Category Archives: Aviation

Air Cargo up 9.1% in September, capacity remains constrained

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released September 2021 data for global air cargo markets showing that demand continued to be well above pre-crisis levels and that capacity constraints persist. As comparisons between 2021 and 2020 monthly results are distorted by the extraordinary impact of COVID-19, unless otherwise noted, all comparisons below are to September 2019 which followed a normal demand pattern. • Global demand, measured in cargo tonne-kilometers (CTKs*), was up 9.1% compared to September 2019 (9.4% for international operations). • Capacity remains constrained at 8.9% below pre-COVID-19 levels (September 2019) (-12% for international operations). “Air cargo demand grew 9.1% in September compared to pre-COVID levels. There is a benefit from supply chain congestion as manufacturers turn to air transport for speed. But severe capacity constraints continue to limit the ability of air cargo to absorb extra demand. If not addressed, bottlenecks in the supply chain will slow the economic recovery from COVID-19. Governments must act to relieve pressure on global supply chains and improve their overall resilience,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General.

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Air Canada Cargo’s new API solution to improve efficiency

The Application Programming Interface (API) solution for Air Canada Cargo customers is live now. By being directly integrated with Air Canada Cargo, customers will be able to reduce the amount of time taken to complete a booking or AWB, resulting in improved efficiency. This API solution will improve efficiency for customers by manual interactions such as quoting, booking, scheduling, and track and trace requests. It will also improve connectivity and collaboration, as well as the overall customer experience by connecting different systems and processes to offer an enhanced booking flow. “We are thrilled to implement this important technology for Air Canada Cargo and are excited about the role it will play in advancing the industry toward the digitization of processes, and indeed our business as a whole. This will be beneficial for Air Canada Cargo’s valued customers who will be able to take advantage of the many benefits this API will provide,” said Matthieu Casey, senior director, Global Sales and Revenue Optimization.

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Turkish Cargo announces cargo flights to Macau

Turkish Airlines’ brand, Turkish Cargo, recently added Macau to the list, strengthening its flight network. After Hong Kong, Macau, one of the economic centers of China, will be among its destinations served with direct cargo flights. The number of direct cargo flights has reached 97 including Macau starting today on November 1, 2021. Located in the Guangdong province of China; Macau is an important center in terms of tourism and finance and hosts market leaders of sectors such as high technology, e-commerce, electronics and textiles. Turkish Cargo aims to strengthen the air cargo bridge it has established between Europe and the Far East with the reliable, fast and direct air transportation it offers to logistics service providers with Airbus A330F type wide-body cargo aircraft on ISL-ALA-MFM-ALA-ISL (Istanbul Ataturk Airport, Almaty International Airport, Macau International Airport, Almaty International Airport, Istanbul Ataturk Airport) route.

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Hactl returns to normal operations

Hactl has returned to full manning and normal operations, following the reporting on October 7th of a single case of COVID-19 in the company’s ramp handling team, which led to the quarantining of his close work contacts by Hong Kong’s Centre for Health Protection. All quarantined staff subsequently tested negative, have now been released from the quarantine centre and have returned home. The manpower shortage resulting from the quarantine affected around 20% of flights but – despite the additional impact on all airport operations of two typhoons on October 9th and 13th – the situation was progressively brought under control through increased overtime, re-scheduling of some flights, re-deployment of other ramp-trained Hactl staff and subcontracting of some duties to other operators. Less than 5% of Hactl’s workforce were affected, and over 80% of flights were handled within normal time frames. Hactl’s terminal operations were not affected. There is no truth in some reports of two-three day delays.

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PHD Chamber urges the Government to expedite Cargo Clearance at Airports

There is immense congestion in cargo clearance at Airports, especially in Delhi Airport Cargo Terminals due to sudden mandate by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) to follow the order of 2015 regarding rules of screening export cargo, said Pradeep Multani, President, PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, in a press statement issued here today. The order regarding the change in the operational method of x-ray of cargo (Aviation Security Service (AVSEC) Order no. 11/2015) states that before delivery to air carrier, all cargo processed at the terminals shall be subject to 100% X-Ray screening at piece level. This decision of screening cargo on a piece level basis is a cumbersome task, which requires more manpower, security staff and x-ray machines, said Multani. The catastrophic effect causes high congestion at the airport due to slow cargo clearance at piece level, average time for a shipment has increased from 12 hours to 1-2 days, shippers have to pay higher demurrage, staff of the shippers has to work for a long shift to clear the order and even some export orders are getting affected, said Multani.

