Category Archives: Aviation

New York’s JFK International Airport will get its first new cargo terminal in 20 years as part of modernisation programme. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has signed a long-term ground lease agreement with Aeroterm for the development of a $145m, 350,000 sq ft cargo facility on more than 26 acres. The facility will be operated by Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) once completed. The Aeroterm project will demolish two obsolete facilities at JFK and build an expanded facility that will incorporate “advanced technology systems designed for maximum efficiency in the handling and storage of cargo, as well as a dedicated temperature-controlled area for handling pharmaceutical products”. This includes greater ramp capacity to handle three large freighters and more than 50 dock doors. Demolition of the existing facilities is scheduled to begin in September 2021, with project completion expected by the end of 2023.

DHL Express, the world’s leading international express service provider, announced the launch of its OTP-based non-contact delivery service in India today, making it the first international logistics player to offer this service in the country. As an industry leader, the company has always been at the forefront of innovation. The launch of the non-contact delivery service will help to ensure maximum employee and customer safety, amidst the new normal. Commenting on this new offering, R.S Subramanian, Senior Vice-President & Managing Director, DHL Express India said, “The ongoing pandemic has made businesses rethink and re-invent operations. Safety of our employees and customers has always been our top priority, while ensuring business continuity. The launch of non-contact deliveries is a step towards enhancing customer experience, while maintaining safety standards at the time of delivery. It is a win-win for all.”

Royal Brunei Airlines (RB) will capitalise on the growth in its cargo operations through the conversion of an A320NEO into a dedicated cargo-in-cabin aircraft. Flying from 21st June the newly converted aircraft will operate initially five times weekly across the region and further grow RB’s strategic focus in the cargo sector. “We’re delighted to launch this new service to the cargo community to further support the strong regional demand and of course continue our role of transporting essential supplies and services into and from Brunei. Our cargo operation has performed strongly over the last 12 months and this A320NEO conversion allows us to further build on our capability, network and the strategic location of Brunei in the region to maximise the opportunity.” said Captain Khalidkhan Hj Asmakhan, RB’s CEO.

IAG Cargo and Air France KLM Martinair Cargo (AFKLMP Cargo) have partnered with more freight forwarders on Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) flights. IAG Cargo has partnered with Kuehne+Nagel (K+N) to complete its first net zero charter chain, comprised of 16 flights, using SAF. Operated between Stuttgart and Atlanta and partially powered with SAF, the charters marked the first time ever that passenger-freighter flights were operated with net-zero carbon emissions. K+N explained in a statement: “As SAF still produces some CO2 emissions, complete carbon neutrality was achieved by substituting each litre of jet fuel kerosene used with 1.25 litres of SAF.” The forwarder added that it is expanding its sustainable services offering to its customers with “innovative and easily customised shipping options”. “The overall commitment so far of 12.7m litres of SAF allows [our] customers to benefit from immediately available alternative fuel solutions to reduce CO2 emissions of their air freight globally,” the company said.

The world’s largest cargo airline will provide forwarders in Europe with real-time pricing, capacity, and eBookings via WebCargo. Qatar Airways Cargo announced that WebCargo by Freightos will be introduced across the European region* effective 30 June 2021. Forwarders will be able to conduct eBookings with access to live rates and available capacity on the WebCargo platform. With the implementation of WebCargo across Europe, the total count of countries in the airline’s network on the platform will increase to 32. This will allow customers to further digitalise their experience with the airline in the region, resulting in more process efficiencies and faster market responses. Qatar Airways Chief Officer Cargo, Mr. Guillaume Halleux, said: “We are glad to further roll out the third-party eBooking platform, WebCargo throughout Europe, as we aim to provide digital connectivity for our customers and extend digitalisation across our operations. This will bring in more efficiencies in the supply chain and provide multiple benefits for our customers. Our aim is to gradually roll out WebCargo throughout our global network during the year, providing convenience and transparency to our customers.”

