about developing air cargo solutions at the multimodal park. GTIP will become an international, state-of-the-art global cargo hub. It includes an already fully functional airport with 9,002-foot and 5,404-foot runways, 24/7 airspace access and 1.2 million square feet of aircraft parking space. The existing infrastructure can handle the vast majority of preighters and freighters, up to the B777-200, and future plans will increase the capacity to include the B-747 freighter family. “GTIP represents an extraordinary opportunity for the air cargo community to create capacity by utilizing an existing airport that can accept air cargo today,” said Michelle Bowling, senior director of sales for Watco, a partner in developing and operating GTIP.

Mammoth Freighters LLC (Mammoth), a logistic solution provider has launched its Boeing 777-200LR and 777-300ER passenger-to-freighter conversion programs. Mammoth brings a flexible business model to market that provides air cargo operators and asset owners dynamic new options including the ability to provide their own assets for conversion or acquire or lease ready-to-fly converted freighters from Mammoth’s existing feedstock of ten 777-200LR GE90-110B1 equipped aircraft. These assets were acquired from Delta Air Lines and are the largest fleet of -200LR sister aircraft in the world. Mammoth was founded in December 2020 by two aviation industry executives, Bill Wagner and Bill Tarpley, both serving as the company’s Co-CEOs. The Company is backed by private investment funds managed by Fortress Investment Group LLC and its affiliates (Fortress). The company has launched its Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) development program with the plan to achieve FAA approval in the second half of 2023.

LATAM Airlines Group exceeded 100 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines transported free of charge within Brazil, Chile, Ecuador and Peru. The initiative is part of LATAM’s ‘Solidarity Plane,’ a program that makes LATAM’s connectivity available for the benefit of South America at zero cost. It includes both passenger and cargo capacity. “Each of LATAM’s collaborators are proud to be able to contribute to overcoming the pandemic. Today, we have transported the 100 million dose of COVID vaccine for free. We will remain committed to making our connectivity available for the benefit of the lives and health of the people of South America,” said Roberto Alvo, CEO of LATAM Airlines Group.