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AMERICAN AIRLINES CARGO SUPPORTS EXTENSIVE TRANSATLATIC NETWORK

American Airlines Cargo further enhances its transatlantic services for cargo customers this winter with direct service from London Heathrow (LHR) to nine key U.S. cities starting in November onward. The airline will operate doubly daily service from LHR to John. F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), and daily service to Boston Logan International Airport (BOS), Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), Miami International Airport (MIA), Philadelphia International Airport (PHL), Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD) and Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) all starting in November. Additionally, German customers will see a special limited-time service in November between Frankfurt Airport (FRA) and CLT to connect Germany to the important production and consumption centers in the U.S. South East. “These winter services are tremendous news for American Airlines customers in the UK and Europe where capacity to the U.S. and beyond has proved to be very tight over the last eighteen months,” says Tim Isik, Sales Director – EMEA & APAC for American Airlines Cargo.

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MoCA announces new cargo terminals in Gujrat under the Krishi UDAN 2.0 scheme

The Union Ministry of Civil Aviation launched the Krishi UDAN 2.0 scheme on with additional 4 locations – Ahmedabad, Vadodra, Rajkot and Bhavnagar – in Gujrat have been identified to set up cargo terminals with the development of hub and spoke model along with a freight grid. Jyotiraditya Scindia, Union Minister of Civil Aviation, said, “This scheme will open up more avenues of growth for the agricultural sector and help attain the goal of doubling farmers’ income by removing barriers in supply chain, logistics and transportation of farm produce.” The Krishi UDAN 2.0 scheme has given a full waiver of airport charges at select airports including Srinagar, Dibrugarh, Imphal, Jorhat, Lucknow, Tuticorin and Kozhikode among many others.

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Blue Dart announces Q2 results with all-time highs for revenue and earnings

Blue Dart Express Limited, declared its financial results for the quarter ended September 30 2021, at its Board Meeting held in Mumbai. The company posted ₹895 million profit after tax (previous year corresponding quarter was at ₹414 million) for the quarter ended September 30, 2021; Revenue from operations for the quarter ended September 30, 2021 stood at ₹11,236 million. Revenue from operations for the half year ended September 30, 2021 stood at ₹19,884 million and profit after tax at ₹1,189 million. Balfour Manuel, Managing Director, Blue Dart says, “The company witnessed strong pull back in demand during the quarter as wave II of pandemic started slowing down. All economic indicators like GDP growth, Index for Industrial Production, GST collections etc. reflected strong recovery. Growth during the quarter is testimony to heightened business activities of key industrial verticals.”

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MOCA discusses boosting Air cargo services with the Cargo Advisory Group

Minister of Civil Aviation, Jyotiraditya Scindia met the Cargo Advisory Group today to discuss key issues in further boosting the Air cargo services. Members present during the meeting were Vipin Vohra, Cyrus N Katgara, Keku Bomi Gazder, Sanjiv Edward and others. The presentation was given by the Cargo Advisory Group, led by Cyrus Katgara, President ACFI. The discussion involved making an effective Air Cargo Eco-System with strong International Airline network, robust domestic air connectivity, Multi Modal connectivity and Hinterland Connectivity through AFS Spokes. Members from FFFAI also shared some key issues required to be addressed such as: * TDS on Freight Commissions charged by Airlines/Shippers – Double Deduction, * TDS Lower Deduction/ Nil Deduction Certificate issued u/s 197 of the Income Tax Act to the Airlines. * “Foreign Exchange Earner” recognition to the Freight Forwarders (FF’s) and Custom Brokers (CB’s) under service exports. * Clarity Sought by Freight Forwarders on certain points regarding SEIS scheme.

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Air freight rates see a rise of 86% in August 2021 vs 2019

Air freight rates were 86 percent higher in August 2021 compared to the 2019 baseline and 20 percent more than the 2020 level. Rates will remain high on huge demand growth against the limited capacity increase, according to the DHL report on the Airfreight state of the industry. Volume growth was strong at +21 percent year-on-year in August 2021. The airfreight market is set to see strong demand due to the upcoming ecommerce events like Black Friday and Singles Day. Another key reason for the high demand is the conversion of ocean freight to air due to port congestion in the U.S. Rates continued to remain high in August as manufacturers were replenishing stocks using air freight, the report said.

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