Category Archives: Aviation

Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru (KIAB/ BLR Airport) processed 99,154 MT of cargo in the first five months between April and August 2020, recording a 92% growth in cargo air traffic movements. It offers the largest air cargo terminal in South India, with a handling capacity of 570,000 MT and an average travel time of nine hours from major manufacturing clusters across South India. BLR Airport is emerging as the preferred cargo gateway for industries from the region, making it the third busiest Cargo Airport in the Country and the busiest in South India. To bring further efficiencies into Cargo operations, BIAL recently announced the implementation of the Air Cargo Community System (ACS) to streamline the air logistics supply chain. This digital platform will enable seamless collaboration between all stakeholders in the supply chain to deliver superior and efficient cargo operations at BLR Airport.

In order to satisfy clients’ needs in the US market, LATAM Cargo Group has increased its frequencies from Colombia to the United States. The Group has increased its capacity by 21 per cent from Bogota, going from 14 to 17 weekly freighter frequencies to Miami. This destination is also reached through the 5 weekly frequencies originating in Medellin that the company will maintain. LATAM Cargo offers 22 frequencies in total, thus reaffirming its commitment to transporting Colombia’s flowers to the world. Once the Colombian Government gave its approval and passenger flights were reactivated, the company gradually began to restore its domestic cargo transportation capacity in 8 of the country’s cities.

Using its Bombardier Q400 freighters, SpiceJet has launched 14 new cargo flights to and from North Eastern India ensuring unparalleled connectivity with the rest of the country. The airline will operate daily cargo flights on Kolkata-Guwahati, Guwahati-Kolkata, Kolkata-Imphal and Imphal-Kolkata sectors. SpiceJet has also introduced cargo flights between Kolkata and Guwahati via Aizawl and Dimapur which will operate twice-a-week. The airline will also operate cargo flights on the Kolkata-Agartala and Agartala-Guwahati sectors thrice-a-week and twice-a-week on Kolkata-Silchar and Silchar-Guwahati routes. In line with its commitment to enhance regional connectivity, SpiceJet is the first Indian carrier to introduce dedicated cargo flights for North Eastern India. The dedicated cargo flights will help transport fresh fruits, vegetables, flowers, perishables, fish seeds, fresh fish, pharmaceuticals, medical equipment, express cargo and other general cargo. Besides improving logistics and connectivity, the new freighter service will boost the growth of trade in the North Eastern markets and help Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME). SpiceJet connects Guwahati with key cities across the country including Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Chennai, Patna, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Amritsar and has been transporting cargo both to and from the capital of Assam using the belly space of its passenger aircraft. Shri Sarbananda Sonowal, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Assam, said, “Farmers from the region can now transport their fresh farm produce across the country and internationally also.” The minister urges local businesses, traders, entrepreneurs to make use of this opportunity that provides us access to markets not only within India but across the globe. He says, “SpiceJet dedicating a part of its fleet to improving connectivity and strengthening the supply chain in Assam and North East is a welcome step that will immensely help …

Developed by operator Fraport, Swissport Cargo Services Deutschland is set to open a new cargo handling warehouse at Frankfurt Airport. Swissport is aiming to start operations at the facility in November. Located in CargoCity South at Frankfurt Airport (FRA), the new building has 17,000 sq m of floor space, including temperature-controlled zones for handling sensitive pharmaceutical products. There are also 2,400 sq m of office and communal space. Willy Ruf, Senior Vice President – Central & Eastern Europe, Swissport International, said, “From November, we will be in a position to handle the cargo of our customers in Frankfurt in one of Europe’s most state-of-the-art air cargo centers. Our new cargo warehouse has 50 per cent more handling capacity and is therefore a commitment to growth at Frankfurt Airport. With the integrated Swissport Pharma Center, which has several cooling zones, we are well-equipped to satisfy the stringent requirements for the temperature-controlled transportation of medicines and vaccines.” “The property meets the stringent requirements of a cutting-edge air cargo handling facility,” said Felix Kreutel, Head – Real Estate and Energy, Fraport, in adding, “The warehouse connects the airside and landside areas of the airport through separate freight yards. Moreover, its ground-breaking material-handling system represents an important step in the continued automation of our freight processes.

STARLUX Airlines has deployed IBS Software’s iCargo platform to manage business and operational functions for its entire cargo business. The iCargo management platform was implemented ahead of STARLUX Airlines’ launch in January 2020, which saw maiden flights to Macau, Penang and Da Nang with three A321neo aircraft. After a rigorous evaluation process, STARLUX Airlines chose IBS Software’s iCargo SaaS-based cargo platform to provide a single, unified platform for all critical functions. iCargo now manages all aspects of STARLUX’s cargo business, including sales, airline operations, US customs, mail, Unit Load Device, cashiering, claims, cargo and mail revenue accounting, portal services, data warehousing and business intelligence modules. “We chose the industry-leading iCargo management platform to achieve our goal of providing the best and seamless cargo service to our customers,” said Glenn Chai, CEO, STARLUX Airlines. “So far, iCargo has proved itself to be well worth the investment. It is an advanced digital solution featuring advanced and user-friendly functions. STARLUX is very glad to have made the right choice.” STARLUX plans to expand its network with additional A321neo aircraft scheduled for delivery, plus wide-body A350 XWB aircraft. iCargo is fully enabled to support this future growth and continue to empower STARLUX to deliver on its brand promise to customers.

