Category Archives: Aviation

The much-awaited Cold Chain Unbroken (CCUB) 2023 event organised by WIZ finally kicked off at the Taj Bengaluru. The inaugural Session delved deep into the government’s vision, highlighting the pivotal policies that bolster the Indian Cold Chain Industry and logistics sector. Dr. S. Selvakumar graced the occasion as the Chief Guest, and shared invaluable insights shaping the path forward. Kajal Singh, Principal Commissioner, ACC and Airport also focused on the evolving cold chain and logistics sector. Satyaki Raghunath, Chief Cargo Officer, BIAL, Satish Lakkaraju, Global Head Air Freight and Pharma at WIZ, and Ramkumar Govindarajan, Founder and CEO together with dignitaries performed the lamp lighting ceremony. “The theme of this event, Cold Chain Unbroken, encapsulates the fundamental goal we all share to establish an unbroken chain of temperature control, storage, transportation and the distribution of goods. Achieving this objective requires a collaborative effort from government agencies, private entrepreneurs, research institutions and stakeholders involved. It also necessitates embracing cutting edge technologies and the best practices to address the challenges that lies ahead. Karnataka has a considerable number of approximately 233 cold storage facilities, collectively offering a substantial overall capacity. The remaining cold storage facilities are owned and operated by private players in the state. This distribution of ownership highlights the collaboration between government agencies and private entrepreneurs in providing essential cold storage infrastructure to further assist in the process of releasing and logistics policy of Karnataka that will provide fiscal incentive for setting up cold chain facilities in Karnataka,” said the chief guest.

Combined Logistics Solutions wins ‘Best Global Logistics Company’ award at the recently concluded India Cargo Awards in New Delhi. Piyush Srivastava, IES, Senior Economic Advisor graced the occasion as the Chief Guest. Known as the “Oscars of the Cargo Industry,” the India Cargo Awards 2023 hosted by Cargo Talk (DDP Group Publication) serves as an all-India platform created with a vision to recognise excellence in the Cargo-Freight-Logistics Industry across various domains, including Rail, Road, Air, Sea, Allied Services, Warehousing, Technology, 3rd Party Logistics, and more. Our world-class awards ceremonies are known for their formal Black-Tie affair, filled with glitz and glamour, attended by the most influential personalities in the industry.

Get ready to participate in India’s highly anticipated and power-packed show on cold chain storage and transportation. Being organized by WIZ, Cold Chain Unbroken (CCUB) 2023 opens today at Taj Bengaluru. The key points of discussion will include cold chain storage, handling and transportation, adequate infrastructure and skilled manpower for ground handling and transportation of products such as pharma and perishables, tech integration, government policies to facilitate EoDB and a lot more. Several industry stalwarts and stakeholders, including airports, airlines, freight forwarders, shipping lines, trucking companies, custodians are expected to take part in the show. The two-day event will provide a platform to meet and exchange ideas and collaborate.

Blue Dart Express re-branded its service Dart Plus to Bharat Dart on 13 September at Mumbai. Bharat Dart service is backed by speed, security, and handling with value-added features, with time-sensitive delivery. The rebranding comes as a decision to deliver exceptional value to customers, aligning with Blue Dart’s objective of redefining logistics services in the country. Balfour Manuel, Managing Director, Blue Dart, also said, “This rebranding represents an exciting transformation for us as we continue to serve the length and breadth of the country. Bharat Dart is the first step in a new and exciting chapter for our company and our nation. We are dedicated to leveraging our expertise to elevate our capabilities and enhance the overall customer experience.” Blue Dart boasts of access to over 55,000+ locations across India, and spans 220 countries and territories internationally. Their initiatives like DAWN (Deliver Anywhere Now), and RISE (Revenue Increase from SMEs and Emerging Markets) target further expansions into tier II and tier III cities in the country.

Ahead of its upcoming 47th Annual Convention in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in November, The Air Cargo Agents Association of India held its 53rd Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Mumbai on Tuesday and elected CK Govil, CMD, Activair Airfreight as the President of the association. The Managing Committee elected Samir J Shah, Partner, JBS Group of Companies as the Vice President. Vikram Kumar, Director at CTC Air Carriers has been elected as Honorary Secretary General and Praveen Menon is now the Honorary Treasurer. Afzal Malbarwala, MD, Galaxy Freight stepped down from the position of President this year after serving ACAAI for two consecutive years as President. The Managing Committee Member are Mahesh Trikha, Anil Vazirani, Siddharth Jairaj, Chaitaly Mehta, Ronnie Goveas, Amit Koley.

