The consequence of the adjournment is bitter for the local air freight industry: Due to the Tweede Kamer’s hesitant position, it becomes highly unlikely that the new rule giving AMS green light for modifying slot allocations will be ready for implementation by the start of the summer flight season on 25 March, as requested by the interest groups.
Only recently, Evofenedex (shippers), Air Cargo Netherlands and Transport & Logistiek Nederland had urged Transport minister Cora van Nieuwenhuizen to implement the rule before the date in question. They fear that the decrease of cargo flights will continue well into the autumn of 2018, leading to a lot of damage for the im- and exporters, employment in the air cargo industry and the establishment of businesses in the Netherlands.
The responsibility for the implementation lies with the independent slot coordinator, whose organisation is understaffed. The final draft of the rule must be worked out by a special working group within the Coordination Committee Netherlands (CCN), representing all the airlines at AMS.

Check against EU legislation
According to the logistics trade paper Nieuwsblad Transport the draft will be ready for dispatch to the minister at the end of February or the beginning of March. Ms van Nieuwenhuizen will then have to check the rule against European legislation, which will also take some time.

An important issue to be resolved is the translation of the 25% contingent of unused slots, to be redistributed among the cargo carriers, into a workable system. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) suggests that the number of flights that have been cancelled over the last 5 years will be the base for the ruling.

Implementation at the start of the winter season
Of this yearly average, part of the slots will be kept in store to be distributed to the cargo carriers at the beginning of the winter and the summer season. This would allow the industry to take into account a number of additional slots in their planning.
NT’s contacts within the carriers have revealed that most of them are not necessarily unhappy with the delay in the local rule implementation. Most important is that the rule would be in place by the beginning of the winter season 2018/2019, so it seems.

Marcel Schoeters in Brussels

Do we need it?
But no, even if it got off to a poor start and mixed with disreputable company (Bitcoin, Darknet) at the beginning, the blockchain technology actually has multiple uses in our every-day life, and could prove to be just as disruptive as the IP technology, which was the basis for the internet as we know it today. Perhaps some of the no-longer-so-young readers will still remember when they first heard the word “Internet” and asked themselves what it was and whether anyone really needed it! Blockchain could be similar. It has already found its way into the Coalition Agreement for the new German government, just agreed last Wednesday.

Supply Chains
Some days ago we received a press release titled “TBSx3 launches blockchain consortium with DB Schenker and DP World to protect global supply chains.” So, what is that about? And no, it does not mean that DB Schenker is now going to accept bitcoins as payment!

Fake products
The Chinese consumers especially, as we know, are constantly confronted with fake products. The scandal of the contaminated baby milk powder remains in their collective memory and results still today in huge quantities of milk powder being shipped to China, because Chinese consumers do not trust local produce. Counterfeit drugs, too, pose a serious danger to health. Not to mention all the other fake fashion and luxury products. And this affects not only China, but consumers all over the world. There is an urgent need to protect product integrity, and it is in the interest of both consumers and manufacturers to take action.

The Blockchain technology
So, what is special about the blockchain? A blockchain is a sequence of data and can be seen as a set of interconnected blocks or boxes. Each box contains some sort of information. As more data becomes available more boxes are added. In the case of supply chains, the “boxes” could contain information about the goods, the production, packing, transportation details, distribution at destination, or whatever. During the process “boxes” of data keep being added to the chain. The special thing about the blockchain is the way these “boxes” or blocks are connected or chained together. Each block of data has a unique digital identifier, each block contains a reference to the previous box and the complete chain is encrypted. At the same time the chain is duplicated on all computers which are members of the blockchain network. Every time a block is added the encryption of the whole chain is renewed and the new chain is distributed throughout the network. Typically, by design, each step of encryption and distribution takes 10 minutes.

Data integrity
The integrity of the data contained in the blockchain is protected by the encryption itself and by the fact that the blockchain is duplicated throughout the network. Anyone who wanted to tamper with the data in one of the blocks would have to re-encrypt all the newer blocks in the chain, and that not only once but for every copy on all the computers which hold a copy of the chain. The 10-minute limit for each encryption makes this an impossible task. At the same time, since it is replicated throughout the network, the chain is public, and the complete set of data can be viewed and verified by every member of the network.

Consumer value
What does this mean in practice? In the case of the supply chain every step in the production, transportation and distribution of a product is entered into a blockchain. DB Schenker as forwarder and DP World Australia as port operator supply and input the transportation and distribution data. The consumer who wishes to buy the product has a smartphone app which scans a digital code on the product package. The app checks the validity of the applicable blockchain for this package and gives the consumer the confirmation that it is not a fake. When the product is sold, the sale also is entered in the blockchain. This ensures that the digital code on the package cannot be duplicated and used again for fake goods. Time will show whether this really works in practice.

A step
Obviously, these are still early days for this new technology. But at least a test has been successfully completed and verified for a shipment of wine from Australia to China. As the Chinese say: “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” This single step has now been taken.

Mark Grinsted

According to the manager, the volume rise was triggered by three circumstances. “Our volume for 2016 was impacted by the terror attacks, which especially hit March and April of that year (even if the company was able to report a 6% growth over the year as a whole, ms). Secondly, there was the introduction of the 10th A330 in our fleet to serve Mumbai, which gave us a 10% capacity rise. Last but not least, we improved the forecasting of the capacity under the lead of SN Cargo’s new cargo capacity & revenue manager, Thomas Blondiau,” Mr François explained.
The introduction of capacity management has made a great difference compared with the old days when volumes were assessed in a rather empiric way, he says. “Now we have introduced a forecasting model that enables us to assess the number of passenger, their baggage weight and this for considering the specifics of every route and the day of the week on top of seasonal effects. In doing this, we have a better idea of the capacity per aircraft.
He went on to say: “It allowed us to fly about one extra tonne per flight on average. And this in spite of the fact that our passenger load seat factor has also increased over the same period. All these measures added up came at the right moment, when the market itself was very responsive,” Alban stated.

Successful Courier product
Africa remains by far the most important market for Brussels Airlines Cargo, accounting for some 30,000 tonnes. North America (New York, Washington and Toronto) generated some 11,500 tonnes, Mumbai roughly 4,400 t. The rest of the volume has been flown on the European network.
As for the latter, the Courier product has appeared to be very successful. “It is an airport-to-airport product (based on the forwarding model),” says Alban. “The difference with general cargo is the dedicated tracking and the very short cut-off times.”
Thanks to a dedicated control desk and ramp transport, deliveries can be made until one hour before take-off and goods are made available at destinations in 45 mins. The only rule to be followed is that the consignments fit into the airline’s ‘postal bags’. These Courier bags are recognized across the network and they are off-loaded even before the baggage. The product is currently offered within the EU only, since there is no customs clearance.
Courier consignments travel without an AWB, even if the accompanying document looks like one. “The handling companies insisted on having a document,” Alban explains.

