Category Archives: Aviation

Titan Aircraft Investments, the joint venture between Titan Aviation Holdings and Bain Capital Credit, has announced the acquisition of two 767-300ER aircraft from Icelandair. The aircraft will be converted into freighters and leased back to the airline. Bogi Nils Bogason, President and Chief Executive, Icelandair Group, said, “With continued positive outlook for cargo operations post Covid, I am confident that the B767-300ER freighters will allow us to maximise new opportunities in our markets. These aircraft carry around 50 per cent more freight than our current two B757-200 freighters and fit very well into our current fleet and network. Our aim is to increase the capacity in our markets, as well as strengthen Iceland as a hub for cargo, in a similar way as our passenger hub that provides attractive connections between continents.” Michael Steen, President & Chief Executive, TAH, said, “We are delighted to welcome Icelandair as a strategic customer and to support their long-term expansion plans. The 767-300ER is a very attractive medium-sized freighter and we are excited to manage these two aircraft on behalf of the joint venture. We currently own 21 767-300ER freighters, which provide us with extensive experience in this aircraft type.” With the addition of these two B767s, TAI’s portfolio has grown to three aircraft, which also includes a 777-200 freighter.

In February 2021, cargo throughput (airfreight + airmail) at Frankfurt Airport (FRA) rose by 21.7 per cent to 180,725 metric tonnes in the reporting month – despite the ongoing shortage of belly capacity normally provided by passenger aircraft. Due to this robust growth, Frankfurt Airport recorded its highest February cargo month ever. Aircraft movements decreased by 69.0 per cent to 11,122 take-offs and landings, while accumulated maximum take-off weights (MTOWs) contracted by 56.7 per cent to 961,684 metric tonnes year-on-year. The airports in Fraport’s international portfolio continued to report mixed results for February 2021, with traffic performance depending largely on the pandemic situation in the respective region. All of Fraport’s Group airports worldwide – except Xi’an in China – recorded traffic declines compared to February 2020.

Bolloré Transport & Logistics Côte d’Ivoire successfully completed the runway pick-up, customs clearance and delivery of over 500,000 vaccine doses and syringes, as part of the Covid-19 vaccination campaign in Côte d’Ivoire, on 26 February 2021. Mandated by UNICEF, the Bolloré Transport & Logistics teams rolled out logistics solutions right from the landing of the plane at the international airport of Abidjan. The 28 parcels of AstraZeneca vaccines, weighing 1.8 tons, and the 25 parcels of syringes, weighing 3.8 tons, were then transported and delivered to the customer in full respect of the cold chain. In addition, the company has donated a mobile dispensary for tests as well as equipment to supplement the capacities of the National Public Health Institute and Institut Pasteur. The company has also distributed gel, masks and provisions to the population. “Thanks to our 1,500 Ivorian employees, we are pleased to have contributed to the provision of the first Covid-19 vaccines to our populations. We are working hand in hand with the Côte d’Ivoire authorities and UNICEF to support health-promoting operations in the country through our know-how,” said Joël Hounsinou, Managing Director of Bolloré Transport & Logistics Côte d’Ivoire.

Qatar Airways Cargo has surpassed a milestone with 10 million COVID-19 vaccines transported, including COVID-19 vaccines for UNICEF as part of the five-year MoU to support UNICEF’s Humanitarian Airfreight Initiative. The airline has played a significant role throughout the pandemic and is committed to helping people and giving back to communities, in alignment with its sustainability programme. Since December 2020, Qatar Airways Cargo has transported COVID-19 vaccines to 20 countries all over the world including Algeria, Cambodia, Denmark, Pakistan Rwanda, South Africa, the Netherlands, to name a few. Guillaume Halleux, Chief Officer Cargo, Qatar Airwys, said, “I am both, proud and humbled to support the vaccines distribution and helping UNICEF to reach the maximum number of people, everywhere. We remain committed and resilient in the fight against the pandemic and together with our partners, we will ensure the safe, timely and efficient transportation of these life-saving supplies.” Qatar Airways Cargo, the freight division of Qatar Airways has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with UNICEF for a five-year period to support UNICEF’s Humanitarian Airfreight Initiative. Qatar Airways Cargo will work closely with UNICEF and its freight forwarders to prioritise the transport of vaccines, medicines, medical devices and critical supplies utilising its extensive global network and capacity. Through its QR Pharma product, the ir cargo carrier offers controlled cool chain and dedicated monitoring, intervention and servicing as well as proactive re-icing at its Doha hub. With these significant investments, the cargo carrier confirms its strategy and commitment to supporting the logistics around the global COVID-19 vaccination endeavour. The transportation of vaccines will continue in the coming months to more countries around the world via the carrier’s scheduled and charter flights and …

