Category Archives: Aviation

Astral Aviation, the Kenya-based cargo-only carrier, has uplifted 19.5 tonnes humanitarian cargo of vaccines in its first cargo flight from Mumbai International Airport Mumbai, India to Sanaa International Airport, Yemen via Djibouti-Ambouli International Airport. Sanjeev Gadhia, CEO and founder, Astral Aviation, stated, “Astral has never operated any flights to and from India which has been served via interline partners. During the pandemic, due to lack of direct capacity and connectivity between India and Africa, Astral has received a number of requests for the transportation of Covid-19 vaccines and pharma to and within Africa which are originating from Mumbai, Bangalore and Hyderabad. This inaugural flight offers new opportunities for Astral’s clients to move freight from India via Astral’s Nairobi hub, and we look forward to operate more charters in 2021 due to the high demand for medical cargo.” The aircraft arrived in Mumbai on April 18 at 16.00 hrs GMT from Nairobi via Muscat. On return, the routing will be from Mumbai-Djibouti (Ambouli International Airport)-Sanaa. As Ambouli airport is close to Yemen, all planes flying humanitarian cargo is expected to make a security stop before flying to Yemen. Astral has performed in excess of 300 charters for the humanitarian sector into Aden and Sanaa, using a combination of B727-200F, DC9F, CRJ200PF and Fokker 27. He is also confident that Astral Aviation will be able to operate more charters from India in 2021 due to the high demand for medical cargo.

Etihad Cargo has advanced its international digital booking reach through a new partnership with WiseTech Global Limited (ASX:WTC), a leading cloud-based software solutions provider for the global logistics industry. By leveraging WiseTech’s logistics execution platform, CargoWise, Etihad Cargo will seamlessly integrate with the world’s leading logistics providers who rely on CargoWise to carry out end-to-end logistics activities. “Now, more than ever, it is essential for the air cargo industry to accelerate its embrace of digital technologies. Etihad Cargo is carefully selecting partners to enhance customer experiences and streamline booking processes to provide additional convenience,” says, Martin Drew, Senior Vice President Sales and Cargo, Etihad Aviation Group. “Etihad Cargo’s previous API investments have resulted in the successful and seamless roll-out of integrated products with several digital booking platforms. The CargoWise partnership is anticipated to provide significant results through its extensive global customer base.” Etihad Cargo’s flight schedule, rates, capacity and eBooking functions are now available to freight forwarders using CargoWise as their core technology backbone, providing seamless access equivalent to a full API integration via the platform. Scott McCorquodale, Chief Automation Officer – Air Cargo, WiseTech, said, “We’re delighted to be partnering with Etihad Cargo to deliver these eBooking capabilities. This feature-rich integration will enable our CargoWise customers to seamlessly receive quotes, check capacity and immediately book their air cargo shipment. Most importantly, this can all be done from entirely within the CargoWise platform, providing efficiency and productivity benefits for the forwarder through data integration and improved visibility across their business. It truly is a win-win.”

Following a surge in cargo traffic during the pandemic, DHL Express has started cargo operations between Cork Airport and DHL Express’ largest European hub in Leipzig, Germany. The flights will be operated initially by a Boeing 767 lower deck aircraft five days per week, Monday to Friday inclusive. Niall MacCarthy, Managing Director at Cork Airport said, “We are delighted to welcome the DHL express cargo operations to Cork Airport. With the changes arising from Covid-19, it has provided the opportunity to us to diversify our business into new areas supporting cargo, offshore gas and wind operations. The aircraft to be operated by DHL is a large wide-body and we are delighted that Cork and Munster will now have an additional five times weekly air cargo operation to serve the expanding needs of the business community of the South of Ireland. We look forward to working with our new partners DHL Express into the future”, he added. Mike Farrell, Operations Director, DHL Express Ireland said, “The Cork region continues to be a hugely important part of the DHL Express Ireland network and as volumes continue to grow both in and out of the region, it has allowed us to take the next step in our development through operating a dedicated aircraft in this sector. This move will provide for earlier deliveries and later collections which will only serve to strengthen the commercial offer of customers within Cork.” Condor, the German leisure airline, has leased four Boeing 767-300’s to DHL to carry cargo instead of passengers. The aircraft are being used by DHL to supplement the increase in cargo capacity on a number of routes as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. …

