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United and partners deliver aid to stricken Hawaii

By
Chris Lewis
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United Cargo, humanitarian aid organization Airlink and US-based charity Good360 have delivered relief supplies to thousands of people affected by the Kona Low storms in Hawaii.

On April 10, a United Airlines Boeing 787 Dreamliner left Chicago O’Hare International Airport bound for Kahului Airport with tons of essential items such as generators, baby wipes and hygiene supplies.

United managing director – cargo, Americas, Chris Busch, said: “When disaster hits, the speed at which emergency aid supplies are brought in, is crucial to mitigating further consequences. Our long-standing partnership with Airlink Inc. means that we now have a well-orchestrated response process whenever crisis occurs. United Airlines ensures that the cargo capacity is made available and supplies are quickly built up, cleared for transport, and loaded.”

Airlink president and chief executive, Paloma Adams-Allen, added: “Critical shipments are reaching families in Hawaii faster and more efficiently thanks to United generously airlifting the cargo we coordinated with Good360. This shipment of generators and baby wipes will make a tangible difference for affected families.”

China Eastern launches Xi’an-Vienna flights

By
Chris Lewis
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China Eastern Airlines inaugurated its first-ever service from Xi’an to Vienna on 20 April, the first-ever direct connection between the Austrian capital and the Chinese metropolitan centre. The new route will operate year-round, three times per week, using an Airbus A330-200. The service is expected to carry 12 tonnes of cargo per flight, mostly time-sensitive high-tech goods, industrial components, e-commerce consignments and pharmaceuticals.

Geodis opens first healthcare hub in the Americas

By
Chris Lewis
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Geodis has opened its first dedicated healthcare cold chain cross-dock facility in the Americas, in Chicago, Illinois. It features a custom-built 5,200-square-foot temperature-controlled facility exclusively dedicated to healthcare products, providing short-term stowage and specialized handling for pharmaceutical air and ocean exports and imports.

It is a bonded CFS facility near O’Hare International Airport, and  allows the forwarder to maintain end-to-end internal control over temperature-sensitive healthcare cargo as it moves through its network, which includes 170 countries and a growing map of certified facilities.

The branch is a Certified Cargo Screening Facility (CCSF) for exports and also has IATA’s Center of Excellence for Independent Validators in Pharmaceutical Logistics (CEIV Pharma) certification, Geodis also holds this certification at its facilities in Atlanta, New York and Los Angeles.

The space is divided into two separate temperature-controlled zones – 4,600 sq ft at 15-25 degrees Celsius, and 600sq ft at 2 to 8 degrees Celsius.

Hactl appoints new chief exec

By
Chris Lewis
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Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminals Limited (Hactlhas appointed Frosti Lau Yi-sau as chief executive from 8 June. He brings over 25 years of experience in aviation and air and joins from Cathay Pacific Airways, where he most recently served as regional general manager, Southeast Asia & Oceania. His previous roles included general manager for cargo service delivery, during which he was also director of the airline’s subsidiary air cargo terminal.

Air Charter Service are seasoned professionals

By
Chris Lewis
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Air Charter Service recently helped a food additive and condiments manufacturer avoid a shutdown in a Nicaraguan factory  by flying several tons of seasoning to Managua on an A330-200F.
Cargo director of ACS Mexico, Luis Canales-Tough, said that the client originally approached the broker for its next flight out (NFO) service, to move around 18 tons of the condiment, used at a meat products manufacturing plant in Managua. However, due to the infrequency of scheduled flights from Mexico to Nicaragua, a charter carrying 51 tons on one flight was found to be a better solution.
ACS worked closely with the airline and the national authorities in Nicaragua to obtain the necessary permits, accelerating the process thanks to a letter of urgency from the consignee. The customer had never chartered before, so ACS then talked them through the correct customs procedures to ensure everything ran smoothly. The cargo arrived in time to stop the factory in Nicaragua having to shut down its production line.”

Liege on a mission to Taiwan

By
Chris Lewis
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Liege Airport’s CargoLand by LGG facility is positioning itself as a gateway for Taiwan’s high-value semiconductors following a mission to Taipei in March 24.

CargoLand by LGG presented its cargo-first model and long-term development vision.  

The visit also emphasized the growing strategic relevance of semiconductor logistics between Taiwan and Europe.

Globe Air Cargo to sell airBaltic space in UK

By
Chris Lewis
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ECS Group’s Globe Air Cargo UK subsidiary has signed a deal to represent airBaltic in the country. The GSSA will flights from London Gatwick, Manchester and Aberdeen to Riga and Tallinn including two weekly Aberdeen-Riga due to start on 2 June and Manchester services that will resume on 13 December.

It says the carrier’s A220-330 aircraft are ideal for mail and e-commerce business, alongside general cargo and pets.

Vice President cargo at airBaltic, Ilja Seliverstovs, said that the carrier planned to position Latvia as a logistics gateway to Northern Europe with its new cargo handling facility in Riga. Opened last year, the Baltic Cargo Center can handle up to 45,000 tonnes of cargo per year, including specialised facilities for temperature-sensitive, high-value goods, and live animals.

Ecuador in the cargo theft spotlight

By
Chris Lewis
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Brazil, Mexico, India, the US, Indonesia, Chile, China, Germany, and South Africa were the  top countries for recorded cargo theft, according to TT Club and BSI Consulting. The  2025 Cargo Theft Report, published on 21 April, said that Ecuador experienced one of the sharpest increases of any nation, with theft cases nearly doubling as gang-related violence intensified in coastal provinces. Food and beverage products led all stolen commodity categories, followed by agriculture, electronics, automotive parts, construction materials, and metals.

