Category Archives: Aviation

Lufthansa Cargo is taking part in a new project by the German government to digitalise air cargo. The Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure’s (BMVI) “Digital Test Field Air Cargo” project is being coordinated by the Fraunhofer Institute for Material Flow and Logistics (IML). Within the project, Lufthansa Cargo said it is focusing on intensified data exchange between all partners in the transport chain, even beyond the roles that have been typical in the transport process to date. This data exchange is the basis for all data-driven optimisations and AI-based applications. For example, digital accompanying documents from manufacturers to consignees will be made available to all parties by using IATA’s new, open ONE Record standard. This standard was co-designed by Lufthansa Cargo. Likewise, temperature data, position data and photos of the entire transport chain are to be made available in order to identify and solve problems earlier. This can increase transparency and make processes and capacities more efficient through better forecasts and higher data quality. Eventually, this also leads to a reduction in CO2 emissions, said Lufthansa Cargo.

Even amidst the various challenges that arose in global supply chain due to the pandemic, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) witnessed promising signs of EXIM movement going back to the pre-COVID days. CSMIA’s Air Cargo terminal in CY 2021 handled a record 7.7 lakh tones of cargo which is 28% more than around 6 lakh tones of cargo facilitated in 2020. CSMIA in the past year facilitated the increasing demand of export goods across the globe and has month-on-month witnessed a steady rise in shipments while combating the second wave of Covid-19. In CY 2021, of the approx. 7.7 lakh tonnes of cargo handled, around 2.1 lakh tonnes was facilitated domestically while over 5.6 lakh tonnes was facilitated internationally, thus, recording a 30% rise in domestic volume and 27% rise in international volume in comparison to CY 2020. The overall cargo volume at CSMIA is expected to witness a 10% growth in CY 2022 and is projected to achieve 95% of pre-covid volume by the end of CY 2022. CSMIA has successfully mobilized essential commodities across India and the world considering the fact that essentials including pharmaceutical goods, vaccines, COVID-related aid & agro products saw a prominent rise in the past year. CSMIA, since the start of the pandemic, has handled over 10,000 cargo relief flights and transported over 12,000 tonnes of COVID-19 relief cargo which includes Covid vaccines & medicines, Oxygen concentrators & generators, diagnostic kits, medical equipment, face masks & face shields etc.

Amerijet International Airlines will implement SmartKargo’s cloud-based cargo management solution to offer improved efficiency and a streamlined user experience for its customers. SmartKargo offers a suite of integrated tools and solutions to support essential cargo functions from customer management, pricing and sales, operations, and warehouse management, to loading and unloading and ramp operations. “SmartKargo will take Amerijet to the next level. Our customers and employees will find it easier to use than any other tool,” said chief executive Tim Strauss. “SmartKargo’s end-to-end platform is accessible from any device, our global network will be delighted with this change.” The partnership with SmartKargo comes at a time when Amerijet is deploying a series of strategic digital investments that aim to transform, automate and improve the service provided to its customers. Amerijet, one of the first dedicated all-cargo airlines in the world to adopt the SmartKargo platform, operates its own dedicated fleet of freighters from its primary hub at the Miami International Airport to destinations throughout the Caribbean, Mexico, Central America, South America and Europe.

Envirotainer, the global market leader in secure cold chain solutions for air transportation of pharmaceuticals, has launched its latest innovation, the Releye® RAP. This is complemented by the new Control Tower managed service. The Releye® RAP sets a new benchmark for temperature-controlled 5-pallet solutions. The largest of the new generation Releye® containers, the RAP is the only one of its type in the world, combining big capacity with superior features. Designed to meet the strictest requirements in pharmaceutical air freight, the integrated live monitoring enables a unique insight into product condition, location and progress of the shipment. With its increased efficiency and capacity, it reaches outstanding CO2 reductions per shipment, and is the future solution for secure cold chain shipments. All monitored and maintained with the new service Control Tower. The Releye® RAP is the second in a family of advanced temperature-controlled air freight containers Envirotainer is developing. It joins the 3-pallet Releye® RLP launched in 2021. The foundation of the Releye® platform are the five pillars: Control, Monitoring, Autonomy, Value and Sustainability.

Turkish Cargo has moved its freighter operations over to Istanbul Airport to join its passenger flights after more than two years of operating with a dual-hub setup. With the airline’s new cargo hub, named SMARTIST, now fully operational the airline took the decision to transfer freighter operations to the new airport. In total, 4,125 pieces of equipment of 80 different types were transferred to Istanbul Airport as part of the move. The re-location took a total of 72 hours. Turhan Ozen, chief cargo officer at Turkish Airlines, said, “During the last three years, we carried out a substantial operation in both of our hubs. While we made use of our freighters at the Ataturk Airport, we benefited from our passenger aircraft and the pax-freighters capacity at the Istanbul Airport. We performed approximately 30,000 flights, 23,000 of which were performed by making use of our freighters and 6,000 of which were by pax-fighters, and we transported more than 4m air cargo shipments, 2.5m tons of which were transported from/to the Ataturk Airport and 1.8 m tons of which were transported from/to the Istanbul Airport.” The SMARTIST hub will eventually have an annual capacity of 4m tonnes and measure 340,000 sq m.