Awareness in pharma transport
Commodity-wise, perishables make up the greater part (more than 80%) of the volume originating in Africa. In 2017 this segment rose by 20%. A more spectacular increase of 56% was recorded in pharmaceuticals, a rise outpacing the market as a whole. Alban thinks this success owes a lot to a better understanding of the industry needs through dialogue with shippers and forwarders. This allowed SN to implement new measures such as the pharma airside transporter and increase awareness internally. “We’ve just had our IATA Pharma CEIV audit, which has again stressed the importance of this awareness. Our pilots have been made aware on the cargo hold temperature control and its impact on the transported goods.”
Maybe a world’s first was Brussels Airlines’ mapping of the temperature in the holds from the very hot (Africa) to the very cold (Toronto), he thinks. “A lot depends on the start conditions. If the holds have been open for 2 hours at an African airport, you cannot expect them to cool down to 15° juts like that. Our mapping has allowed us to draw up some procedures and provide the transparency so much requested.” Brussels Airlines now wants to pioneer to be the first airline CEIV certified through the entire network.

Talking to LCAG
Since Brussels Airlines is 100% owned by the Lufthansa Group, an even closer cooperation will have to be defined between the cargo department and LCAG. “We are talking to them,” says Alban. “There has to be a win/win for both of us. In general, collaboration on the cargo side is not as obvious as it is on the passenger side. In our business, we still have our own preserves which will continue to exist as long as you do not put a structure in place. Our aim is to offer to our customers an increased global coverage by connecting our networks.”
Brussels Airlines Cargo and LCAG want to combine their respective strengths. Alban: “We are strong in Africa and at BRU, we have been able to reinforce our position as the home carrier. On the other hand, LCAG is the Mercedes of the air cargo industry, with the right products as well as the right tools. Of course, some hurdles have to be taken, the still existing incompatibility of our IT systems being just one of them.”

Fleet roll-over will boost capacity
The planned long-haul fleet roll-over that will have seven out of 10 of the company’s A330’s renewed by 2019 is key for Brussels Airline Cargo. “This has a big impact on our capacity,” says Alban. “As this new variant of A330’s has a higher TOW, we can take as much as 5 extra tonnes per flight.”
This will allow to continue the growth beyond 2018. The target of a 10% growth to 55,000 tonnes Alban and his team have set for 2018 is linked to on the one hand Mumbai (that will contribute as a full-year operation) and on the other hand an adapted rotation on the East-African network.

Marcel Schoeters in Brussels

Mixed fleet with expansion potential
First Air operates services, many of which are passenger only,  to more than 30 cities within Canada, ranging from Arctic Bay to Yellowknife. It owns a fleet of 17 aircraft of which three are Boeing 737-400 Combis capable of carrying 70 passengers and 4 pallets of cargo. Air freight is also carried in the bellies of the carrier’s 13 strong fleet of ATR-42 aircraft and single B737-400 passenger aircraft. The company was originally founded in 1973 and was wholly acquired by the Canadian Makivik Group in 1990. A Boeing 767 freighter was acquired in 2010 but it is said that this aircraft was phased out in 2015 and transferred to Cargojet (Canada) with whom First Air has an operating agreement on various Canadian domestic routes.

More emphasis on air cargo through funding
In a recent statement, First Air’s President & CEO, Brock Friesen, said that the company wishes to ensure that they can meet the growing cargo demand of the Canadian Arctic region and that First Air wants to further optimise services and modernize their facilities.

In order to accomplish the above, it seems that First Air is looking for Canadian government funding. It is said that Ottawa Airport is fully supporting First Air’s move as the carrier indicated that their first investment priority should be updating their present cargo handling facilities at the airport. They have partnered with Ottawa Airport and have presented two applications to the Canadian government’s National Trade Corridors Fund (NTCF) in the hope that the NTCF will agree to funding for expansion of facilities. also those in the northern Canadian regions.

Funding approval is still unendorsed
A sum of around almost nine million Canadian Dollars has been mentioned which is earmarked for the funding of new cargo facilities at Ottawa. In the second proposal, the request is for a further CA$ 17 million in order to expand First Air’s Eastern Arctic cargo hub in Iqaluit. It is from here that the carrier also distributes cargo by air to outlying Arctic regions.
The approval for funding is still outstanding, but it is hoped that it will soon be granted and that the project can be put into motion already this year. First Air’s management sees the need for speedy expansion as they predict that air cargo movement in the area will increase by around 30% during the coming years.

John Mc Donagh

Huge savings
The news of SWA sent shares of FedEx and UPS down last Friday, because the service expansion will apparently also be offered to other businesses with Amazon undercutting those shippers on rates, the WSJ report said.
According to Retail Dive, speculation about Amazon's delivery ambitions have swirled for years, with some analysts predicting that, beyond solving its own internal logistics problems, it could be an Amazon business unto itself.
Bypassing third-party shippers like UPS and FedEx could save Amazon US$1.1 billion annually, Citigroup analysts said in 2016. That translates to savings of US$3 or more on a typical delivery, which now costs US$7.81 on average.
Amazon's shipping and fulfillment costs until its most recent quarter grew faster than its revenue, but so far the company has focused on making moves to optimise those operations, the Retail Dive report said.
FedEx has consistently dismissed the notion that Amazon is a threat to its business, and executives have noted that, even if Amazon develops its own delivery service, outside shippers would have plenty of business, even in retail.

The race has begun
Retail Dive quoted RBC Capital Markets analyst Mark Mahoney as saying last year: "We believe it is likely Amazon will make a concerted effort to take over ever larger portions of its supply chain. However, a full-blown Amazon parcel delivery operation would likely take years to complete, so we believe [FedEx] and UPS would have time to react."
However, other experts are less optimistic. Retail Dive quoted GlobalData Retail Managing Director Neil Saunders as saying that Amazon has publicly indicated that it is open to eventually making deliveries for other businesses, which could be brutal for legacy shippers.
The danger to them is twofold, he said. First, they are likely to lose business from Amazon itself. "This will be slow at first but will accelerate as Amazon rolls out more of its own delivery services," he said.
Second, if Amazon does offer delivery to businesses, it will likely do so at reduced rates. "This leaves delivery firms with the unattractive prospect of losing share in their most lucrative and profitable markets."
The new "Shipping with Amazon" service shows that Amazon is in the process of creating a wide-ranging set of operations that serve consumers while optimising efficiencies and extending its reach, which ultimately will give Amazon more power, control, flexibility, and profit, the Retail Dive report noted.

Nol van Fenema

Silk Way wants Boeing to keep 747F line open
In a report published in the 8. February issue of aero telegraph.com it is stated that Baku, Azerbaijan-based Silk Way Airlines is trying to convince Boeing to keep the B747-8F production line open. Silk Way already operates five B747-8Fs and has a further two on order. Azal Azerbaijan Airlines President Jahangir Asgarov, which is a main shareholder in Silk Way is quoted as saying that the company will need more of the type. Press reports in Baku claim that the carrier will need at least a further 20 B747-8Fs until 2028. Other reports say that Boeing’s chief for civil aviation, Kevin McAllister will visit Baku this week to discuss the matter. 

Ethiopian opens new Bahar Dar -  Liege service
Addis Ababa-headquartered Ethiopian Airlines has initiated a new non-stop long-haul cargo operation between the Ethiopian city of Bahar Dar and Liege, Belgium. The flight from Bahar Dar, which is situated in the north western corner of Ethiopia, is geared towards the carriage of fresh cut flowers and other horticultural products. This area is well known for such products and the direct flight to Liege ensures that the temperature sensitive cargo does not have to go in transport via Addis. Ethiopian Airlines Cargo has daily flights to both Liege and Brussels, flying just over 130 tonnes of fresh flowers per week on this route. The carrier has the most modern long-haul fleet of aircraft of all African-based airlines. These are a mix of Airbus A350 and Boeing 777 /787 passenger versions as well as B777 freighters. 