According to the data provider WorldACD, air cargo’s final March figures show a year-on-year (YoY) worldwide growth of 21 per cent. The YoY change in the period March 1-15, 2021, stood at -0.2%, but the YoY growth in the second half of the month was +44%, making March the most two-faced month in air cargo living memory. “A clear reminder that the first lockdown started to bite air cargo by mid-March 2020,” says the data provider. “We looked at volume developments for the 30 largest markets first. For six of them (the origins USA Atlantic South, USA Midwest, Taiwan, Thailand, Belgium and Kenya), March 2021 was simply the best month since January 2018. The same was true for the destination markets China-East, South Korea, Japan, Belgium, the Netherlands and USA-Midwest. Other top-origins, notably China North East and Central, France, UK, India, and Australia, have not yet recovered. Their month of March remained more than 20% below their best month over the past three years. This is also the case for the destinations Australia, Canada East, China Northeast, Spain, South Africa and USA Northeast. Worldwide, March 2021 was only marginally lower than the same month in 2018 and 2019. This is the more remarkable when taking into account the enormous reduction in cargo capacity. YoY load factor improvements in each of the three first months of 2021, range between 15 and 20 %-points: airlines are clearly able to use their cargo space much more efficiently than in the past,” says WorldACD.

To develop on product innovation and to meet customer demands, KLM Cargo has introduced the Cargo Seat Bag, The carrier has carried out the first operational flight using 172 Cargo Seat Bag, carrying 950 boxes of medical relief goods like Corona test equipment, from Shanghai to Amsterdam in the cabin of our Boeing 777 on April 13. The user-friendly, easy-to-install and remove Cargo Seat Bag (CSB) was designed in collaboration with product developer and supplier Trip & Co. These bags not only protect the interior, seats, and entertainment systems but also double loading capacity on the seats, decrease physical strain during handling and prevent plastic waste. With this ‘quick change solution´, the cabin is ready again to welcome passengers within one hour. It can be used in our Boeing 777-200/300, Boeing 787-10 and Airbus A330-200 aircraft. Since the aviation industry was heavily hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and freight capacity remained low, KLM has been operating over 150 Cargo in Cabin (CiC) flights, carrying over 130 million medical relief goods and PPE material on seats. The Cargo Seat Bag is another example of creating innovative solutions by joining forces in this difficult time.

International logistics service provider Dachser has received the Center of Excellence for Independent Validators in Pharmaceutical Logistics (CEIV Pharma) certification from IATA for its Shanghai organisation including its PVG airport branch in March 2021. This marks the finalisation of a project of extensive preparation, complex procedures and detailed auditing, despite additional challenges caused by the global pandemic. With this certification, Dachser Shanghai now joins the very close circle of few logistics companies in the region to be recognized by IATA for temperature-controlled and time-sensitive products transportation. CEIV Pharma Certificate ensures that infrastructure, equipment, operations, and personnel are complied with the standards and regulations expected by pharmaceutical manufacturers. “A resilient and reliable logistics network for Life Science and Healthcare (LSH) products has proven critical in light of current events,” said Yves Larquemin, Managing Director ASL Far East North. “The professionalism and hard work put in by our colleagues to achieve certification by IATA will allow Dachser to play our part in the LSH industry.” Responding to growing global demand, Dachser has been expanding its LSH capabilities in its logistics network for years. The logistics service provider received its first CEIV Pharma certification in 2018 for its Frankfurt branch in Germany and by 2019 was also certified for its Atlanta branch in the US and its two Indian branches in Mumbai and Hyderabad. The Shanghai certification marks the company’s commitment on LSH and its excellence in handling such commodities which are extremely sensitive to time and temperature. In addition, with the Chinese government’s “Health China 2030” directive to invest in the health and well-being of its people, Dachser Shanghai’s accreditation makes it well poised to fill the increased demand in transporting medical …

SkyCell has partnered with Virgin Atlantic to contribute to its safe, secure, and sustainable shipment of valuable vaccines and pharma products. Virgin Atlantic will use SkyCell containers covering the full range of biologics transit temperature requirements: -80°C, -25°C to -15°C, +2°C to +8°C, and up to +15°C to + 25°C. The partnership will give customers confidence that their pharmaceutical shipments will arrive at destination safely, as the innovative hybrid containers – which have an average runtime of 202 hours – have a failure rate of less than 0.1 per cent. This is compared to an industry standard failure rate of up to 12 per cent, which cost the pharma industry $34.1 billion in 2019 alone. SkyCell’s containers have a number of additional innovative features, including shock absorbent feet to reduce vibrations and double doors system to eliminate potential humidity damage to the cargo. These containers also save large amounts of CO2, thanks to their lightweight, environmentally friendly material, design and efficiency. This partnership will further enable Virgin Atlantic to deliver pharmaceuticals through its Pharma Secure service, which was introduced for all urgent, valuable, and vulnerable pharmaceutical and life sciences shipments last year. Meeting the rising needs for pharmaceutical and life science products, Virgin Atlantic together with SkyCell offers end-to-end compliance and assurance of vaccines and other vital medicines. Dominic Kennedy, Managing Director at Virgin Atlantic Cargo, comments, “Our partnership with SkyCell takes our already well-established pharmaceutical offering to the next level. We want to offer our customers peace of mind so they can book confidently with us, knowing their precious cargo will arrive safely, securely, and on time. It will allow our customers to lease self-charging, temperature-controlled containers to boost …

