Category Archives: Aviation

US cargo airline Ameriflight has placed an order for 20 Natilus Kona autonomous feeder cargo aircraft valued at $134m. Ameriflight has become the first regional US carrier to sign an Aircraft Purchase Agreement with Natilus. The agreement brings total commitments for Natilus aircraft to $6.8bn – for delivery of 460+ aircraft. Other orders are from companies including Volatus Aerospace, Astral Aviation, Aurora, Dymond and Flexport. Ameriflight is the largest Part 135 cargo airline in the US, serving 200 destinations throughout the US, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and South America. The airline’s primary business is moving high-priority airfreight to and from remote areas for overnight express carriers. UPS is its largest customer. “Through this strategic partnership, we are positioning Ameriflight to build the roadmap for the future in cargo operations and be the first regional operator for Natilus in the United States,” said Alan Rusinowitz, president and chief operating officer of Ameriflight. “Our goal is to grow our product and transform the way we do business through innovation and collaboration, and now through this new partnership with Natilus, Ameriflight will connect the world safely within a sustainable business model.”

Vipin Vohra, Chairman, Continental Carriers shares his expectations from the upcoming budget. He says, “With the launch of National Logistics Policy in 2022 under PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan, Logistics industry has high expectations from Budget 2023, which aims at reduction of Logistics cost from 14% of GDP to 8% -10% of the GDP. It is expected that the Budget 2023 will continue with its thrust on infrastructure development both at Airport and off-Airport locations in the form of Air Freight Stations in accordance with AFS Policy inviting healthy competition among the Cargo handling players making Air Cargo affordable so as to improve the global competitiveness of the Indian industry in the world market. Budget-2023 should propose Warehousing and Logistics policy at centre level including PLI and other incentive(s)/subsidies with an option for the states to further liberalise it considering the local scenario.”

Air India SATS Airport Services (AISATS), has been selected by Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) to Design, Build, Finance, Operate & Maintain a Greenfield Logistics Park at the Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru (BLR Airport / KIAB) for a period of 15 years. The upcoming Logistics Park to be developed on 8.2 acres will be a world-class warehousing facility comprising of a General Warehouse, Bonded Warehouse, Consolidation Centre, Cold-Storage Facility, Office Spaces and other amenities such as Bank / ATM Facility, Business Centre, Cafeteria etc. AISATS will also provide value-added services including manpower and equipment rentals on an hourly or pay-per-use basis for Loading/Offloading, Labelling, Packaging, Bulk-Breaking etc.

Air Canada Cargo is continuing to expand its freighter operation with the addition of two new destinations. The carrier will add flights using its B767 freighters to Liege next month and to Basel in April. Air Canada Cargo will operate flights twice per week to Liege, with service increasing to three flights per week later in the year. Basel will see two flights per week. They will originate in Toronto and have a stop in Halifax. Liege has become one of Europe’s largest cargo airports in recent years by targeting freighter operations, while Basel is a major centre for pharmaceuticals. Matthieu Casey, managing director, commercial at Air Canada Cargo, said: “Air Canada Cargo continues to expand its freighter network to provide customers with reliable, year-round service that connects key European markets with Air Canada and Air Canada Cargo’s global network through its Toronto hub.”

Autonomous cargo aircraft company MightyFly will begin last and middle mile test flights with its hybrid, electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing (VTOL) aircraft following Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certification. The FAA has granted the California company’s MightyFly Cento eVTOL aircraft a Special Airworthiness Certificate and a Certificate of Authorisation (COA) for long-range flights. This means that MightyFly can start demonstrating the long-range flight capabilities of Cento. Demonstrating autonomous eVTOL flights up to 600 miles of range with 100 pounds of cargo is unprecedented in the industry, said MightyFly. With this COA in place, the company will be able to accelerate development of its autonomous aircraft, with a larger airspace (230 square miles) in which to test the transition from hover to forward flight at medium and high altitudes (up to 5000 ft). The MightyFly Cento has a cargo capacity of 45 kg, a range of 600 miles and a max speed of 150 mph. Measuring 4m by 5m, the aircraft features eight electric vertical lift fans, one forward propulsion propeller, and a high wing carbon fibre airframe. Fully loaded, the Cento weighs 161 kg, said MightyFly.

Amazon India has launched Amazon Air, making it the first e-commerce company in the country to have a dedicated air cargo network . Amazon Air will utilise the complete cargo capacity of a Boeing 737-800 aircraft, operated by Quikjet Cargo Airlines, a joint venture between AFL and the Ireland-based ASL Aviation Group. The Amazon-branded aircraft will transport customer shipments to cities such as Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Delhi, and Mumbai. “We’re thrilled to launch Amazon Air in India to ensure we can provide our growing customer base with great selection, low prices, and faster deliveries,” said Sarah Rhoads, Vice President, Amazon Global Air. The announcement reinforces Amazon India’s commitment to continue building capacity and will further enhance its transportation network.