The COVID-19 pandemic has dealt a major blow to the aviation industry, severely impacting passenger volumes, as well as revenues. Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru (KIAB/ BLR Airport), which managed a record 32.3 million passengers in FY2019-20, witnessed an unprecedented 66% decline in traffic during FY2020-21. During this period, BLR Airport welcomed only 10.91 million passengers since domestic air travel resumed in India on May 25, 2020, following a two-month suspension. 10.45 million passengers flew domestic routes, recording a 63% drop, as compared to 27 million in FY2019-20. International routes witnessed 4 million passengers in 2019-20 – the passenger footfall, however, declined substantially to 0.46m in FY2020-21, a decline of 90%. This is mainly attributed to the continued suspension of international flights and COVID-19 restrictions across the globe. After showing signs of recovery during the middle of the fiscal year, the traffic dropped significantly due to the rise in the number of COVID-19 cases in India, beginning February 2021.

Air cargo firm SpiceXpress and e-commerce logistics platform Delhivery have come together to build drone delivery capability in the country. SpiceXpress, which is the cargo division of airline firm Spicejet, is one of the key consortiums shortlisted by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to conduct trials on Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) drones in India, the statement said. “We are very excited about this project as it promises to be a game-changer in times to come. The MoU is a win-win for both companies leveraging their strengths to deliver great synergies”, said Sanjiv Gupta, CEO, SpiceXpress The collaboration is an extension of our long-standing relationship with Spicejet. We look forward to leveraging our capabilities to revolutionize the logistics ecosystem” added Ajith Pai, COO, Delhivery. Logistics firm Delhivery will provide the necessary on-ground support to ensure speedy and reliable first-mile and last-mile logistics, according to the statement.

Austrian Airlines has announced that it is ending its preighter operation after 15 months. The Lufthansa Group-owned airline’s long-haul passenger aircraft have regularly operated as freighter-only aircraft between Asia and Europe since March last year. Two B777s (OE-LPA and OE-LPC) even had their seats removed to boost cargo capacity and acted as the “backbone” of the operation. OE-LPA will be the last of the two aircraft to have its seats replaced and from July the aircraft will resume passenger flights to North America, among other destinations. “On 159 flights, we transported 4,500 tons of relief supplies to Europe in the fight against the pandemic,” the carrier said. “The cargo included 200m protective masks, 30m test kits and more than 15m medical gloves. We flew the goods to Austria, but also to Germany and Italy.”

Freight forwarder Crane Worldwide Logistics will in July launch charter flights between China and the US to combat ongoing issues in ocean shipping and tight capacity in air cargo. The service will launch on July 2 using B747-400 freighter capacity between Shanghai and Rickenbacker International Airport, leaving on Fridays and arriving on Saturdays. Crane’s chief sales officer Tim Zubradt explained that it had selected Rickenbacker due to the close proximity to the company’s Columbus warehouse and a one-day truck drive to major cities such as Chicago, New York and Washington. He also pointed out that there was congestion at many major US hubs, with Rickenbacker serving as an alternative US hub for incoming cargo. The service is launched as the ocean shipping industry continues to struggle with delays and reliability issues.

Qatar Airways Cargo announces the approval of Envirotainer’s latest innovation – The Releye® RLP container. With the newest addition to its range of temperature-controlled containers, the airline now offers 16 temperature-controlled container leasing options for life science and health care products to maintain a secure and seamless cool chain. It has been already offering customers Envirotainer’s RAP and RKN active pharma containers since 2014. Guillaume Halleux, Chief Officer Cargo at Qatar Airways said, “We are committed to provide our customers the best solutions. A seamless cool chain is paramount to maintain the efficacy of pharmaceuticals and we are pleased to offer our customers a technologically advanced container – Releye® RLP with live monitoring and intelligent cargo protection to transport their critical life science and health care shipments at the required temperature across our global network. Such an innovation is the need of the hour, especially in these uncertain times of the pandemic.”