Luxembourg did not quite reach 1 million tonnes in 2017
For the first time in its history, Luxembourg Airport has handled more than 900,000 tonnes of cargo in one year. This was the case in 2017, with a total of 938,000 tonnes having passed through the airport’s handling facilities. Compared to 2016, this is a 14% increase and brings Luxembourg into the ranking of Europe’s sixth largest cargo airport.
This is good news for LUX as it has taken the airport 10 years to break the 2007 record when they handled 896,000 tonnes. The financial crisis of 2008 showed volumes declining and these only started to pick up again as of 2013, Cargolux is of course still the main cargo carrier at Findel Airport and their up to 15 weekly services to Zhengzhou, China, have contributed a lot to the increase in tonnage. Emirates, with its new cooperation with Cargolux started in June of 2017 with regular B777F flights to and from Dubai. An important part of the LUX cargo increase also lies with Qatar Airways Cargo who have increased their weekly freighter operations from 15 to 27 during 2017. Silk Way West Airlines, Atlas Air and China Airlines also remain as regular users of Luxembourg.

CAL aims for European AOC
Tel Aviv based CAL Cargo Air Lines which also has a large hub in Liege, has stated that they will go ahead with plans to secure a European Aircraft Operator Certificate (AOC). In order to ensure that the application is taken seriously by the EU authorities, CAL will set up a company named ACE Air Cargo Europe. The base will be in Liege. This would then be a Belgian-based carrier and CAL plans to transfer one of their B747-400Fs under the new AOC. CAL presently operates four B747 freighters, but until now it is planned that only one will come under the new registration. It could be that further freighters are acquired and that they will then be registered under the new European AOC.

China-EU trade lane gives Schiphol a boost
A pilot programme supported by the World Customs Organisation (WCO) has started at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport which is aimed at reducing lead times and costs as well as streamlining the overall supply chain. The project is a cooperation model between Customs authorities in China and the EU.
It has been named ‘Smart and Secure Trade Lanes (SSTL)’ and which will hopefully lead to considerable reductions in lead times and Customs procedures as well as increasing security in the supply chain between both areas. This can only be achieved by a close data sharing system between Chinese and EU Customs authorities. So far, Schiphol is the only European airport which has been chosen to take part in the pilot project. Whether others will follow, remains to be seen. Not an easy task, considering the multitude of various Customs procedures which have to be taken into consideration. However, all parties state that “it has already resulted in reduced clearance times and increased predictability in the maritime supply chain.” So, they see no reason why this will not or cannot apply to the air freight supply chain as well.

ASL Switzerland disappears from the scene
ASL Switzerland, which in early years was known as Farnair, a UK-based regional cargo carrier, has ceased operations and  remains assets will be taken over by ASL Ireland. It was in 2014 that Farnair was integrated into ASL Switzerland. At that time the management was convinced that Farnair would continue to operate as an independent carrier. This has not materialised and the last flight was operated at the end of 2017. ASL Switzerland had been operating flights for the Swiss army Kfor - unit based in the Kosovo. They recently lost this contract to competitor Skywork Airlines. ASL Switzerland’s remaining ATR-42 freighter has been placed in storage and other activities are now in ASL Ireland hands.

TIACA has vision for modern & unified industry
The International Air Cargo Association (TIACA) has come up with a new vision for the organisation which is aimed at boosting training, consultancy and the initiation of a larger global footprint with local focus for its members.
TIACA’s management have been insisting for some time now on more local involvement from their members as well as a better international awareness on the problems facing the air cargo industry. The association states in their recent press release that: “a new focus is being aimed for to ensure a forward-looking approach to representing, supporting, and informing every element of an efficient, modern, and unified air cargo industry.” Any organisation is only as good as the support it gets from its members. Hopefully TIACA’s members will take up the challenge and support the new direction!

DoKaSch supplies Ethiopian Airlines with Opticoolers
The provider of climate-controlled solutions for air cargo operators, DoKaSch, has added Ethiopian Airlines Cargo as their latest customer for the Opticooler containers. Ethiopian Cargo runs many flights into Europe which mainly carry perishable and temperature-sensitive products. They have recently opened a new cargo terminal in Addis Ababa which also has temperature controlled storage facilities for pharmaceuticals and other cargo. DoKaSch’s Opticooler is equipped with a battery powered cooling compressor as well as heaters with a self-regulating temperature control system,

John Mc Donagh

Pook gets the eco seal
This year’s Fruit Logistica ended, as all forerunners did, with the price awarding ceremony, honoring and recognizing outstanding novelties across the entire fresh produce supply chain, from production to sale.
The 2018 Fruit Logistica Innovation Award winner is “Pook Coconut Chips,” elected by a majority of the 80,000 attendees.
Pook is a German start-up specialized in healthy and vegetarian food. Their tasty products are vegan, made of gluten-free starch and contain no preservatives. Many Fruit Logistica attendeeds hads the opportunity to convince themselves personally that Pook Chips are astonishingly well tasting.

Heiner Siegmund

The inaugural flight follows the launch of the experimental project with the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) in February 2016 to develop an urban unmanned air system to address the safety, efficiency, and sustainability of the air delivery business in cities such as Singapore.

The collaboration was subsequently extended in April 2017 with Singapore Post (SingPost) becoming the local logistics partner to the project.
Airbus Helicopters is the overall Skyways system architect and provider, contributing its capabilities in drone platforms as well as its concept of future parcel delivery. This concept involves systems and structures that allow drones to land, dock with secure structures, discharge or take on payloads, and then fly off to other destinations.
The research and development phase of the Skyways project is progressing well with equipment and facilities installed at the NUS campus.

Trial services ahead
Various tests are already underway, and the unmanned air system will be demonstrated in the university when the trial service commences this year. Campus students and staff will be able to make use of Skyways to have small parcels between 2kg and 4kg delivered to designated parcel stations within the campus, which is the size of 150 football fields.
“The urban logistics challenge is complex and an ecosystem of parcel lockers and autonomous vehicles will be a key piece to solving this puzzle,” said SingPost Group Chief Information Officer, Alex Tan.
“The trial service that is taking off later this year will be an important step forward for SingPost in our efforts to develop solutions for the future logistics needs of Singapore and other cities of the world.”
Skyways is one of a number of innovative Urban Air Mobility projects currently being researched at Airbus. These also include the Racer high-speed helicopter demonstrator, as well as the Vahana and CityAirbus autonomous drone concepts.

Nol van Fenema

Last year, Guangzhou's aircraft maintenance bases recorded 3.26 billion yuan (US$520 million) in total revenue, a year-on-year increase of 30%, making the city a global aeronautical maintenance hub.
According to Li Tongbin, vice general manager of China Southern, converting passenger aircraft into freighters is the top priority for the industry, with independently manufacturing planes on the radar as well.
In another freighter conversion deal, Elbe Flugzeugwerke (EFW), the joint venture between Singapore's ST Aerospace and Airbus, last week announced that it secured a launch contract from Vallair Solutions Sàrl (Vallair) for its A321 passenger-to-freighter (P2F) conversion programme.
The Germany-based aerospace company will convert 10 A321-200 passenger aircraft to a 14-pallet cargo configuration for Vallair. The first aircraft will be inducted in the last quarter of 2018, scheduled for redelivery by end of 2019.

