Category Archives: Aviation

Narrow-body freighters will play an integral role in the growth story of air cargo in India as we have witnessed in the matured markets like UAE, Europe and US,” says Ramesh Mamidala, Head of Cargo at Air India. “If we talk about domestic air cargo market, with the help of Indian freighter operators we can finally see capacity coming out of remote locations and cargo is getting picked up even from tier 2 and 3 cities. Domestic air cargo is moving at a good pace. The e-commerce sector is driving major growth volumes. E-commerce companies are more than happy to use air cargo for their premium shipments. Right now, they do have some issues at the service levels like infrastructure at the airport, therefore we are actively working as an airline with the airport operators to resolve the issues. As we become more quality oriented, more reliant we may see many shipments flying via air using belly of an aircraft in the coming years. We will also see a lot of freighter airlines coming in the space to operate both narrow body as well as wide body – narrow body for domestic and wide body for international market, this will be happening very aggressively in the next 5-10 years’ time,” he adds.

Delhi International Airport (DIAL) was felicitated with ‘Best Cargo Airport- Infrastructure’ award at the 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 Cargo Industry.

The Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations in India (FFFAI) organised women’s wing delegation visit to India-Bangladesh Border with an objective to explore opportunities as well as understand challenges especially for the women professionals in logistics business. The Women’s Wing of FFFAI paid a visit to Petrapole (India in West Bengal)-Benapole (Bangladesh) border on August 6, 2023 which was led by Chaitaly Mehta, Convenor, Women’s Wing, FFFAI. Mehta said, “Petrapole is managed by the Land Port Authority of India (LPAI) where LPAI administers and manages all the facilities, infrastructure, etc with futuristic views. It was very interesting to learn and see Women working in Petrapole. Women workforce at LPAI constitutes more than 12% of its total employees at this Land Port. The Women Workforce is maximum in BSF followed by Customs, Immigration etc. The purpose of the visit was to understand what differentiates an ICP from an airport to a sea port and ICD, how logistics activities are carried out at an ICP and what exactly is an ICP. Especially, challenges before the women logistics practitioners at a border customs post were the focus area.”

To become a global cargo hub, India must compete with established hubs like Dubai, Singapore, and Hong Kong. Offering unique value propositions and seamless services is essential,” says Keku Bomi Gazder, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer, Aviapro Logistic Services. Also, innovation is vital for sustained growth. A lack of investment in research and development may hinder the industry’s ability to adopt cutting-edge technologies. Streamlining processes and adopting technology for seamless clearance is necessary. While India has made progress in infrastructure development, there’s still a need for further investment in ports, roadways, railways, and airports to handle larger cargo volumes efficiently. Inadequate intermodal connectivity often leads to delays and increased costs. Improving last-mile connectivity and creating efficient multimodal transportation networks is essential too.”

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) was honored as the ‘Best Cargo Airport – Efficiency & Digitization’ at the 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 Cargo Industry.

Focusing on the need for the digital air freight corridors in India, C K Govil, Vice President ACAAI and CMD, Activair Airfreight says, “These digital pathways optimise the flow of large volumes of cargo data between two nations or air cargo authorities. This innovation can promote a real-time exchange of information on shipment visibility between two parties. A step was taken in this direction when Kale Logistics signed an MoU with Cargonaut in 2018 to facilitate a digital air corridor between Mumbai and Schiphol airports. The industry needs digital air freight corridors. While other challenges include, inadequate government support and infrastructure to handle transhipments and perishable goods. Imposition of GST on export freight is also detrimental to the growth of air cargo and impact the Indian air cargo industry’s momentum towards achieving 10 million tonnes by 2030. Even the frequent breakdown of ICEGATE results in goods not being cleared/missing deadlines/additional terminal charges and airfreight rates.”

Block your dates for India’s highly anticipated and power-packed show on cold chain storage and transportation. Being organized by WIZ, Cold Chain Unbroken (CCUB) 2023 will be held on 14-15 September 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.

Çelebi Delhi Cargo Terminal Management India was felicitated as ‘Best Air Cargo Terminal Operator’ award at the 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 Cargo Industry.

C K Govil, Vice President, ACAAI shares that the world looks up to India for a constant supply of pharmaceuticals and several crucial consumables like rice. A focus on infrastructure and air cargo related policies can help make India a global air cargo hub. For instance, an Open Skies Policy, lower taxes on air exports, focus on reducing ATF prices to improve the air logistics costs, and pushing digitalisation and embracing artificial intelligence in processes are some steps that can work wonders for the Indian air cargo industry. Besides, the idea of digital air freight corridors has been floating in the global air cargo industry for a while now. These digital pathways optimise the flow of large volumes of cargo data between two nations or air cargo authorities. This idea can promote a real-time exchange of information on shipment visibility between two parties. A step was taken in this direction when Kale Logistics signed an MOU with Cargonaut in 2018 to facilitate a digital air corridor between Mumbai and Schiphol airports.

SriLankan Airlines Cargo was named as the Best International Cargo Airline at the recently concluded India Cargo Awards 2023, which has been dubbed the ‘Oscars of the Cargo Industry’ and determines winners via a transparent voting system. SriLankan Cargo offers direct air cargo services out of the nine Indian cities of Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Kochi, Trivandrum, Chennai, Trichy and Madurai, with connections to Colombo and beyond. With over 70 direct weekly flights from India, combined with worldwide logistics partner solutions, SriLankan Cargo offers easy connections for Indian shippers to a global network of cities, servicing popular trade routes between India and the Middle East and the Far East. During the past financial year alone, SriLankan Cargo transported nearly 10,000 metric tons worth of shipments from India. Chaminda Perera, General Manager – Cargo of SriLankan Airlines expressed his delight at the win stating, “As excited as I am about this incredible honour from the Indian cargo trade, it did not really come as a surprise as I know my team’s commitment and the effort that they put in to deliver on our promise of a reliable service to the Indian market. India is very important to us, and we will ensure to build on this momentum and keep raising the bar for our Indian customers.” SriLankan Cargo has been providing connectivity across Europe, the Middle East, South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Far East and Australia. Leveraging on road and partner networks, SriLankan Cargo is able to provide customers the flexibility to move cargo beyond the points which SriLankan Airlines directly serves. With superior storage facilities and cargo handling equipment to manage customers every requirement, SriLankan Cargo is a one-stop solution …