A global air services provider, dnata, has been awarded IATA’s Centre of Excellence for Perishable Logistics (‘CEIV Fresh’) certification at Singapore Changi Airport for achieving the highest quality and standards in the temperature-controlled handling of perishable products, including fresh fruits, meat, fish, dairy and flowers. The transport of perishable goods by air increases constantly with growing consumer demand for healthy products all year round. The most important aspects of air transportation of perishables are time and temperature management to prevent food loss. The CEIV Fresh program meets these exacting requirements primarily based on the IATA Perishable Cargo Regulations (PCR) which combines professional regulatory and operational input from industry and government experts. Sam Gould, Head of Cargo – Singapore, dnata said, “There is an increasing demand for safe air transportation of temperature-sensitive goods. We constantly invest in infrastructure, training and process improvement to ensure that these delicate products reach the end-customer in perfect condition. IATA’s CEIV Fresh certification demonstrates the quality and reliability of our services, and supports Changi Airport’s positioning as the preferred cargo hub for time-, and temperature-sensitive shipments.” In addition to the CEIV Fresh certification, dnata holds IATA’s Center of Excellence for Independent Validators in Pharmaceutical Logistics (‘CEIV Pharma’) accreditation which demonstrates its ability to move pharmaceutical products under the strictest standards across its operations.

B Medical Systems, the Luxembourg-based pharma cold chain solutions provider, has signed up an agreement with SpiceXpress to open pharma logistics centres of excellence at Indian airports to facilitate transportation of vaccines, pharma preparation and biological specimens. B Medical Systems manufactures medical-grade vaccine refrigerators, laboratory freezers, ultra-low freezers, and transport boxes that can store and transport any vaccine in the temperature range of -86 °C to 8 °C. B Medical Systems has been working closely with governments across the world to strengthen their national vaccine cold chain for the roll-out of the Covid-19 vaccine. Sanjiv Gupta, CEO, SpiceXpress, said, “For the first time that the cold chain industry can lease the boxes from the pharma logistics centre of excellence which will be operated by SpiceXpress. We have not only tied up with one of the world’s best companies to give the best packaging solution but also a very new concept to the Indian manufacturers to save money and time while using these packets.” B Medical Systems will provide medical-grade transport solutions to SpiceXpress for the transportation of the Covid-19 vaccine and various pharmaceutical preparations across the country. The collaboration also covers the opening of several pharma logistics centres of excellence across several airports in India. Jean Claude Kugener, the ambassador of Luxembourg to India, said “This new cooperation will strengthen our bilateral cooperation and contribute hugely to the strong partnership between both countries that the prime minister Narendra Modi and prime minister Xavier Bettel had highlighted during their bilateral virtual summit a few months ago.’’ Jesal Doshi, CEO of the B Medical Systems’ India operations, said, “We are excited that our transport boxes that are also manufactured in India will …

Seeing a slight decrease of 0.9 per cent compared to the previous year, Dachser’s consolidated net revenue totaled EUR 5.61 billion. In contrast to the decline of 2.2 per cent in the road logistics business field, the air & sea logistics business field saw growth of 5.2 per cent. The business field benefited from having airfreight charter capacity of its own as well as from high freight rates for intercontinental transport. At the Group level, the number of shipments dropped by 2.5 per cent to 78.6 million, while tonnage fell by 2.9 per cent to 39.8 million metric tonnes. “We have delivered on our promise to be a rock of stability during the coronavirus crisis,” says, Burkhard Eling, CEO, Dachser. The compny kept its customers’ global supply chains running without interruption and came up with flexible solutions to capacity bottlenecks, particularly on intercontinental freight services. At the same time, the company provided the best possible protection for its employees’ health and supported its longstanding service partners in Europe. “Following a solid first quarter, the lockdowns in many European countries meant sometimes drastic declines in overland transport shipments,” says Eling. He adds, “There was a clear improvement by June, however, with volumes remaining more or less consistently above 2019 levels. Our business model has proved that it can withstand crises, at the same time boasting strong growth potential and adaptability.” Revenue at the air & sea logistics business field benefited from the shortages in air and sea freight capacity, and the corresponding rise in freight rates, throughout 2020. Buoyed by its activities in Asia, the business field upped its revenue by 5.2 per cent to a total of EUR 1.2 billion. …