Considering the airport’s potential for handling cargo flights, the Airport Authority of India has put forward plans for domestic cargo operations at Tirupati Airport. A full-fledged cargo terminal is all set for commissioning. Accordingly, the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security recently gave clearance to the airport for cargo service operations. The airport is directly connected to various destinations. Starting air cargo services from here would result in a passenger traffic rise and provide an impetus to the airlifting of perishable goods. This will boost the earnings of the farming community in Chittoor district and ensure timely and efficient transport of their produce to other parts of the country, the official said. “Tirupati is fast developing into a base for export of many products. There’s scope to tap the agri sector in Chittoor and neighbouring districts from which perishable goods could be airlifted to other cities. This will benefit the catchment areas of Chittoor, Nellore, Kurnool and Kadapa districts of the Rayalaseema region,” noted the airport director.

Budapest Airport has introduced the CEIV Pharma pharmaceutical logistics standard in Hungary with the professional guidelines of IATA. The past year has highlighted more strongly than ever that the pharmaceutical healthcare sector relies heavily on the air freight industry. Not only during a pandemic, but in all circumstances, it is important that healthcare shipments reach the consignee as quickly as possible, under strictly regulated conditions, while maintaining their quality. Budapest Airport, led by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), is introducing a quality assurance system covering all phases of pharmaceutical transport in Hungary. Launched in conjunction with shipping, hauling and ground handling companies, the project aims to ensure that healthcare shipments reach their destination quickly and safely under strictly controlled conditions, ensuring quality throughout the delivery process. Partners of Budapest Airport for the CEIV Pharma quality assurance system in Hungary are Agility, Airmax Cargo, cargo-partner, Prevost and airport ground handling companies Celebi and Menzies also joined. In this context, the regulations also cover the development of companies’ facilities, tools and processes and the further training of employees; thus, every step of the drug logistics process can be carried out under controlled conditions. “Over the past year, healthcare shipments, medical aids and medicines have received worldwide attention. However, pharmaceutical logistics is not only of paramount importance during a pandemic; That is why we have decided to guarantee that, in the long term, medicines will arrive where they are needed in the future, even faster and safer than before, as part of a new quality assurance program, ”said Dr. Rolf Schnitzler, CEO of Budapest Airport. He emphasized: “Such a large-scale project can only be implemented through cooperation, therefore on behalf of Budapest …

CargoAi is launching a Board of Advisors formed of talented experts who represent the diverse views and perspectives of the airfreight industry. This advisory body is tasked with reflecting on the industry’s digital transformation and actively steering CargoAi in developing value-added solutions for the cargo community. The Board will meet quarterly, with the first remote meeting taking place in April. The Board of Advisors is currently formed of four members, who will soon be joined by other experts. The current members are: Markus Flacke – Reknown industry expert, former Managing Director of CHAMP Cargosystems Liana Coyne – Director at Coyne Airways Cyril Dumon – CEO Asia-Pacific at Bollore Logistics Ricardo Pilon – Chief Cargo Transformation Officer at Millennium Aviation & Vice-President, Consulting Solutions at Aviation Strategies International “CargoAi is one of the most visionary and innovative companies in the market. The team has a clear understanding of cargo, and ambitions to connect a variety of actors to more than just an e-booking platform, but one that provides actionable information and intelligence,” explained Liana Coyne. Pilon said, “With a diverse and dynamic team, I am excited to see how inclusive the CargoAi team is and how this focus on people and relationships will help further cement sustainable growth in cargo transportation and logistics, underpinned by planned offerings, future-wise services and incremental propositions around market access and commercial optimization.” “Helping to reflect on and model the future of air cargo through digital is a really exciting project, and that’s why I agreed to join the CargoAi Board of Advisors. We’re at a crossroads – at the beginning of an unprecedented transformation in air cargo’s processes,” explained Dumon. “The team is incredible – …