A321 P2F arouses interest
According to President and CEO of Vallair, Gregoire Lebigot, there is "a huge potential for the A321 P2F, not only as a replacement of the B757F, but as a key tool for the cargo industry to achieve the projected growth rate of the air freight market in general – in particular driven by express services and e-commerce."
"The A321 P2F will be the first aircraft to introduce a containerised lower deck to the market segment of narrow body freighters: a significant game changer for any hub and spoke operation," he said.
ST Aerospace (Singapore Technologies Aerospace Ltd) is the aerospace arm of ST Engineering with facilities and affiliates in the Americas, Asia Pacific and Europe, including EFW (Elbe Flugzeugwerke GmbH), which is a 55:45 joint venture of ST Aerospace and Airbus, based in Dresden, Germany.

Nol van Fenema

Volga-Dnepr Group member AirBridgeCargo Airlines (ABC) has in the last one-and-a-half decades grown into one of the world’s most successful all-cargo carriers, operating with a fleet of eighteen Boeing 747Fs (11 B747-8Fs, 4 B747-400ERFs, and 3 B747-400Fs) to destinations across the globe, complemented by feeder services conducted by their subsidiary Atran Cargo Airlines. In the meantime almost 40 cities are standing on ABC’s route map, many of them located in Europe.

Space gets tight at most airports
Earlier this week, CFG was informed confidentially by various credible sources that the Moscow-based management have sent out a request to the thirteen airports they regularly serve in Europe to look at and report on the possibility of being able to offer AirBridgeCargo Airlines a long-term secondary hub at their locations. This, if it were to come about, would mean that ABC would then eventually operate most or all of their European flights through the one hub while trucking most goods from there all across Europe to their final destinations.
Market experts told CFG, this is a very wise move if it were to come to fruition. ABC’s problem is that many of the European airports they serve are becoming totally congested and put their product at risk if the quality level and stability of operations were to drop.

ABC’s management gives CFG a clear statement
After being informed about their intended single European hub project, CargoForwarder Global asked ABC’s management to comment on the subject.

The following statement was issued to us on February 14th.
“Following our telephone conversation, please find the statement on behalf of AirBridgeCargo Airlines regarding the subject discussed.
The idea to launch an ABC secondary hub in Europe is not a new one. In 2017 we witnessed a number of situations with major cargo hubs, which revealed the scale of problems related to airport congestions, constraints, prioritizing in favor of passenger business, etc. We started looking for alternative solutions, partnership development with cargo friendly airports which are ready to support our ambitious plans. However, despite their proactive customer-focused approach and strong willingness to cooperate with ABC, when we started talking about increase of volumes to these airports, we come to the joint conclusion that the existing airport infrastructure and qualified manpower is not sufficient for smooth operations of a big freighter operator. At the moment AirBridgeCargo is set to make assessment of real and potential possibilities of different European airports in order to make an inventory of airport’s capacity, different facilities including ground handling sites, etc. Given our strategy for expansion and improvement service quality for special cargoes it is of vital importance for ABC to find partners with a high level of handling services, extensive operational opportunities including for all types of special cargo and well-developed ground and airport infrastructure."

A dedicated airport - the only solution?
The above statement is pretty clear - ABC intends to protect their business for the future and gear itself towards upcoming market changes. It is no secret that many airports, including those in Europe, have been facing problems during the past year as far as handling of the enormous volumes of air cargo passing through their doors. Some have been faced with almost total blockages at warehouse doors, on the ramp and also what it seems is the lack of qualified and dedicated staff in the warehouses to surmount the problems.
This problem is not getting better and is being compounded by the ever increasing volume of e-commerce shipments, pharmaceuticals and temperature-sensitive products being moved by air alongside the so called general cargo.
So, indeed a wise move by ABC, say market observers, to start looking seriously at the possibility of a secondary hub in Europe which could handle all.
But where is it?
The above statement clearly shows that ABC has done their homework well in seeing if one or the other present locations they fly to could be the answer. It seems not!

Many airports are still looking too much at the passenger business.
There, it seems, is almost always room for expansion. But not so for cargo. We have broached this subject in previous reports highlighting the dangers of ignoring the increase of cargo volumes and the lack of facilities and well trained and well paid staff.
But, if some airports can fall over themselves to accommodate integrators by allocating huge areas for small parcels sorting and apron space for aircraft - then why not for one of the world’s largest cargo carriers which needs to have the same in order to protect future business.

What would ABC need?
By taking just a rough look at their present European schedule one can see that they surely must have between 30 - 35 scheduled B747F operations per week  in Europe. A rough calculation would show that at high load factor levels (120t/flight), this would mean between 3,500 – 4,200 tons per week. Going lower, this figure would still be around the 3,000 tons mark each week. There’s no way that any of today’s European cargo hubs can handle that amount of air cargo on top of what they presently have.
Where then, is the airport which is willing and in the position to create a new dedicated cargo hub for AirBridgeCargo. The carrier has fairly put the question out to their present airport partners. But, will one of them come up with the necessary funding, space allocation, infrastructure and road feeder structure which can allow ABC to continue on their present road and expand into future market developments.
Serious investors are needed, planning experts who know the job and warehouse and ramp facilities which can cater for future growth. Presumably only airports qualify that –among others – offer a dual runway system, 24/7 ops, sufficient real estate for future expansion and a warehouse setup which is tailored exclusively to ABC’s needs. Geographically speaking, one could assume that only airports which are central European located come into question in order to assure a direct and speedy road feeder service.  
A hard nut to crack - but maybe those who have space might want to look at the recent reports in the U.S. press whereby Philadelphia Airport has acquired a 14 acre site right next to the airport for only US$ 54 million and plans to turn it into a dedicated cargo area.
Munich, Leipzig, Cologne, Hahn, Liege, Amsterdam and all others - the ball is now in your court.

John Mc Donagh / Heiner Siegmund

Tit-for-tat
Meanwhile, the culprit did not remain passive but filed suits against other potential perpetrators harming his business through imputed illegal activities. In total, DB and DB Schenker demand indemnification payments from eleven freight carriers amounting to €3 billion.
In the case of Air France-KLM evidently with success as seen by their willingness to reach an out-of-court settlement by transferring €60 million from their account to that of DB / DB Schenker. Prior to that, SAS, Cargolux, ANA, Qantas, and Singapore Airlines had reached similar but less costly arrangements, this way getting the DB demands off their books.
Two another candidates standing on DB’s lawsuit list, but unwilling to pay, are Lufthansa Cargo and their group member Swiss Air Lines. Their point: as former members of a price fixing cartel existing between 1999 and 2006, they offered the U.S. justice to cooperate under the terms of the leniency notice to shed more light on the price collusion. Accordingly, the U.S. prosecutors penalized them very modestly.

Civil lawsuit hangs like a Damocles sword over the heads of LH and Swiss
Since both airlines brought the price fixing activities to light, while supporting the investigations of the authorities, the EU Commission refrained from imposing any fines on LH or Swiss.
However, if this absolution by Brussels will help them to be spared from criminal justice remains to be seen. Because similar to the actions taken against the cartel members by public authorities the injured parties, among them DB/DB Schenker, Kuehne + Nagel, car maker BMW and some others have filed civil lawsuits. The outcome of these charges stands entirely open.