Kale Logistics Solutions (Kale) is pleased to announce the successful completion of its Series B funding round, raising USD 30 million in capital led by Creaegis Advisors LLP, a digital and tech focused private equity fund. This funding round represents a significant milestone in the company’s journey and positions it for rapid expansion and continued innovation. The company had earlier raised a Series A investment from Inflexor Ventures in 2020 and counts marquee founding angels Narendra Kale and Vipul Jain. The investment will fuel Kale’s mission to develop and deploy robust Cargo Community Systems to transform global logistics beyond regional boundaries. Vipul Jain, Chairman, Kale Logistics Solutions, said, “This is our second fundraising with an external investor, and we are happy to partner with Creaegis because of the alignment of vision for the business, their record and understanding of the SaaS and tech products space globally. We are confident they will add value to the company as we shift gears towards a faster growth trajectory. Amar More, Rajesh Panicker, and Vineet Malhotra, Co-founders of Kale Logistics Solutions, said jointly, “We are thrilled to partner with Creaegis for our global expansion, leveraging their operational value add and SaaS experience. Together with our esteemed group of existing investors, we are well positioned for the next phase of growth. The current funding will empower us to accelerate our mission of connecting the different stakeholders of the logistics industry through our community platforms and empower them with several digital value-added services and enterprise systems to facilitate global trade.”

Blue Dart Express was felicitated as ‘Best Express Cargo Service Provider’ award at recently concluded India Cargo Awards 2023 in New Delhi. Piyush Srivastava, IES, Senior Economic Advisor graced the occasion as the Chief Guest. Known as the “Oscars of the Cargo Industry,” the India Cargo Awards 2023 hosted by Cargo Talk (DDP Group Publication) serves as an all-India platform created with a vision to recognise excellence in the Cargo-Freight-Logistics Industry across various domains, including Rail, Road, Air, Sea, Allied Services, Warehousing, Technology, 3rd Party Logistics, and more. Our world-class awards ceremonies are known for their formal Black-Tie affair, filled with glitz and glamour, attended by the most influential personalities in the industry.

The global air cargo spot rate flattened to USD 2.19 per kg in August, its lowest level since the onset of the pandemic as another weak summer month saw chargeable weight edge -1% lower for a fourth consecutive month, according to the latest weekly market analysis from CLIVE Data Services, part of Xeneta. While shippers and forwarders continue to benefit from the overall decline of general air freight rates, rising jet fuel prices should concern an already contracted market, with the US gulf coast jet fuel spot price jumping 21% month-over-month. August saw global air cargo capacity rise +7% year-on-year, while CLIVE’s global dynamic load factor analysis, which measures cargo load factor based on both volume and weight perspectives of cargo flown and capacity available, climbed one percentage point about the previous month to 56%. But it is worth noting that the August global load factor continued to fall year-on-year, down 3% from last year’s level. Softened global demand and the capacity surge were the main reasons behind this. The data dampens some industry reports of a slight spike in demand in August, leading to hopes of a rise in volumes going into the final four months of the year. “We are picking up signals that it could take another few quarters before we see more demand on a global level,” said Niall van de Wouw, Chief Airfreight Officer at Xeneta. “August was very quiet, like July, and we see no meaningful signals from a qualitative or quantitative point of view of any kind of peak arising this year. There might be some early peak season charter requests floating around but they are backed up by very little demand. The …

Aaj Enterprises was honoured with ‘Best Warehousing Company’ award at recently concluded India Cargo Awards 2023 in New Delhi. Piyush Srivastava, IES, Senior Economic Advisor graced the occasion as the Chief Guest. Known as the “Oscars of the Cargo Industry,” the India Cargo Awards 2023 hosted by Cargo Talk (DDP Group Publication) serves as an all-India platform created with a vision to recognise excellence in the Cargo-Freight-Logistics Industry across various domains, including Rail, Road, Air, Sea, Allied Services, Warehousing, Technology, 3rd Party Logistics, and more. Our world-class awards ceremonies are known for their formal Black-Tie affair, filled with glitz and glamour, attended by the most influential personalities in the industry.

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA), with a remarkable 318 per cent surge in mango exports from 2022 to 2023, has firmly established itself as the premier hub for mango exports in India. CSMIA has not only demonstrated its expertise in handling perishable goods but has also solidified its position as a vital player in the global perishable trade. In the year 2022, CSMIA played a pivotal role in enabling the export of 1,123 tons of mangoes. Advancing to the year 2023, this figure has witnessed an astonishing surge, reaching an impressive 4,700 tons. This exponential growth is a testament to CSMIA’s indispensable contribution to expanding the global presence of India’s delectable mangoes. Moreover, it highlights the airport’s contribution in driving India’s mango exports. The key aspect contributing to this ground-breaking achievement is the recent approval granted by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) for the export of Indian mangoes to the United States. This milestone development opens up the market for Indian mangoes in the USA, marking a significant moment for mango lovers. This approval comes after a hiatus in mango exports to the USA since 2020, primarily due to travel restrictions imposed on the USDA inspectors to visit India during COVID-19 pandemic.