Continental Carriers Pvt Ltd (CCPL) was felicitated as the “Best Freight Forwarder” for the 2nd consecutive year at ASSOCHAM’s 14th International Aviation Conference and Awards held recently on 18th January, 2023 at Hotel Leela, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi. Managing Director, Vaibhav Vohra and Director, Viraj Vohra received the award from P K Thakur, Deputy Director General, Ministry of Civil Aviation and K Narayan Rao, Chairman, ASSOCHAM National Council on Civil Aviation and Deputy MD, GMR Group; in the presence of Vipin Vohra, Chairman, Continental Carriers Pvt Ltd.

Quikjet Cargo Airlines has recently launched its maiden freighter service from GMR Hyderabad International Airport. Quikjet will be operating with Boeing 737-800F freighter aircraft based in Hyderabad with daily freighter services to Delhi and Bangalore. The freighter will carry air freight and express cargo across their network area covering Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bangalore. The Quikjet freighter will depart to Delhi daily from HYD at 00.30hrs and arrive from Bangalore to Hyderabad at 08. 50hrs every day. Currently, Quikjet has two aircrafts B737-800F with a capacity of 22 metric tons, both based at HYD. This new Cargo airline will boost the state’s economy and empower businesses with increased cargo connectivity & quicker reach for E-commerce. Speaking on the Quikjet launch, Mr Pradeep Panicker, CEO-GHIAL, said, “We are delighted to support Quikjet operations and glad that this is another Cargo servicing addition at our airport. Quikjet services is all set to offer increased cargo connectivity from Hyderabad to Southern India. The Quikjet services from our airport reiterate the growing prominence of Hyderabad for cargo. Over the years, GMR Hyderabad Airport has been building world-class capabilities to ensure seamless and faster cargo service globally.” GMR Hyderabad Airport Cargo handles pharma, perishable, engineering, automobile, aerospace products, large machinery, Hazardous Materials (HAZMAT) and Dangerous Goods (DG). Apart from all major cargo hubs in India, international destinations like Frankfurt, Istanbul, Dubai, Doha and Hong Kong are also well connected to the Hyderabad International Airport.

To offer enhanced supply chain solutions and to respond efficiently and flexibly to changing supply chains, Silk Way West Airlines has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Japan’s Nippon Express Holdings. The agreement will strengthen Silk Way West Airlines’ presence in the Japanese market, which is has been serving since 2018 with weekly flights between Baku and Kansai International airport. The carrier also started regular flights to Tokyo’s Narita gateway in 2021, and said the deal with Nippon would enable it to “play an increasingly important role in the region’s freight network, constantly improving the quality of air cargo transportation services for both Japanese and international partners”, said an official release. Meanwhile, the agreement will help Nippon Express to expand its business globally through access to cargo capacity on Silk Way West Airlines’ extensive network, which covers destinations across Europe, the CIS, the Middle East, Central and Eastern Asia, and the Americas. The Azeri carrier operates 12 Boeing 747-8 freighter aircraft and 747-400Fs, and also has five new 777Fs, two 777-8Fs and two Airbus A350 freighters on order, the release added.

The construction of cargo infrastructure at Noida International Airport is likely to start later this year. NIA will cater to a differentiated catchment and several upcoming industrial clusters in Uttar Pradesh. A multi-modal cargo hub (MMCH) will contribute to the vibrancy of the overall ecosystem. . Christoph Schnellmann, Chief Executive Officer, Noida International Airport told exclusively to us, “We expect the cargo ecosystem at NIA to develop with a focus on e-commerce, electronics, textiles, agri-perishables, and pharmaceuticals. With rising e-commerce demands and the auto market gaining traction, we see volumes back in the bellies of aircraft. This is further affirmed by the increase in aircraft orders by Indian domestic carriers. In addition, domestic carriers like IndiGo have introduced freighters with orders of four A321 P2F aircraft. Blue Dart, a well-established freight carrier, is also adding two additional B737s to their existing fleet. DHL and UPS are poised to increase their capacity in India as well. NIA is developing a multi-modal cargo hub across 80 acres, which will become operational in 2024. This will pave the path for a future cargo hub in India. Employing more efficient infrastructure and technology in this greenfield project and digitalization of manual process and documentation will help to address existing pain points in the market. Predictability in operations will be a key differentiator for NIA.”