Heiner Siegmund

Budapest honours Cargolux as best cargo carrier
“Best Performing Cargo Airline” - this was the award given to Cargolux by Budapest Airport at a ceremony held on 8 February in the Hungarian capital. Tony McNichol, Cargolux Regional Director Central Europe received the award on behalf of the Luxembourg-based all cargo airline. Budapest Airport recognised Cargolux for their contribution to the airport’s record breaking year 2017 for cargo volumes. The carrier transported almost 11,000 tons of cargo to and from Budapest during the past year. This was a 14.5% increase over the previous year.
Tony McNichol stated upon receiving the award that: “We are honoured and proud to receive this award - it is a great recognition of our efforts to offer the Hungarian air freight community the best possible service.” Budapest Airport handled a total of just on 130,000 tons in 2017 - a 13.4% increase on 2016 figures. The new Cargo City which is being erected is expected to be operational by 2019.

Roses are red for LH Cargo…
Valentines Day is now behind us hopefully many women around the world have been showered with red roses. Lufthansa Cargo has flown quite a few freighters for this special day, all filled to the top with red roses. In total, 800 tonnes of the “Queen of Flowres” were flown into LH Cargo’s Frankfurt main hub. They originated mainly from Kenya and South America. The 800 tonnes equate to the capacity offered on eleven MD-11 freighter flights. The carrier has a thriving year-round business of transporting flowers and perishables under their Fresh product label from Africa and South America. Their freighter fleet is equipped with special temperature controlled systems which can be quickly adjusted to cater for ideal temperature needed for the transport of sensitive products.

… and for many other freight carriers as well
Among them is AFKLMP Cargo that flew nearly 3,000 tons of flowers from Latin American and African production sites to Europe on board their Boeing 747-400F and 747 Combi aircraft. On the occasion, Marcel de Nooijer, Executive Vice President AIR FRANCE KLM MARTINAIR Cargo stated: “We are strongly committed to the flower market and successfully met seasonal peak flower demand again for this year’s Valentine’s Day.”
To move flowers and plants seamlessly from growers to wholesalers, Royal FloraHolland, Schiphol Cargo and AFKLMP Cargo have initiated the ‘Holland Flower Alliance’ – an ambitious group of floricultural logistics professionals, dedicated to the pursuit of innovation and sustainability in the floral supply chain.

CARGOLUX is traditionally involved in the run-up to Valentine’s Day as well, adding to its weekly 20 flights out of Nairobi, Quito and Bogota another 1,200 tons to meet consumer demand. “We are operating a modern fleet which has the state-of-art thermal capabilities, in order to guarantee the reliable transport of flowers to lovebirds around the world,” says Stavros Evangelakakis, Cargolux product manager for fresh and temperature controlled commodities.

On the same occasion, LATAM Cargo flew more than 9,500 tons of flowers from Colombia and Ecuador to Miami, Los Angeles and Amsterdam.
“This holiday, we once again surpassed last year’s record peak. The figures are a testament to LATAM Cargo’s leadership in the region and reflects the trust customers have placed in our ‘Perishable’ service, which ensures the highest standards during the entire shipping process so that products reach their final destination in perfect condition,” stated Felipe Caballero, Commercial Vice President for Central and North America, LATAM Cargo.
 
time:matters celebrates 10 years of Spare Parts Logistics
Frankfurt based time:matters Spare Parts Logistics Division, a daughter company of time:matters Ltd, looks back on ten years of service of offering tailored spare parts supply solutions within their own European flight network as well as a global partner network. The company is proud of its overnight delivery of essential spare parts within almost all European regions by latest 8 am the following day.
The division was set up in 2007 when time:matters won the tender from Siemens Healthcare and Fujitsu-Siemens and flew the first shipment on 17. December 2007. In the early stages the service was only on offer to customers in Italy and Scandinavia. This was extended to France and the UK and in the meantime overnight deliveries are possible in Spain, Greece, Russia and all of the baltic region. The service is especially popular with producers of agricultural equipment as well as medical technology, the automotive sector and IT companies.

John Mc Donagh / Heiner Siegmund

Strawberries, grapes, peaches, peppers, sweet potatoes, asparagus, mushrooms or salads, apples, mangos as far as the eye can reach. Indeed an overwhelming amount of culinary – and visual – delicacies that were displayed by traders from around the world at their stands, drawing the attention of the roughly 80,000 visitors and perishables professionals attending the latest Fruit Logistica fair held recently in Berlin. A remarkable event, for sure and one of the most “fruitful” ones for exhibitors, buyers, airlines, and forwarders alike, whom Fruit Logistica offers an ideal platform to talk business (see 12th Feb. issue of CargoForwarder Global). 

Dominance of perishable products
One of the many participants was Ibrahim Haitham, Egyptair Cargo manager Germany, who had come from his Frankfurt station to Berlin for obvious reasons. After all, Egyptair Cargo’s number one commodity consists of perishables, accounting for more than three quarters of their total sales. Week after week, fruits and vegetables add up to 280 tons flown from Cairo, Egyptair’s central hub, to Cologne-Bonn and Ostend in the main decks of their three A300 freighters. An additional 240 tons are brought to Amsterdam, Paris or Frankfurt in the lower decks of their passenger jetliners. An even larger portion, totaling 56 percent, is flown to destinations in the Middle East and the neighboring Arabian countries. 
“Agricultural crops are our bread-and-butter business,” states CEO Bassem Gohar of Egyptair, who himself still holds a pilot license, “accounting for 79 percent of all cargo flown abroad, securing us a domestic market share of 62 percent.”

Running like clockwork
Stunning figures illustrating the freight carrier’s concentration on this product but also its dependency on fine-tuned supply chains for securing the quality of the temperature sensitive items cultivated and harvested in the fertile Nile Delta. “The carrier’s freighter flights to Cologne and Ostend, their two European destinations, are running like clockwork,” confirms MD Hassaan Aglan of Skyline Air Service, Egyptair Cargo’s preferred general sales agent in Germany. Hassaan adds to this that in October and November, the peak months for perishable imports into Europe, up to 500 tons are leaving Egypt daily, with most of them ending up in supermarket chains across the EU.

Forthcoming fleet adjustments
A major topic, discussed between Egyptian exhibitors and airline managers at the Fruit Logistica stands was the forthcoming increase in Egyptair's transport capacity as a result of a fleet swop, replacing their three A300Fs with three A330-200 P2F converted freighters. This results not only in a 30 percent capacity gain but also in increased operational range. While an A300F can uplift up to 42 tons and operate 5.5 hours nonstop, her larger sister A330-200F is capable of transporting 58 tons over a distance easily doubling that of the older Airbus variant. “Thanks to the wider reach, we are able to operate all-cargo flights from Cairo to destinations in the U.S. or to East Asia once the three A330 P2Fs have joined our fleet,” enthuses Michel Maged, General Manager Germany at MS.
As a matter of fact, he and his MS colleagues don’t have to wait much longer for this to happen because the first A330-200 P2F is scheduled to join Egyptair Cargo’s fleet next summer, followed by the delivery of the other two conversions in October this year and March 2019 respectively.

