South Africa’s national carrier South African Airways (SAA) will stretch its wings after a hiatus of over a year as it entered into the business rescue process that began on December 5, 2019. The first flight took off today from Johannesburg to Cape Town. SAA has got wings to fly once again because the government finally decided to give up its controlling stake by offloading 51 percent stake to Takatso Consortium which comprises Global Aviation and Harith General Partners. Initially, SAA will not return to the international long-haul as the market conditions are not yet right. Even though SAA has two A340-600s (owned) and one A330-300 (leased), aircraft that are capable of serving intercontinental routes, the operating cost for the old fleet is so prohibitive that the airline has decided not to resume intercontinental flights for the moment. An SAA Spokesperson said, “SAA’s current fleet includes the A330-300 which has the capability and efficiency for some international service at the right time. However, the primary focus is for maximum operational flexibility within Africa. Future fleet for international service is yet to be decided and the timing of that decision will coincide with evidence of sustained recovery in international demand.”
Read More »Air cargo services face challenges in Q4; TIACA issues warning
The International Air Cargo Association (TIACA) issued a warning that the industry is facing unprecedented challenges to deal with expected fourth quarter demand for air cargo services. The air cargo industry has responded to 18 months of pressure and challenges as the industry was faced with high demand for PPE, ecommerce, vaccines, perishables and other critical cargo as economies and society went into lockdowns then reopened. Addressing this demand, supply chain partners dealt with capacity withdrawals, then capacity shortfalls as well as ever changing travel, work and quarantine restrictions forced upon crew, handling staff and other key workers. As we head towards the fourth quarter and the growing number of annual on-line shopping events, the stress on the system is expected to grow substantially. With states, particularly China, introducing a growing number of Covid related worker restrictions which are unlikely to be lifted in the near future, the industry is urged to commence preparations urgently. Such restrictions are causing cargo to be disbursed across neighbouring countries and airports, causing further challenges. Shippers are therefore encouraged to work with forwarder partners to secure required capacity as early in the cycle as possible, said the official release.
Read More »Budapest Airport to initiate sustainability for STARGATE project
Budapest Airport is a member of the consortium which won nearly 25 million euros of support from the European Commission, as part of a sustainability project called STARGATE. The airport operator’s task will be to develop and put in place a cloud-based, paper-free air cargo handling system, together with other sustainable projects concerning mainly the terminal, energy efficiency and traffic developments. As part of the project, Budapest Airport can implement developments to a value of 1.53 million euros, 70 percent of which (1.07 million euros) is provided by the European Union, with the rest funded by Budapest Airport. Reducing carbon emissions is a key pillar of Budapest Airport’s sustainability efforts. In recognition of this, it has been awarded ACI’s carbon neutral certification for the fourth year running. In line with its objectives, the operator of Budapest Airport thus joined a consortium consisting of Brussels Airport, Athens Airport and Toulouse Airport, along with 18 other non-airport members, which submitted a successful EU funding application dedicated to tackling sustainability in the aviation sector. Following several months of preparatory work, the contract between the consortium and the European Commission was signed on 6 September 2021.
Read More »Atlas Air sign contract for 747-400 freighter with FedEx
Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings announced that its subsidiary Atlas Air has entered into a long-term agreement with FedEx to provide two 747-400 freighter aircraft on a full-time aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance (ACMI) basis. This new agreement is in addition to the company’s existing multi-year peak season contract that provides FedEx with a minimum of five aircraft during the fourth quarter. Both 747-400 freighters have entered service and are flying on behalf of FedEx to support their growing express and e-commerce network. “We are pleased to grow our long-term relationship with FedEx. This agreement reflects the continued strong demand for airfreight capacity, particularly in the express and e-commerce markets,” said John W. Dietrich, president and chief executive officer of Atlas Air Worldwide. “Atlas is a leader in supporting express networks, with a focus on operating the most modern, fuel-efficient aircraft to deliver high levels of on-time performance for our customers.”
Read More »Mammoth Freighters support 777P2F conversion programme with MRO facility
Mammoth Freighters LLC (“Mammoth”) is embarking on a long-term partnership with GDC Technics (“GDC”), a global aerospace company with extensive expertise in Engineering and Technical services, Modifications, Electronic Systems, R&D, and MRO services. The aim is to invest in a widebody maintenance and modification facility to support its Boeing 777-200LR and 777-300ER passenger-to-freighter conversion programs. Located at Alliance Airport in Fort Worth, Texas, GDC has a state-of-the-art facility with 840,000 sq feet and six widebody hangar bays for modification and maintenance work on 777 aircraft. Mammoth Co-CEO Bill Tarpley said, “By partnering with GDC, our Mammoth 777 -200LR and – 300ER freighter conversions and support initiative will be centrally located in the US in a facility designed specifically for 777-200/300 aircraft and with a skilled labor force in place.”