Trucks remain the dominant target, accounting for 70% of all incidents globally, while 22% of global cargo theft incidents involved the cooperation of insiders.

Rail cargo theft in the US rose from 4% of incidents in 2024 to 10% in 2025. Organised criminal groups – including networks linked to cartels operating out of Sinaloa, Mexico – carried out coordinated attacks on freight trains in rural Arizona and California, sabotaging systems and staging armed encounters with law enforcement.

Technology-enabled theft also grew more sophisticated, with criminals exploiting cybersecurity weaknesses, fraudulent documents, and impersonation tactics to carry out fictitious pickups, double and triple brokering, and product hostage schemes.

In Europe, Germany (27%), Italy (13%), the UK (9%), France (6%), and Spain (6%) reported the greatest number of thefts. Facility thefts rose notably – particularly in Italy, Germany, Romania, and Bulgaria – with warehouses accounting for 33% of all theft locations. In the UK, cargo theft losses reached US$149 million with a US$ 9 million smartphone heist at Heathrow airport among the highest-value incidents.

Another notable emerging trend was the theft of rare earth minerals in China. The report also noted that maritime risks also escalated sharply, with sea piracy incidents rising 85% in the first half of 2025, their highest level in nearly a decade. Likewise the Strait of Malacca and Singapore experienced a 281% year-on-year surge in incidents.

BSI Consulting and TT Club 2025 Cargo Theft Report

Aerospace forwarder B&H pioneers AI tyre scanning

By
Chris Lewis
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Aerospace logistics forwarder B&H Worldwide has piloted AI-driven tyre scanning technology at its New Zealand operations. Integrated directly into the company’s proprietary FirstTRAC platform, it has led to a 60% reduction in inventory processing times.

it replaces manual data entry with mobile-based scanning using computer vision and Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to instantly capture critical tyre data.

Tyre logistics has in the past relied heavily on manual intervention, slow and with the risk of human error. The new system allows staff to use smartphones or tablets as high-performance scanners, capable of reading both standard barcodes and complex tyre serial numbers directly from the sidewall.

Inventory handling time has dropped from an average of four minutes per unit to one minute, and error rates have been slashed by 80-90%, with data accuracy now exceeding 99%.Total units processed per hour have increased by approximately 30%.

The technology is fully embedded within B&H Worldwide’s FirstTRAC WMS platform and provides a unified data stream. This ensures that stock checks, dispatch requests and bulk inventory uploads are updated in real-time, improving visibility for customers.

The system ensures 100% stock integrity for used tyre casing movements and creates a digital audit trail that simplifies regulatory compliance.

Branch manager of B&H Worldwide New Zealand, Lee Hedges, said: “This implementation represents a significant step forward in how we manage high-value, safety-critical inventory. By introducing real-time tyre scanning, we’ve improved accuracy, speed and traceability across our operations. For our customers, it means greater visibility, faster reporting and increased confidence in the integrity of their stock. It’s a clear example of how technology can directly enhance service quality and operational excellence.”

The New Zealand pilot will be the blueprint for a global rollout, with Melbourne, Australia, scheduled for the next implementation.

YunExpress poised to start operations at UK’s East Midlands Airport

By
Chris Lewis
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Cross-border logistics provider YunExpress has gained recognition as a Regulated Agent by the Civil Aviation Authority and ITSF (Internal Temporary Storage Facility) approval from Border Force, clearing the way for it to start operations at a new cargo handling facility it has developed at East Midlands Airport.

It will be the first Chinese cargo handling company to be based at a UK airport, giving it full plane-to-door cargo capability. Teams are on site preparing to handle its first flight on April 30.

YunExpress began operating its own Boeing 777F freighter flights into East Midlands Airport from China last May, in partnership with Central Airlines. It will initially handle cargo for Central Airlines flights – currently four per week each carrying 100 tonnes of cargo but it aims to provide services to other carriers in the near future.

The company has developed its new 7,000sqm facility in an existing warehouse at the airport. It will employ around 40 staff at the site.

East Midlands Airport’s commercial director Adam Andrew said: “We’re thrilled to have YunExpress on board as a cargo handler, following on from the flights they launched just under a year ago. This investment by YunExpress is further evidence of the importance of East Midlands Airport as the UK’s largest dedicated freighter airport, with YunExpress and their future clients able to take advantage of 24/7 unrestricted airport operations and access to 80% of the UK population within four hours.

“Their investment here is a shot in the arm for our cargo growth ambitions, which could see four large plots on the airfield developed with new cargo facilities. We fully anticipate YunExpress expanding their operation to support the growing number of cargo operators choosing East Midlands Airport as their UK hub.”

General manager of YunExpress UK, Orson Wang, said: “Following a thorough evaluation of potential locations, East Midlands Airport stood out for its central location, strong cargo infrastructure and efficient access to the wider UK market. With the necessary approvals now in place, we are pleased to begin operations and to further strengthen YunExpress’s global service network, which supports cross-border e-commerce flows across major international markets.

“We are looking at opportunities to work with airlines other than Central and believe we are particularly well placed to support Chinese operators as we really understand their needs. We are investing here for the long-term, with a view to developing our business into a fully integrated, end-to-end logistics operation under the YunExpress brand.”

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