New storage facility on the horizon
In addition to this, the management also plans to add two Boeing 737-800 freighters to the fleet, each of them able to carry between 20 and 22 tons. They will be mainly operated on African routes to better service the local markets, explains airline Chief Mr Gohar. Part of the investment plan totaling €115 million, is intended to be used for enlarging and enhancing the ground infrastructure at the carrier’s Cairo hub. A major cornerstone supporting the freight company’s growth trajectory is a new warehouse, adding 15,000 square meters to the existing ground facilities. It’s an investment in the future of Egyptair Cargo in the face of the country’s booming perishables business that enjoys record sales year after year.

Heiner Siegmund

Last Tuesday, Feb. 13, a TK Cargo operated A330F touched down at LGG, jammed with perishables brought in from Africa. It is the first time ever, Turkish Cargo lands at Liege-Bierset, positioning from Entebbe, Uganda and ferrying from LGG to Oslo to pick up seafood there before returning to its home base Istanbul Ataturk Airport.
The weekly TK Cargo service which can uplift 65 tons per flight, might only be the beginning of a closer future partnership between the airline and the Walloon airport, indicates LGG’s Cargo and Logistics Manager Bert Selis: “On the occasion of the inaugural flight, TK Cargo’s management has given us a very clear signal to grow their Liege traffic after an initial phase.”

Liege expects to handle 800,000 tons in 2018
Steven Verhasselt, Commercial Vice-President of LGG regards the arrival of Turkish Cargo as clear indication of his airport’s course. The manager stated: “Our strategy is very clear: priority is given to companies specializing in cargo. We transported 717,000 tons in 2017 (+8.5% y-o-y, hs), which was a record for us, and we aim to exceed 800,000 tons in 2018.” He added to this that “the Turkish market is very important and ideally located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa.”
Ilker Avci, CEO of Turkish Airlines stated on the occasion of the A330F’s inaugural Liege flight that his airline’s cargo arm is already serving more than 80 destinations and thanks to new destinations added to the network, such as Liege in Belgium, TK expects to transport up to 1,5 million tons in 2018.

Cargo enjoys priority at LGG
Touching the growth issue, LGG is well on track, seen by a 21 percent jump in tonnage last month compared to 2017 January figures. Due to an increasing number of clients such as Air China Cargo or ABC, that started serving LGG last year, and now welcomed newcomer TK Cargo, the airport management decided very early to invest both in additional parking positions for large aircraft and the upping of warehouse capacity in the northern part of the airport. While construction for four additional aircraft stands is well under way, scheduled to be completed in Q2 of 2019 (2 positions) and Q4 respectively, warehouse capacity is also expanded at the northern part of the airport which AirBridgeCargo and TK Cargo have chosen for their operations. This comprises a new 6,000 square meters freight terminal that opened its doors last weekend. Although it is still an open issue at this stage which ground handling agent will run the facility. “The tenant will be announced within the next few days, LGG manager Selis says.
A similar sized building will follow, scheduled to be operational before the end of the year.
In total, Liege is investing more than €50 million in its cargo infrastructure. A clear sign to the market, confirming that air freight comes first at the Walloon airport. 

Heiner Siegmund

Double digit growth all round
The German airports collectively almost reached the 5 million ton mark in 2017. Official air cargo tonnage was recorded as being 4.9 million tonnes. This was almost a good eight percent higher than the previous year.
However, one can not overlook the fact that from the 4.9 million tonnes, almost 85% passed through Frankfurt, Cologne-Bonn and Leipzig. These three, especially Cologne and Leipzig benefited much from the integrator traffic from DHL, UPS and FedEx. Other German airports accounted for the remaining 15% or 16%, whereby in official German statistics smaller airports such as Dortmund, Friedrichshafen, Karlsruhe and the suchlike are listed. Most of these have no real air cargo volume to speak of and therefore that tonnage could be seen as being split over Munich, Hahn, Stuttgart and a couple of others. Here also, Munich would be the dominant player.
Frankfurt, as usual led the pack accounting for 2.23 million tonnes. This represents something near to half of the total air cargo passing through German airports. Leipzig handled almost 1.2 million tonnes - up 8 percent and Cologne-Bonn 840,000 tons - an increase of almost 7 percent.

Smaller airports record good growth
Some of them however cannot be really be termed as small. Smaller in volumes handled, but not necessarily in official airport area. Munich, as mentioned above, would come out on top, having recorded a total of 378,803 tonnes - a 7% rise over 2016. Hahn Airport figures rose high compared to previous years due to the HNA (Suparna) flights which quickly grew after the takeover earlier in the year. It is expected that this trend will continue during 2018, and - the airport has room for expansion on facilities if investments are done.

How did Germany compare to the rest?
Despite good figures for 2017, German airports with their almost 8 percent lay just under the global 9 percent increase. Surprisingly, the average increase in Europe was overall almost 12 percent. German figures, especially in Frankfurt, could well have been better if they had not faced industrial dispute during the closing months of 2017.

Are handling agents benefitting?
Not really, would be the answer from most handlers. Costs have rocketed, industrial strife in some areas and airlines, despite better yields and bottom lines, not really wanting to tackle the subject (see previous CargoForwarder reports) of “giving a fair price for good service.” Temperature sensitive cargo, hi-value cargo and other commodities require specialised handling procedures and controls. These cost money and well trained manpower. Most of which the air cargo handlers have to supply. If they can’t afford to scour the market for well trained and well paid staff due to continuing lower returns, then airlines should not complain when service aspects don’t meet ends.
Space is becoming a problem at Frankfurt as more carriers push more freight through the airport. This led to the above mentioned disputes and may well force carriers to look for alternative airports in Europe. At least the rumors say that one or two big ones are thinking in this direction. This, and pushing handlers continually down on price, will not be of a long term benefit for German airports. When looking at Frankfurt’s problems and facility drawbacks and the expected continued growth of over 5% per annum; then other airports may be well advised to quickly update their facilities in order to get a larger slice of the cake.

Bright prospects
German logistics companies business boomed in Germany and the rest of the world.
Led by DHL, Kuehne + Nagel (Swiss HQ) and DB Schenker. All three were not only national leaders, but worldwide also.
The outlook for 2018 remains positive - but anything can happen as we have seen this past week as the world’s stock markets started massive corrections on share prices.
A ball which could rebound negatively into the air freight scene seeing how the e-commerce business is moving ahead.

John Mc Donagh

Dnata touches down at Brussels Airport
Sources state that Emirates Group ground handling subsidiary, Dnata, has won the third airside cargo handling license at Brussel Airport. The cargo handling licenses which are up for renewal this year are issued for a seven-year period which ends in 2025. Up to now Brussels Airport has limited airside access to two companies only. The cargo community has been lobbying for the abolition of this duopoly for years, hoping that this will lead to better service levels.
Apart from Dnata, the present license holders Aviapartner and Swissport as well as Spanish handler Acciona, have reacted to the tender. It is said that Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) submitted their application too late. Even if the advent of Dnata still has to be officially confirmed, it does not come as a surprise. They would be a newcomer to Brussels. They entered the handling scene in Amsterdam in 2015 by taking over Aviapartner’s business activities there.

Final run for local rule implementation in AMS
The airlines represented at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport in the Coordination Committee Netherlands have endorsed KLM’s compromise on the allocation of 25% of non-used slots to the cargo industry. A fixed contingent of flights will be reserved per season for cargo operations based on former year’s statistics. So far there has been no information on the exact number of slots the air cargo industry will have at its disposal. The proposal will also provide the allocation of slots resulting from cancelled flights. It remains unclear if the rule will compensate the loss of historical rights incurred by the cargo carriers. The local rule for Schiphol still needs the approval of the Minister of Infrastructure, Cora van Nieuwenhuizen. She has stated earlier that she was willing to support the rule, which has to be screened by EU regulators. Interested parties such as the umbrella organisation Air Cargo Netherlands (ACN) and Transport & Logistiek Nederland (TLN), have urged the minister to speed up the process so that the rule can come into effect during the coming summer season.