In response to increased demand for pharma and technology goods, DHL Global Forwarding (GF) has announced an airfreight charter service connecting Asia Pacific to Europe and the US. DHL GF’s in-house charter team, the twice-weekly charter originates from Chongqing and flies to Amsterdam, Chicago and Incheon before returning to China. According to DHL GF, South Korea has seen its export of healthcare products rise year-on-year by 26.7 per cent in the first half of 2020; pharma goods meanwhile increased by 52.5 per cent. DHL GF added that China has exported 28.5% more medical devices in the first five months of the year, compared with a year ago. Thomas Mack, Global Head – Airfreight, DHL GF, says, “While some passenger airlines have resumed operations, the situation in the airfreight market remains volatile – especially as belly capacity is still tight. Our top priority is to provide our customers with sufficient and reliable airfreight capacity. Not only are the resilient, agile and reliable supply chains of highest importance for an economic recovery, but also in preparation for the availability of vaccines and other essential medical supplies during the pandemic.”

Bolloré Logistics partnered with Antonov Airlines to deliver Airbus Defence and Space’s newest satellite, ANASIS-II to the USA. It was carried from Airbus Defence and Space’s facility in Toulouse (France) by one of the airline’s seven Antonov-124-100. The aircraft landed at Florida’s Cape Canaveral Kennedy Space center from where the SpaceX teams took the lead for the next stage. The satellite container used to deliver ANASIS-II measured 11 meters in length and weighed 18 tonnes. The operation gave Bolloré Logistics and Antonov Airlines the opportunity to trial a new lightweight, low profile loading equipment specially designed and manufactured by Antonov Airlines to transport largest satellite container in near future.

To meet demands of customers for re-export & long-term storage of bonded cargo at minimal logistics cost, Bangalore International Airport (BIAL) has opened India’s first on-Airport Public Bonded Warehouse. Operated by Cargo Service Center (CSC), the 10,000 sq ft warehouse facility will be under the jurisdiction of the City Commissionerate, Bengaluru Customs. This facility will reduce supply chain costs and facilitate trade at India’s IT hub and surrounding regions. The Public Bonded Warehouse will help re-export of goods, long-term storage of bonded cargo, assist in partial clearances and allow value-added services such as labeling, packing and repacking services. “At BIAL, our vision is to make BLR Airport a cargo hub, equipped with state-of-the-art infrastructure and cutting-edge technology to deliver efficient operations. In order to simplify processes and meet customer demands with the help of key stakeholders, including the Bengaluru Customs, BIAL has taken this step to set up India’s first on-campus Public Bonded Warehouse. This demonstrates BIAL’s commitment to support the Airport cargo community, as well as bolster the growth of BLR Airport as a cargo hub,” said Satyaki Raghunath, Chief Strategy & Development Officer, BIAL.

In order to create a single digital access point for all stakeholders for information and seamless communications, Siemens India has integrated its systems with the Air Cargo Community System (ACS) framework at Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) called as GMAX. ACS is developed by Kale Logistics Solutions (Kale). It enables the agency to enter and view the data directly, thereby avoiding duplicate data entries and to receive updates on real-time cargo status. Manoj Singh, Sr. VP – Head of Cargo, MIAL said, “Technology plays a very crucial role in ensuring seamless processes at MIAL Air Cargo, and was the primary motivation behind the launch of GMAX in 2013. The ease of integration of the portal with Siemens speaks volumes about the relevance and future scope of GMAX towards air cargo operations. It also enables us to further extend this service to import consignees, regulators and global airports initially to start with CEIV certified partner airports in a phased manner.” Dr. Pramod Sant, VP- Head of Import, Export and Customs of Siemens India said, “Time criticality is an essential factor for Siemens. With ACS integration we made the right move to give our organization and stakeholders the immediate value needed during these uncertain times. We strongly believe Kale’s ACS will help us meet our long-term strategic business initiatives.” Amar More, CEO, Kale Logistics Solutions, said, “Logistics is all about speed, visibility and connecting different stakeholders for efficiency. This is probably another global first for the Mumbai air cargo community wherein the exporter/importer has connected directly with the ACS. We are proud to be part of this initiative and are committed to digitally transform the airport cargo community globally.”

London Heathrow Airport’s air cargo community has successfully completed its first trial of IATA’s ONE Record technologies, which aim to replace the legacy Cargo-Imp and XML standards. The vision for ONE Record is an end-to-end digital logistics and transport supply chain where data is easily and transparently exchanged in a digital ecosystem of air cargo stakeholders, communities and data platforms. Its objective is to address the main challenges of e-freight and unlock the possibilities of a full digital air cargo industry, creating opportunities for new value-added services and business models. Working on behalf of CCS-UK, the operator of the UK’s air cargo community system, US application development and data management specialist Nexshore built a ONE Record server based in the UK, to control the storage and transmission of the ONE Record data objects which form the core of the new concept. The server was built to the latest ONE Record standards, but was also designed to support earlier versions. In addition, security to the latest IATA specifications was built into the CCS-UK platform. “We are delighted at how well this initial pilot has gone, but we need additional participants in order to test the system on a larger scale, under everyday working conditions and with higher traffic levels,” says Malcolm Fowler, CCS-UK User Group. “ONE Record may not seem like the most important priority for the industry right now, but in fact there has never been a better time to adopt it. It delivers greater efficiency and potential cost savings, and low implementation costs. In addition, through the total transparency and uniformity it brings to the supply chain, it provides the kind of seamless data flows and visibility which shippers …