Category Archives: Aviation

All the players need to introduce innovation and technology to achieve the desired efficiency in the entire supply chain. They should step forward to help players fulfil the time-bound requirements. Improved service levels to be introduced and achieved, says Sushant Nigam, Executive Director, Air Cargo Agents’ Association of India (ACAAI). He adds, “All the key stakeholders should collaborate in an effective manner and empathize with each other’s requirements: give support-get support.” Speaking on being part of ACAAI, Nigam shares associations are the voice of their members and a channel of communication with other players. The associations play a crucial role everywhere and their existence should be optimally utilised.

Kale Info Solutions (Kale), the US subsidiary of Kale Logistics Solutions, has entered a partnership with Chicago Rockford International Airport (RFD), USA, to implement its Airport Cargo Community System (ACS), the pair announced at the 13th annual Air Cargo Handling & Logistics conference. Kale’s ACS implementation will reduce manual documentation and data entry time for cargo handlers at RFD, increasing process efficiency at the airport as well as reducing truck congestion and streamlining cargo flows. RFD has seen annual air cargo throughput triple over the last five years, with a 25% increase in volumes recorded in 2021, and the airport has increasingly become an important Midwest hub for e-commerce and international trade. “As the fastest growing cargo airport on the planet, we’ve partnered with Kale to provide the RFD cargo community with the most efficient, transparent cargo IT platform in the marketplace,” said Mike Dunn, Executive Director, RFD. “Kale will allow us to further streamline the digitisation and movement of cargo at RFD today and to keep up with the demands of our growing cargo operations in the future.”

LATAM Cargo has announced the arrival of another freighter aircraft as it continues its fleet expansion. The carrier said that it had taken delivery of its fifth B767-300 freighter this year, which brings its all-cargo fleet to a total of 16 B767Fs. “This aircraft will allow us to continue strengthening our value proposition through a broader and deeper network. The B767-300F’s blend of size and competitiveness enables us to offer our customers more and better routing options,” said Andrés Bianchi, chief executive, LATAM Cargo. The new aircraft will be utilised on transatlantic flights and benefit the transportation of general cargo, fresh flowers and fruits, among other products.

Bahrain Airport Company, the operator and managing body of Bahrain International Airport (BIA) has plans to open exclusive cargo facility – ‘Express Cargo Village’ at the airport, expected to be operational by 2023. Stretching over an area of 25,000 sqm, the Express Cargo Village at BIA is an advanced logistics hub, which includes buildings dedicated to serving each cargo operator in line with the highest international standards. It ensures that all operations are carried out quickly and smoothly in a single location, enabling the airport to handle larger quantities of cargo efficiently, better meet the requirements of cargo customers, and create new job opportunities. BAC earlier signed a 10-year agreement with global logistics giant, FedEx Express, allocating 9,000 sqm to it for the operation of a 5,000 sqm warehouse and a 4,000 sqm open area, which will be handed over in the third quarter of 2023. In November 2018, BAC signed an agreement with French engineering consultants Egis to supervise the design and construction of the Express Cargo Village, which consists of warehouses, aprons, and infrastructure capable of handling the expected growth in air freight and e-commerce.

A little over 3000 acres of land would have to be acquired from the seven villages in Purandar taluka for the proposed airport and multimodal  logistics hub,” said Divisional commissioner Saurav Rao on Saturday. He added that the district administration would conduct a detailed assessment of the land required in the seven villages Paragaon, Khanwadi, Munjwadi.  Ekhatpur, Kumbharvalan, Vanpuri etc. The Deputy chief Minister in a statement iterated that the proposed Greenfield international airport would  come up at the previously identified site in the seven villages because it had all the required permissions. Land for the airport project was in earmarked in the seven villages in the earlier proposal submitted to the government. Rao, said, “I shall be holding a meeting with the official of the Pune district and ministration land acquisition department , the Maharashtra airport development company, the Maharashtra  industrial development Corporation,  and representatives from Paragaon as a part of initial discussion because we need to assess how much land would be required for the airport and the logistics.”

To expand the international operations in the coming years, J D Logistics is planning to launch a new cargo airline. According to the reports, JD Airlines has received an air carrier certificate from the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC). The JD Logistics-affiliated  airline’s principal base will be Nantong Xingdong International Airport. It will first develop its domestic air cargo around China’s three major economic circles of the Yangtze River Delta, the Bohai Sea and the Pearl River Delta, with a focus on the cities  of Nantong, Beijing, Shenzhen, and Wuxi. The carrier will then extend its reach to cities in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, then Chengdu and Chongqing, and will gradually cover nationwide major cities and Southeast Asia, Japan, and Korea and later  in Europe, Middle East, and North America by the end of 2025. The airline said it would serve the clients  of JD Logistics as well as opening its capacity to the wider market.

Etihad Cargo has implemented a new customer relationship management (CRM) system as the latest step in its digitalisation drive. The carrier  said that it would now use the Microsoft Dynamics 365-driven Pulse CRM system, which will provide customer service agents with more customer-focused data. The system provides an updated case management system and customer information, such as the customer’s  history, purchase records, sales interactions, and a more in-depth view of customer queries. Tim Isik, vice president of commercial at Etihad Cargo, said, “The transformation of Etihad Cargo’s Customer Contact Centre through the launch of this new system provides  greater transparency and visibility, enabling customer service agents to track each transaction from initial contact through to resolution.”

Simmi Jain, Principal Commissioner, Customs, ACC Import, Delhi Zone said, “AEO Certification is important for all industry stakeholders. I urge you all that if you have any issues, please feel free to discuss and bring forth the issue so that we can understand, we can solve the same. We are all basically looking at our country’s welfare. Maybe the solution does not come out immediately as we aspire but yes, there will be some movement. We will take the regional power to the board wherever it is relevant. But one factor, which is slightly impacting cargo performance is lesser number of AEOs are operating in the sector, which means the clearance time would be slightly higher.”

Aircraft maker Boeing expects India’s air traffic to annually grow by nearly 7 per cent through 2040, and is bullish on the “massive potential” in the air cargo space. The company, which is a key player in both civil and defence aerospace segments, is also looking to increase the sourcing of raw materials from the country.Boeing Managing Director (Marketing) David Schulte stated that strong recovery is gaining further momentum in Indian aviation and it is one of the fastest growing markets.

The time is here for the Indian air cargo industry to tap the potential and make the best use of emerging trends such as digitalisation, rising e-commerce and perishables movement across India, especially in tier II and III cities and abroad to boost cargo activity and enhance performance said, CK Govil, VP, Air Cargo Agents’ Association of India (ACAAI). He said, ACAAI will focus on enhancing air cargo resiliency in the new normal scenario by adopting efficient growth strategies and focusing on resolving key issues such as logistics cost, congestion at ports, improving infrastructure and multimodal connectivity. “Though, the sector performed exceptionally well during the pandemic, there is a need to improve multimodal infrastructure and connectivity. We need more Air Freight Stations (AFSs).  Perishable movement should be encouraged, especially defence aircraft,” he said.  “In our forthcoming edition, we will be focusing on improving air cargo resilience. We have the government’s support, and they are taking steps for resolving key issues hindering the growth of the sector,” added Govil.