dnata has handled more than 5,000 cargo-in-cabin flights, safely moving over 50,000 tons of shipments at Dubai International airport (DXB), since March last year. In response to the strong air cargo market demand for the rapid, reliable and efficient transportation of essential commodities, several airlines have introduced additional cargo capacity during the pandemic by using passenger aircraft with seats fully or partially removed from the cabin. To adapt to changing customer needs, dnata has enhanced services, improved processes and trained more than 500 employees to safely and efficiently handle passenger planes carrying cargo only. dnata has introduced effective procedures across a range of aircraft types. With no existing industry standards to refer to, the company built the necessary procedures from scratch in collaboration with key stakeholders, including IATA and several airline customers. To ensure the procedures were safe, trials were conducted at DXB using various loading and unloading methods across both narrow and wide-body aircraft. This allowed dnata to identify the best and safest procedures to serve cargo-in-cabin flights. Paul Littlejohn, dnata’s Divisional Vice President for Airside Operations, said, “We are proud to reach this memorable milestone in such a short space of time. There was intense demand for airlines to recoup revenue through cargo-in-cabin operations and we needed to be in a position to provide safe and effective ground handling services quickly. Our teams delivered innovative, efficient solutions at great speed while never letting our safety standards drop. “We continue to work hard to consistently provide the highest level of service and safety to all of our airline customers, every day.” Although passenger flights have been significantly reduced globally during the pandemic, air cargo demand has remained stable and …

Blue Dart is all set to extend this women’s day to the diversity and inclusivity circle with the launch of the first Blue Dart All Women Service Centre. The logistics industry has been stereotyped over the years to foster a male majority, Blue Dart has been putting in a significant effort to alter this perception of the industry, ever since the organization’s inception in 1983. The organization provides ample opportunity for its Blue Darters to take the lead and make their mark in the industry. With capable women encouraged to take on senior leadership roles in the organisation, Blue Dart is a testament to what being a gender inclusive organization in the logistics industry denotes. Located in Kharghar, Navi Mumbai, the All Women Service Centre comprises a team of 16 enthusiastic women who don the role of managers, customer service representatives, security personnel as well as sales and counter staff. This dynamic team will provide customers with the exceptional service quality that is synonymous with Blue Dart. Apart from this, the organization is taking its diversity and Inclusivity initiative one step further. The ‘Employer of Choice’ plans on initiating more women into the Blue Dart family and will launch another service centre in Andheri, reminiscent of its Kharghar All Women Service Centre. The Andheri Service Centre will operate at a 70 per cent women team capacity and will work shoulder to shoulder setting the pace of gender diversity. Inaugurating the All Women Service Centre, Balfour Manuel, Managing Director, Blue Dart said, “With our ‘People First Philosophy’ at the forefront of our business, ALL our people – gender, age, race, caste no bar – continue to be a priority within the …

Sharing her experience in the logistics industry, Tulsi Mirchandaney, Managing Director, Blue Dart Aviation, says, “With many barriers of former all-male bastions being demolished slowly but surely, especially over the past two decades, I no longer believe that any industry is gender-specific – intentional or otherwise. Women have proved their capability in every field – from sports to space, and from country to corporate leadership. If air cargo and logistics is still a ‘male-dominated’ industry, then the failure is ours in not being able to provide an environment to attract the rich talent and gender diversity that would undoubtedly help to grow our companies and communities across the country. “To be fair, it has been refreshing to see an increasing number of women in our industry – entrepreneurs, professionals, and couriers – delivering with equal zest and pride,” she adds.