DHL Global Forwarding and Air France KLM Martinair Cargo (AFKLMP) have teamed up on the purchase of 33m litres of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). The partners said the three-year cooperation represents one of the most “significant SAF purchases in the freight forwarding industry”. DHL has committed to covering at least 30% of its air and ocean fuel requirements with sustainable fuels by 2030. “Since it is nearly impossible both technically and logistically to physically track SAF from production to the airplane, ‘book & claim’ offers a digital accounting system to track and transfer emissions reductions from sustainable fuels across the value chains,” the partners said. Adriaan den Heijer, executive vice president, Air France KLM Cargo and managing director Martinair, said: “The Air France KLM Martinair Cargo teams are strongly committed and feel responsible for creating a sustainable future for our industry. This deal is a great opportunity to accelerate our joint sustainability efforts. Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) has a lot of potential to reduce CO2 emissions and we are delighted to collaborate with our strong, long-term partner DHL Global Forwarding on this journey to greener logistics and transportation in the coming years.” Tim Scharwath, chief executive, DHL Global Forwarding, Freight, added: “With our Sustainability Roadmap, we have set ourselves ambitious goals on our journey towards zero emissions. Sustainable fuels are a fundamental part of our efforts. That is why we have committed to covering at least 30% of airfreight and oceanfreight fuel requirements with sustainable fuels by 2030. Our partnership with AFKLMP will help us achieve that goal”.

Ground handler Swissport reported a successful business year in 2021, primarily due to its cargo unit. The company processed 5.1m tonnes of cargo at its more than 100 air cargo facilities last year, which is an all-time high and represents a 10% increase compared with pre-pandemic 2019 levels. Meanwhile, the company’s larger airport ground services business is still “severely affected by the global travel restrictions”. Last year passenger numbers stood at 97m compared with 265m in 2019 and flights handled stood at 2m against 4.1m pre-pandemic. Swissport International chief executive and president Warwick Brady said: “I am immensely proud that our teams around the globe – in an extremely challenging environment – have collectively delivered a very respectable result. “It demonstrates the resilience and reliability of our company as an airline partner. We have intensified our customer engagement in recent months and continue to bring in new business and grow existing accounts. For 2022, we expect an accelerated recovery of global air traffic, latest by the start of the summer holidays in the northern hemisphere. This will also boost demand for airport ground services.”

Flexport has added more air cargo charter capacity in response to what it expects to be another robust year for airfreight. The freight forwarder has announced a deal with JetOneX, which currently operates B747Fs, to provide services on the Asia to Europe trade lane. The service will operate twice a week between Hong Kong and Maastricht (MST), and once a week between Ho Chi Minh City and Maastricht. Neel Jones Shah, executive vice president airfreight at Flexport, said: “Disruption in the airfreight market caused by global uncertainty and rapidly changing Covid regulations continue to result in cancellations and volatile pricing for our customer. “By partnering with JetOneX, we’re able to grow our capacity, and our customers will enjoy best-in-class service flying into an uncongested MST airport as a gateway for the rest of Europe. In the future, we plan to build upon this service to create a reliable network of scheduled services that our customers can rely on whenever they need it.”

To mark the occasion of the Chinese New Year, Etihad Cargo, the cargo and logistics arm of the Etihad Aviation Group, today launches a Mandarin edition of its website, etihadcargo.com. With China contributing to more than 20 per cent of Etihad Cargo’s operations, the country represents one of the UAE national carrier’s biggest markets. The launch marks a key milestone as Etihad Cargo looks to further strengthen its position within the Chinese market. Starting 8 February, all visitors to etihadcargo.com from China will automatically be routed to the Mandarin version of the site, where they will be able to access information about product offerings, as well as station capabilities, feedback options, and claims’ details in the local language. “Launching the Mandarin version of etihadcargo.com aims to facilitate access to information for Etihad Cargo’s customers and partners in the Chinese market,” said Jacqueline Han Lin Ni Area Manager North Asia Pacific at Etihad Cargo. “The new Mandarin website is another step to cementing Etihad Cargo’s strategic footprint with the Chinese market,” added Ni. “The carrier is also working on a Mandarin version of the new booking portal, demonstrating Etihad Cargo’s commitment to its partners in China, as well as its intention to help improve and expand its digital portfolio and streamline its services for customers. “With the addition of a Mandarin-language version of the portal, Etihad Cargo is confident of strengthening and solidifying its position in the Chinese logistics industry”.

Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru (BLR Airport), the third busiest Airport in India, is making significant contributions to India’s aviation growth story by facilitating robust connectivity to non-metro cities, providing opportunities to people to fly as well as drive regional economic growth. In the process, BLR Airport has emerged as the preferred transfer hub for South India. Currently, BLR Airport serves 74 domestic destinations (in CY 2021)—the highest ever since airport opening date, as compared to 54 routes during pre-COVID and is also the highest amongst South Indian Airports. These additions have mainly been to non-metro destinations, and as a result, flights to non-metro routes have shown a considerable increase from 58% (pre-COVID) to 63% in CY 2021. Moreover, between Q1 and Q4 of 2021, traffic on non-metro routes increased by 27%, reinforcing strong demand on these city-pairs. During the CY 2021, nearly 19% of traffic at BLR Airport comprised of transfer passengers as against ~10% pre-COVID. The major airports contributing to high volumes of transfer passengers at BLR Airport were Chennai, Kochi, Hyderabad and Goa. Apart from the increase in non-metro connectivity, the geographical location of Bengaluru and the growing economy of the State of Karnataka has helped in positioning BLR as the major aviation gateway of South and Central India. BLR Airport offers a wide catchment area of 23 cities within a convenient flying time of 75 mins. This, coupled with growth in non-metro connectivity, has helped in building the transfer traffic market at BLR Airport.