Category Archives: International

AirBridgeCargo Airlines has moved 41 RKN containers for DSV on a scheduled flight from the Amsterdam, the Netherlands to Shanghai, China. The carrier flew the containers, which were manufactured by CSafe Global and contained more than 30 tonnes of temperature-sensitive pharma, on the lower and main decks of a Boeing 747-8 freighter aircraft. Amounting to a total of 11,000 tonnes, the airline has managed to achieve a 60 per cent uptick in temperature-sensitive pharma cargo from January to June this year. Yulia Celetaria, Global Director – Pharma, AirBridgeCargo Airlines, says, “This transportation, to some extent, is the rehearsal to check that we are prepared for the Covid-19 vaccine once its testing is finalised.”

Volga-Dnepr Airlines has partnered with Kuehne+Nagel (K+N) to move a power turbine from the UK to Russia. The 4.5 tonnes cargo was loaded into Volga-Dnepr’s An-124 aircraft (IL-76TD-90VD) aircraft using its onboard crane system before being flown to the Midlands, UK. Ekaterina Andreeva, Commercial Director, Volga-Dnepr Airlines, says, “For over two decades Volga-Dnepr Airlines and K+N have partnered on projects which have allowed us to innovate and develop new solutions together – pushing the boundaries on what air freight can do. Starting with our An-124 and IL-76 charter flights, and then progressing to partnership on scheduled operations with AirBridgeCargo Airlines, we work under the alignment of specialty cargo transportation across the globe.

The Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru has recently processed a consignment of 24,200 ornamental fish. With approvals from Indian Customs and the Bengaluru Animal Quarantine Services, the consignment was transported to Kozhikode, Kerala. The consignment, which arrived at Bengaluru Airport from Thailand through DHL Express on AeroLogic freighter, was handled by Menzies Aviation Bobba Bengaluru Cargo Terminal. The varieties included Betta Splendens (Fighting Fish) and Flower Horn Fish.

In order to help EXIM trade work more efficiently, SoftLink Global and ODeX has announced a collaboration enabling custom brokers, freight forwarders and other logistics service providers to file VGM and Form 13 seamlessly. SoftLink is the platform for freight forwarders and custom brokers and ODeX provides a digital platform for documentation and payments for EXIM Trade. Integrating ODeX’s e-VGM and e-Form 13 modules with SoftLink’s Logisys saves critical time and effort spent in entering and submitting data in multiple systems. This integration will be effective over 200+ shipping lines and NVOCC’s that accept VGM and Form 13 on ODeX.

Targeting the life sciences market, DHL Global Forwarding has opened a new $1.6m facility in Indianapolis in the US. The building offers bonded services and three temperature controlled chambers: 15-25 degrees celsius storage and handling, 2-8 degrees celsius storage and handling and -20 degrees celsius storage and handling. Together the temperature controlled areas measure close to 20,000 sq ft and will be able to process pharmaceutical, biotech or medical devices that require a temperature-controlled environment. “This new building is especially important now during these challenging times, when temperature controlled logistics is crucial in helping customers navigate the pandemic,” said David Goldberg, Chief Executive, DHL Global Forwarding, US.

To continue accessing CHAMP’s Traxon cargoHUB and Traxon CDMP solutions, Lufthansa Cargo extended its partnership with CHAMP. The airline will be able to gain synergies and cargo insights through its continued use of CHAMP’s Traxon CDMP, a tool that measures over 40 per cent of the worldwide Cargo iQ airline shipments. The carrier will also benefit from being a part of CHAMP’s air cargo digital interchange community – the Traxon CargoHUB. “Traxon CargoHUB efficiently links the entire global airfreight community, irrespective of their IT configuration or systems resulting in higher productivity and lower costs,” explains CHAMP, in adding. “It improves supply chain quality and completeness; bookings, operations, document handling and customs processes can be executed and confirmed in seconds; it can be aligned with and updated to latest industry standards; it enables standard and custom message processing and conversions.”

According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), air cargo demand is recovering slowly from the effect of COVID-19. The association has released data for global air freight markets in June showing improvement, but at a slower pace than some of the traditional leading indicators would suggest. Global demand, measured in cargo tonne-kilometers (CTKs*), fell by 17.6 per cent in June (-19.9 per cent for international operations) compared to the previous year. That is a modest improvement from the 20.1 per cent year-on-year drop recorded in May. However, global capacity, measured in available cargo tonne-kilometers (ACTKs), shrank by 34.1 per cent in June ( 33.9 per cent for international operations) compared to the previous year. This was on par with the 34.8 per cent year-on-year drop in May.

With an aim to reduce its members’ environmental footprint, Delta Cargo has joined the Sustainable Air Freight Alliance (SAFA). The move aligns with Delta’s pledge earlier this year to become the world’s first carbon neutral airline. The airline has committed $1 billion over the next 10 years to mitigate all emissions from its global business. SAFA is collaboration between shippers, freight forwarders and airlines to track and reduce emissions from air freight and promote responsible freight transport. It is facilitated by BSR (Business for Social Responsibility), a global non-profit business network and consultancy dedicated to sustainability. “We are in the midst of the worst global pandemic in living memory, but we can’t afford to take sustainability off the agenda. Through this commitment, we are supporting Delta’s goal to be a more environmentally-friendly airline for generations to come,” said Shawn Cole, Vice President – Delta Cargo.

In order to enhance the efficiency of ULD operations in the global network of their customers, Unilode Aviation Solutions and dnata have signed an agreement to equip all dnata warehouses with Unilode’s Bluetooth readers. Unilode’s digital solution transmits data on the geolocation of the ULDs and can also share other relevant information such as temperature, humidity, shock and light, using ULDs equipped with Bluetooth digital tags and a network of bluetooth readers and mobile devices. Benoit Dumont, CEO, Unilode, said, “Unilode is currently digitising its entire ULD fleet of 140,000 units with tags and is rolling out a bluetooth reader network infrastructure in over 250 locations worldwide. Our new agreement with dnata will help us accelerate the creation of Unilode’s digital ecosystem and enable us to increase ULD visibility, data accuracy and asset stock control, in addition to providing our customers with important information on their cargo.”

In its endeavour to facilitate the demand of trade, Indian Railways has sent its first container train to Bangladesh connecting the two countries through Petrapole-Benapole border in West Bengal. The train carried FMCG in 40 containers and fabrics in 10 containers. The exporters from India were Procter & Gamble, Arvind and Vardhaman Textiles. This will be a permanent service connecting selected terminals of CONCOR to various stations in Bangladesh (Benapole, Jessore, Singia, Noapara, BBW). The inaugural container train ran between two countries from CONCOR’s CFS at Majerhat, Kolkata. This builds upon an experimental shipment launched by CONCOR and Indian Railways in April 2018, which used the Gede-Dharsana railway border crossing.