Western Global to expand scheduled cargo operation
Sarasota, Florida-based Western Global Airlines (WGA) has filed documents with the U.S. Department of Transport (DOT) which are applications to expand their scheduled cargo network. The DOT reports that WGA has put in an application for a so called ‘Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity,’ which if granted, would allow the carrier to operate scheduled cargo flights from points in the U.S. to other countries which already have Open Skies agreements with the United States via intermediate points. The airline already operates cargo services between the U.S. and mainland China, as well as Hong Kong. Apart from this, WGA also has the right to operate interstate and foreign cargo charters with their fleet of two B747-400Fs and eleven MD-11Fs.

Hermes appoints new Chief Technology Officer
London, UK-based Hermes Logistics Technologies (HTL) which is one of the leading suppliers of air freight cargo management systems, has appointed Alexis Labonne as Chief Technology Officer. The company is presently in the process of rolling out their latest management system, which is called Hermes 5 (H5). Mr Labonne who has an extensive software development and architectural background, joins Hermes after having held positions as CTO for companies such as Hitachi Consulting, British Telecom and KPMG.
Hermes which has been offering airlines and air cargo handlers digital handling solutions since 2002, will roll out their latest version (H5) this year. It is said that a leading European handling agent will be the first to use the new system.

Frank Van Gelder new Secretary General of Pharma.Aero
Brussels-headquartered Pharma.Aero has announced that Frank Van Gelder will take up the position of Secretary General for the association.
Pharma.Aero provides its members with end-to-end advice and solutions in air transportation for pharma shippers as well as being active in carrying out local and regional discussions for the industry. Frank Van Gelder joins at a time when the pajama industry is looking for better service levels and supply chain solutions. He has held top positions within the air cargo industry during the past years, especially in relation to special products such as pharma and perishables. His vision remains that supply chain improvement and innovative approaches towards time and temperature critical commodities, are essential for this part of the industry.

WFS gains United recognition in AMS
Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) Amsterdam operation has been acknowledged by United Airlines for its ‘outstanding achievement’ and has gained United’s Best Station of the Year award for the Europe, Middle East, India and Africa (EMEIA) region for the third year in succession. WFS handles more than 210,000 tonnes a year in AMS and has a portfolio of more than 40 airline customers there. United and WFS have been partners at the airport since 2004. The U.S. carrier operates to Houston, Chicago, Newark and Washington with more than 1,300 flights per annum.

DHL Express orders B767-300F
At the recently held Singapore Airshow, DHL Express announced that they have placed an order with Boeing for a B767-300ER BCF aircraft. This will be a P2F conversion unit, but both parties are keeping quiet so far on where the aircraft originates and what delivery slot has been agreed to. When finished, it is assumed that the aircraft will most probably be allocated to one of DHL Express units in Germany or the UK. DHL Express already operates a fleet of 34 freighters, many of which are the B757-200F variant.

John Mc Donagh / Marcel Schoeters

A fourteen percent reduction by end 2018
That’s the prognosis also from financial analysts.
The carrier presently has 122 aircraft in their fleet, most of them long-haul Boeings and Airbus types. Quite a jump from 2006 when Etihad only had 22 aircraft on their books. This number rose steadily throughout the past ten years to reach today’s number. It is said that this number will be reduced by almost 14% to 107 aircraft only by the end of this year. This affects both passenger and freighter types. A total of 20 aircraft will go out of service if all information is correct.

U.S. market doldrums are part of the problem
The continued verbal attacks by U.S. carriers against Etihad and other Gulf States airlines has not helped matters either. Etihad’s ambitions to set themselves up as a serious carrier to the United States have seemingly not materialised and they have already ceased their Abu Dhabi - San Francisco route and intend to close Abu Dhabi - Dallas by the end of this winter season. These routes have been operated by Etihad’s Boeing 777 LR (Long Range) aircraft and the result is that five B777LRs will be phased out and probably sold off. The airline has a total of 30 B777 passenger aircraft in service along with 25 A330s, 8 A380s, 9 B787s and 5 A340s. Etihad’s regional fleet is made up of a mixture of 35 A320/A319 and A321 aircraft.
Other destinations on the immediate closure list are said to be Entebbe, Jaipur and Tehran. Insider information shows that Etihad will reduce their annual block-hours by six percent by September this year.
They have ordered a total of 62 Airbus A350 types which when phased in will surely replace older models such as the A340/A330 and triple-sevens.

Cargo figures have declined
Despite the global air freight boom of 2017, Etihad has been fighting an uphill battle as far as generating acceptable cargo volumes and revenues. This has led to the decision to also cut the all freighter fleet considerably.
Five A330-200 freighters are going out of service. Whether they will be just stored to await better times or sold off, remains to be seen. This leaves Etihad with just five B777Fs and one B747F. They have however, still plenty of long-haul belly space to offer.
Five freighters and five passenger aircraft already earmarked for disposal. What about the remaining ten? Most probably the A340 aircraft and some more A330 passenger jets will be on this list.

Hard cost cutting measures
Etihad had to take tough cost cutting measures after the failed investments of their former CEO James Hogan in Air Berlin, Alitalia and other companies. On top of this, heavy competition in the Gulf has generally driven passenger and cargo prices too low. It’s five-minutes-to-twelve for Etihad and only tough measures will ensure they can stay in the Gulf region as competitors to Emirates and Qatar Airways.
Or - will we see Emirates and Etihad as a single carrier in the not too distant future?

John Mc Donagh

Simultaneously, Rhine-Main and IT specialist Dakosy agreed on implementing a digital cargo portal at FRA for shippers of dangerous goods.

Frankfurt Airport reports a 1.3% increase in cargo tonnages handled last January and a 7.6% rise in passenger figures. On the passenger side the main growth driver was the European passenger movement. Cargo increases were disappointing, but maybe also due to the continued strife on the delays experienced in December due to strikes and long waiting times.

World’s first
In contrast to their parent company, airports belonging to the Frankfurt Group such as Xian in China, Lima in Peru, and some others, reported positive pax and freight figures all round. An exception were the 14 Greek regional airports, acquired in summer of 2015 by Fraport AG, which recorded a 5.1% slowdown in passenger traffic.
In other news it is reported that Fraport and Hamburg-headquartered IT service provider Dakosy will set up what they say is the world’s first Digital Portal for Dangerous Goods shipping. A cooperation agreement has been signed by both companies for the implementation of the portal at FRA for shippers of DGD. This, they state, will be the first worldwide digitalization of the entire dangerous goods process.

Manual was yesterday
Dakosy CEO Ulrich Wrage commented: "Our shipper portal will considerably simplify processes for all users across company borders. The ever closer collaboration with Fraport AG as a strong partner for this innovative product allows us to contribute to drive forward the digital transformation in the air cargo industry on a consistent and ongoing basis."
Underlining the benefits of the new tool, Anke Giesen, Fraport‘s Executive Director Operations, stated: "The portal enables all players of the airfreight supply chain to make the process faster, more reliable, and more transparent. We at Frankfurt Airport are thus once again underscoring our position as an innovation leader in airfreight.”