Read More »Transworld Group expands its fleet to 26 vessels
Transworld Group, one of the leading Global Shipping & Logistics Conglomerate, has further strengthened its overall fleet by adding large size bulk carrier – TBC Praise (36,699 DWT) . With the latest addition, Transworld is making a strong presence in the bulk carrier business with the latest acquisition coming close on the heels of 2 acquisitions of Bulk carriers TBC Passion and TBC Prime, with all 3 acquisitions done in 2021. Ramesh S. Ramakrishnan, Chairman, Transworld Group highlighted that this new addition to the fleet will further enhance Transworld’s Global footprint of Ship Owning in the Dry Bulk/ Container segment and deployment, which is a result of strong fundamentals and confidence in the growth of Shipping and Logistics sector in the present and coming years.
Read More »project44 acquires last-mile delivery ‘Convey’ in $255M
project44, the global leader in real-time supply chain visibility, has acquired Austin-based Convey, the last-mile technology leader. Together, the two companies now serve the global supply chain end-to-end, providing real-time visibility and actionable insights from raw materials to the front door to help brands deliver differentiated direct-to-consumer and eCommerce experiences for their customers. Covey has direct-to-consumer delivery experiences for more than 200 of the world’s largest brands, including The Home Depot, Nieman Marcus, Ferguson, Ingram-Micro, and others. Convey, recognized as a Challenger in the Gartner 2021 Magic Quadrant for Real-Time Visibility Platforms, combines real-time visibility, post-purchase experiences, and machine learning-powered analytics to improve the overall customer experience.
Read More »GEODIS to start service between Europe and Asia
GEODIS, a global leading transport and logistics services provider, is extending its AirDirect service with the addition of a twice weekly flight routed London Stansted (STN)/Amsterdam (AMS)/ Hong Kong (HKG)/STN/AMS. GEODIS will in part use its new A330-300 full freighter aircraft to operate this rotation between Europe and Asia. From October, GEODIS’ APAC customers will have access to almost 80 percent of European destinations within 24 hours. This new investment underscores the company’s enhanced focus on the APAC region and its commitment to serve a greater range of business verticals in Asian markets. As manufacturing in Asia continues to be the backbone of several key European business sectors, the requirement for exporters to secure reliable and well-priced freight forwarding services has become even more critical through the disruption brought about by the Covid-19 outbreak. The new route launch comes on the heels of the introduction of GEODIS’ Shanghai to Guadalajara flight in March this year, which has improved cargo connectivity to the West Coast of the Americas. GEODIS also continues with its dedicated service from Hong Kong to Guadalajara.
Read More »ANA Cargo joins Pharma.Aero for end-to-end air transportation of pharma cargo
ANA Cargo has joined Pharma.Aero, a non-profit organization with its headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, family as a full member to exchange and build market knowledge and expertise. “Pharma.Aero continues to pursue its vision in achieving reliable end-to-end air transportation of pharma cargo by expanding its global network and inviting more stakeholders across the pharma air supply chain in our collaborative projects. In the near term, we wish to jointly forge quality pharma trade lanes and develop new standards and guidelines”, said Nathan De Valck, chairman, Pharma.Aero. Dai Yuasa, senior vice president of global marketing, ANA Cargo added, “We are very honored to join Pharma Aero, which brings together top global pharma companies, pharma hub airports, airlines and forwarders that focus on pharmaceuticals. We are looking forward to making further contributions to the pharma air transport sector. ANA has been focusing on the air transport of pharmaceuticals. In 2017, ANA became the first Japanese airline to obtain CEIV PHARMA certification. Under current COVID-19 situations, air transport plays a more significant social role in the transportation of vaccines, therapeutic drugs and PPEs. At the same time, we have to consider sustainability issues. It is important that we continuously improve our services such as temperature, time and container management to maintain the quality of each pharma shipment. By participating in Pharma.Aero, ANA hopes to learn and co-operate with those who are leading the pharma air transportation, so that we can deliver pharma products to the world with higher quality service.”
Read More »Cathay Pacific releases August 2021 traffic figures
Cathay Pacific released its traffic figures for August 2021 that continued to reflect the airline’s substantial capacity reductions in response to significantly reduced demand as well as travel restrictions and quarantine requirements in place in Hong Kong and other markets amid the on-going global Covid-19 pandemic. The airline carried 124,278 tonnes of cargo and mail last month, an increase of 21.7percent compared to August 2020, but a 23 percent decrease compared with the same period in 2019. The month’s revenue freight tonne kilometres (RFTKs) rose 20.7 percent year-on-year, but were down 15.4 percent compared to August 2019. “While August is traditionally a quieter month for cargo due to the summer holiday period in the Northern Hemisphere, this was not the case this year and demand continued to be buoyant both from our home market, Hong Kong, and from across our network. Cargo capacity increased about 9 percent month-on-month, reaching approximately 66 percent of our August 2019 pre-pandemic levels,” said chief customer and commercial officer Ronald Lam.
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