Category Archives: Aviation

Coimbatore airport’s cargo department sent an export shipment of 2.5 tonnes of perishable cargo by bonded trucking to Kochi for the first time on September 12. N. Mahalingam, Director, Coimbatore Airport, flagged off the bonded truck with the perishable cargo to Kochi. “We had to send this shipment of perishables, including vegetables like onions and drumsticks, booked to Jeddah by bonded trucking as we have only passenger airlines flying out internationally,” said S. Subramanian, Senior Manager (Air Cargo). “Perishables, including vegetables, fruits and flowers, constitute 50 per cent of Coimbatore airport’s export volume, which is around 350 tonnes a year. There are space constraints because all international flight flying out of the city are relatively smaller and cargo space is available only after passengers are allocated their luggage space. On the other hand, Kochi has wide-bodied aircraft like the Boeing 747, which despite being a passenger flight can accommodate such a sizeable shipment,” he said.

The Chennai airport made way for the giant Antonov AN-124 aircraft, operated by a Russian freight company Volga-Dnepr Airlines, which landed in the city with 53.46 tonne of machinery from Xi’an Xianyang in China. The whole freight was unloaded and had to be carried on 13 trucks. This is first time an An-124 aircraft landed at Chennai airport with considerable amount of payload. Since the airport is a major gateway to south India, such hauls are expected to be a regular occurrence in future . AN-124 aircraft is designed for long-range delivery and air dropping of heavy and large-size cargo, including machines, equipment and troops and has got a payload capacity of up to 150 tonnes. AN-124 is 69.1-metre-long and has an extensive wingspan of 73.3 metre.

SpiceJet has unveiled dedicated air cargo services and inducted first freighter aircraft in its fleet, making it the first scheduled domestic airline in the country to diversify into the airfreight market. The airline has also created a separate division called ‘SpiceXpress’. Ajay Singh, Chairman and Managing Director, SpiceJet, shares, “We are very confident that there is a significant space for dedicated air freighter in the Indian market. The economy is growing at eight per cent and we are having an e-commerce boom in this country.” “The airline will initially start operations on the Delhi-Bengaluru route but will also look at Guwahati, Hong Kong, Amritsar and Kabul. The airline plans to induct four Boeing freighters this year, which will see the airline offering haulage of 27,000 tonnes per month from the current 15,000 tonnes. The new venture will be a division of SpiceJet. Initially, we will operate two Boeing 737-700s and two Boeing 737-800s,” Singh added. Currently, SpiceJet has a cargo capacity of 500 tonnes a day which is mostly as a result of the cargo carried in the belly of the 58-passenger aircraft it operates.

Air India SATS Airport Services (AISATS) has launched a new shipment tracking platform that uses Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology for its cargo handling operations at the Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru. The company will be the first air cargo terminal operator in India to initiate real-time and improved cargo tracking. This technological initiative is a collaboration between AISATS and its Singapore-listed joint venture stakeholder, SATS Ltd., which operates an unrivalled network of gateway services and food solutions in over 60 cities across Asia. With AISATS being the biggest ground handler at Kempegowda International Airport and managing two dedicated cargo handling centers, namely the AISATS Air Freight Terminal and the AISATS COOLPORT, the introduction of RFID technology will enable AISATS to undertake real-time cargo tracking for end-to-end visibility and faster turnaround. The RFID tracking system, capable of processing large quantities of cargo, will further bolster speed and accuracy, thereby making the cargo handling process more secure.

India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) has bagged Indian Air Force’s (IAF) ‘SPEEDEX’ (The Stores, Proactive, Efficient and Expeditious Despatch of Extra Size/ Wt Consignment) Cargo contract for ‘Surface Transportation’ of consignment weighing above 35 kgs for ‘door-to-door delivery’. The service launch and agreement was signed in the presence of Air Marshal RKS Shera, AVSM VSM, Air Officer- in-charge Maintenance and Ravneet Kaur, IAS, CMD, ITDC; Piyush Tiwari, Director (C&M), ITDC, along with senior officials of both the organisation at the Air Force Headquarters (Vayu Bhawan), New Delhi. According to the contract, ITDC’s travel arm, Ashok Travels and Tours, will ensure safe, reliable and secure movement of the Indian Air Force Surface cargo. The scope includes handling the consignments (collection and delivery) between IAF units located all over India. There are over 130 stations spread across the country. It will enhance support to Indian Air Force maintenance activities and improve operational preparedness, in the long run. Ashok Travels and Tours has been actively involved in cargo handling through surface, air as well as sea. In the recent times, ATT has handled several cargo consignments for defence forces.