Freight processes become transparent thanks to Fair@Link
Both enterprises cooperate for some time now to optimise transports and make freight processes more transparent. The tool enabling full process transparency, guaranteeing truckers and forwarding agents precise delivery or pick-up times at freight terminals, is the Dakosy developed digital platform Fair@Link.
With modules such as “Truck Appointment,” “Customs Processes,” “Security / eFreight,2 “Dangerous Goods Management” and “SCM –
Supply Chain Management,” the platform offers a wide range of functions. Since the platform‘s introduction in Frankfurt; shipments have become more predictable and arrive as planned. Such is also the case at the seaport of Hamburg where the flow of goods is also managed by Dakosy’s Fair@Link digital platform.

John Mc Donagh / Heiner Siegmund

Upgrading the operation
CEO Ken Allen said that the new Brussels complex is part of a larger infrastructure upgrading operation. DHL Express is also investing in newer and larger aircraft and a state-of-the-art IT network. And more investments are in the pipeline, he indicated. In this way the company tries to keep pace with its growth, which has been more than 7% over the last 13 months. “It is not only the traditional B2B business that is bouncing back. On top of that there are the small and middle-sized enterprises that can expand globally thanks to our services.”
The new facility has been operational since September 2017, but apparently the company wanted to wait until this year to set up its official inauguration. As CEO Benelux Danny Van Himste pointed out, the company is sort of celebrating its 40th year of presence in Belgium this year. The Brussels hub was set up 33 years ago.

Transit hub
42 daily flights in and out connect BRU to other destinations in Europe as well as the rest of the world. There is a daily flight to the company’s American hub in Cincinnati, as well as to Lagos and Bahrain (via Bergamo). Asian destinations are served through Leipzig, which took over Brussels’ role as intercontinental hub in 2007. Between 50 and 60% of all the packages arriving in BRU are subsequently on-forwarded to a further destination.
Koen Gouweloose, Vice-President of the Brussels hub said that the new facility ensures the capacity necessary for growth. When planning the new infrastructure he was convinced that it would create 200 direct jobs (and 200 indirect ones as well) by 2020. “I am happy to say that we have already reached that number at the end of last year,” he said.

At a cost of €140 million, a sum that includes lease expenditures, the Brussels hub is the biggest investment in the BRU cargo area over the last 40 years. The facility has a handling capacity of 42,000 shipments per hour. It is equipped with two fully automated sorting systems - one for big and one for small parcels. Its 36,500 m² space (including offices) almost quadruples the capacity. This catapults Brussels into the top five most important gateways operated by DHL Express worldwide.

Up-to-date equipment
“Which means that the European Distribution Centre based in Belgium will be able to grow with us,” Koen said. “This is supported by our very strict lead times, being 5 minutes between offload and reload and the late pickups.”
The new centre has also been provided with the most up-to-date equipment. Nine Real Time Tomography (RTT) systems allow explosive screening of 2,500 pieces per hour. Connecting the landside to the airside are 26 unique airlocks, enabling ULD’s to pass through without any human intervention. It is a unique design for which DHL collaborated with Brussels Airport Company, the Belgian Civil Aviation Authority, electricity provider Engie, internal logistics systems provider Intrion and Saco Airport Equipment.
Brussels Airport CEO Arnaud Feist said that the new facility makes BRU the leading cargo hub for flown and trucked cargo in Belgium. “It enables us to enlarge our network around the globe and BRU wants to grasp this market,” he said, adding that two other new investments will be announced shortly.

Marcel Schoeters in Brussels

When clicking on Amsterdam Schiphol Group’s Aviation Marketing link on their site, visitors learn that the division intends to maintain and strengthen the competitive position of the airport. “The sky over Holland presents many opportunities … and the sky is open for business,” the website proclaims.

LH Cargo became the first victim of a willful Dutch traffic policy
Is this really the case? Market participants still remember the long-lasting dispute between Lufthansa Cargo and the Dutch aviation authorities over the legality of traffic rights for LHC operated flower flights from Ecuador and Colombia into Europe, via a stop-over in Puerto Rico, which is a sovereign part of the U.S. territory and is therefore subject to the liberal aviation treaty agreed on by Washington and Brussels.
However, KLM lobbied successfully against LH freighters landing in AMS coming from Puerto Rico. A well-known game. For decades KLM and Schiphol Airport were like two sides of the same coin. The Dutch national carrier has been and still is a forceful player in the AMS cargo landscape, not least in the transport of flowers which is part of their core business, especially after they integrated Martinair Cargo. At the end of a long-lasting legal battle, LH Cargo lost their fight for being admitted traffic rights, after Holland’s highest court rejected their claim based on the Dutch judges’ bizarre interpretation of the Open Sky deal signed by the EU and the USA. Experts spoke of a scandalous judicial decision.  

AMS focusses on belly hold cargo, not freighters
Meanwhile, KLM has disposed of most of its freighters and has decided to rely mainly on lower deck capacity of their passenger fleet to meet the needs of their cargo customers. Within the AMS Cargo community this has led to the uneasy feeling that the airport management is following suit by shifting its cargo policy form the main to the lower decks of jetliners, making the life hard for operators of all-cargo aircraft.
That uneasiness is reinforced by the fear that the airport might turn out to be too lenient towards holiday carriers and budget airlines. The fact that the above-mentioned Aviation Marketing page displays an Easyjet aircraft seems to be quite indicative in this respect.

Retail comes first
Leisure travelers are supposed to start their holidays by consuming expensive coffees and tankards of Heineken beer as well as buying Made-in-China orange windmills at the airport’s many shopping areas. But does this clientele really satisfy the retailer’s expectations? Very doubtful, indeed. Most of these travelers booked a low fare ticket to catch a cheap flight and not to spend much money at airport shops and boutiques. This they might do after having arrived at their chosen destination.
What has this got to do with AMS and their cargo strategy? A lot, because the freight community does not hang around in sparkling passenger terminals, spending their money there. So in the eyes of the Schiphol managers they are a quantity negligible when it comes to the airport’s retail business. What the marketing people are overlooking is the fact that many consumer goods displayed at AMS shops were brought in by air freight.

Low cost carrier’s new heaven?
Every additional flight or frequency regulators allocate to AMS, particularly for low cost carriers like Easyjet or AF-KL’s own budget daughter Joon will further reduce the already very limited number of movements, to the detriment of cargo flights. The consequence will be that freighters will continue diverting to other European airports. Much to the annoyance of Air Cargo Netherlands, evofenedex, Transport & Logistiek Nederland, many forwarders, and shippers.

Restoring lost faith is the key issue
Ms Van der Windt, who will head the new division named “Aviation, Passenger and Cargo Experience” as of April 1, can boast an impressive track record, including senior management positions at Brisbane Airport. With her expanded responsibilities she will have a lot on her plate.
One of her main tasks will be to restore confidence that the air freight business is still standing very high on Schiphol’s agenda. This belief was severely damaged lately following the expulsion of all-cargo carriers such as ABC, Emirates, Cargolux or Singapore Cargo that lost some of their slots at AMS.
One can only hope that Mrs Van de Windt will turn out to be an excellent juggler, able to keep all the different balls - including cargo - in the air.

Marcel Schoeters in Brussels