Emirates SkyCargo has announced over 175 tonnes flood relief cargo to Kerala, India, joining the UAE community in their support for rebuilding the state.  Over more than a dozen flights of the air cargo operator will transport the relief goods, which have been donated by various UAE-based businesses and organisations, to Thiruvananthapuram – the nearest online Emirates station to the area’s most affected by the flood. The goods, including lifesaving boats, blankets and dry food items, will be handed over to the local flood relief and aid organisations for distribution.

Air Freight Institute (AFI) of FIATA shall conduct a conducive platform highlighting the opportunities and challenges in the air cargo industry across the globe at the FIATA World Congress (FWC) 2018. The session will be moderated by veteran air cargo personality Snehal Parikh, Managing Director, Lemuir Group. Panel speakers shall include Vandana Aggarwal, Economic Advisor, Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India; Kirsten De Bruijn, VC, Cargo Pricing and Interline-Revenue Operations, Emirates SkyCargo; Ashwin Bhat, Head Swiss WorldCargo; Andrea Gruber, Head – Special Cargo, IATA and Bill Gottlieb, Past President, FIATA. Andrea will provide insight on the information on the latest development in the framework of transport of temperature sensitive healthcare and pharmaceutical products, how the industry is responding to the CEIV Pharma Certification programme, the next key industry priorities and future developments in the airfreight industry.

With an objective to deliberate on trade related issues and policy matters pertaining to exports from Eastern India, an interactive session was organised under the aegis of FIEO with Suresh Prabhu, Minister of Commerce & Industry & Civil Aviation recently. Nari Kalwani, Regional Chairman, FIEO Eastern Region, stated that trade restrictive measures, volatility in currencies and liquidity challenges were rising threats to India’s exporters’ community. He stressed on the need for streamlining infrastructure and logistics issues to boost exports from Eastern Region. The issue of cargo detention at Indo-Bangladesh border due to infrastructural bottlenecks, was a matter which should be taken up through bilateral discussion between the two countries. Prabhu stated that he was glad that the number of exporters were rising in India. In the month of June 2018, there was a 20 per cent rise in exports of India as compared to the previous month. The government has taken large number of measures in few months to promote exports, amidst rising protectionism in developed countries. He also mentioned how India has taken a firm stand at international level to emphasise on the role of WTO for resolving global trade disputes.

Blue Dart has launched its state-of-the-art aviation hub in Chennai. The hub will measure 4,912 sqm upon completion and is strategically located at the Blue Dart Aviation Terminal, Gate 6 Old International Airport, Meenambakkam, Chennai, with both air and land side access, enabling fast and efficient transfer of shipments, improving faster transit times and further extending Blue Dart’s already market leading service quality. The new facility will also house the headquarters of Blue Dart Aviation. The hub boasts BCAS approved security screening with its own X-Ray machines, equipment and dedicated manpower. Malcolm Monteiro, CEO, DHL eCommerce India, said, “The new aviation hub will further improve our already market-leading transit times and boost on-time performance, further strengthening our promise of being the nation’s most reliable logistics brand. As part of the world’s leading logistics company, we are committed to supporting India business and will continue to be the logistics provider of choice for the sub-continent.” Anil Khanna, Managing Director, Blue Dart, added, “We continue to invest heavily in technology and infrastructure to create differentiated delivery capabilities, provide the best quality services and customised solutions for our customers.”

Jetex Oceanair customs has cleared 25 tonnes of explosive cargo, consisting of 1500 pkgs, in a chartered light, TU-204C aircraft. “The cargo for Almaty has been handled from CCU Airport for the first time and perhaps is the single largest uplift of class I DG cargo in India,” informs Jaideep Raha, Managing Director, Jetex Oceanair. The explosives were packed into the special thermally insulated, water-proof and crush-proof boxes, shipped from Mumbai. Raha said, “The boxes were very carefully looked in an operation that begun on May 26 night and carried on till late next morning. The area around the aircraft was cordoned off and utmost security measures were taken to avoid any untoward incident.”