Russian’s largest online marketplace, Wildberries, has chosen AirBridgeCargo Airlines, part of Volga-Dnepr Group to speed up deliveries to consumers in the remote far east of the country. The first joint charter flight took place in early December carrying 1,700 parcels weighing 33,500kg from Moscow to Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk aboard a Boeing 747-8F.
Huntsville reopens second runway
Huntsville International Airport in Alabama has reopened its second, west, runway after a year-long renovation scheme. The multimillion-dollar included resurfacing of the 25-year-old west runway pavement and replacement of decades-old incandescent lighting.
Runway 18R/36L is 12,600 feet long and is the second longest in the Southeast US, able to accommodate aircraft up to the Boeing 747-8F and Airbus A-380 size.
Port of Huntsville chief executive Rick Tucker said it would help the gateway prepare for growth in cargo and passenger flights, adding: “It’s a matter of pride for us to be able to offer superior facilities and capabilities to our customers rivalling much larger airports yet with the convenience and personal touch we can offer as a smaller market.”
A fresh start thanks to SEKO Logistics
SEKO Logistics is partnering with retail services client Buyer Connected to launch a logistics training program to create employment opportunities for previously incarcerated men and women in Atlanta, Georgia.
Part of the not-for-profit City of Refuge initiative, it aims to support individuals and families in one of country’s most struggling neighborhoods.
As well as offering food, housing, and emergency healthcare support, City of Refuge’s Reentry Hub provides opportunities to learn new skills through education, job training and financial literacy.
Starting in January 2022, the new logistics training program will help recently released, non-violent offenders to re-enter the workplace and begin successful careers. The two partners will provide training support for nearly 250 individuals who are transitioning from prison to the community. The two-week training program will host groups of up to 20 people per month and equip participants with the necessary skills to fulfill roles in the ever-growing logistics industry including warehouse management, forklift and health and safety certification.
SEKO is participating in the program as part of its SEKO Cares initiative, which throughout the COVID-19 pandemic has also purchased and distributed PPE supplies to frontline healthcare workers in the US and other countries within SEKO’s global network.
The program to help detainees begins 18 months before their release. Case workers determine the individuals in a strong position to succeed, and who will be committed to the program and the opportunity it offers.
UPS delivers a billion doses – and counting
UPS says it has now delivered a billion Covid-19 vaccine doses – and with near-perfect on-time accuracy in just a year.
The global UPS network and dedicated UPS employees not only supported healthcare customers and global organizations, but also joined in public-private partnerships to provide vaccines and cold chain expertise to countries with hard-to-reach populations. To achieve this, UPS Healthcare mapped roughly 500 trade lanes to enable seamless worldwide vaccine shipments and used more than 3m lbs of dry ice to help safely move vaccines.
The carrier donated ultra-cold freezer and made in-kind vaccine deliveries to remote and rural areas throughout Africa, South America, Asia, North America, and Europe through the UPS Foundation.
It set up three regional 24-hour UPS Healthcare Command Centers to predict and manage global vaccine movement with contingency plans and solutions to mitigate the risks of extreme weather and other obstacles
It also partnered with the Gavi vaccine alliance in Africa and other organizations to train and manage ultra-cold vaccine movement and embedded UPS logistic experts in countries including Indonesia and Malawi to fully and safely manage vaccine distribution logistics.
It also delivered vaccines by drone to clinics in the US and Africa through the partnership between specialist delivery company Zipline and Gavi
Chief sales and solutions officer and executive vice president, UPS Global Healthcare Kate Gutmann, declared: “UPSers have been essential in the fight against Covid-19, delivering equitable access to critical healthcare services. This milestone would not have been possible without every person in our global network working tirelessly, alongside our partners and customers, to accelerate vaccine distribution and help keep communities as safe as possible.”
Awery streamlines Sky Bridge operations
Bahrain-headquartered air cargo agent carrier Sky Bridge Cargo has adopted Awery’s latest software platform for its complete operating system, following a two week implementation programme. It streamlines sales, operations, and finance functions, as well as supporting bookings, artificial intelligence to automate previously manual tasks.
(Pictured: Awery Aviation Software chief executive Vitaly Smilianets (left) with Abdulnasser AlSaei, managing director of Sky Bridge Cargo)
Into orbit with Turkish Cargo
Turkish Cargo recently transported Ukraine’s Sich-2-30 Earth Observation Satellite to Miami for its launch via its hub at Istanbul.
The satellite, which has been developed as part of the National Targeted Scientific and Technical Space Program of Ukraine, will blast off from the Kennedy Space Center in January. Once it has settled into a stable orbit, it will capture the digital and infrared images of the Earth’s surface and collect data from the ionosphere.
The satellite was dismantled into multiple components, and the components placed carefully on two separate pallets. Turkish Cargo has a range of special equipment for delicate shipments along with warehouses for sensitive cargo.
Geodis signs ULD deal
Forwarder turned freight aircraft operator Geodis has signed a five-year agreement with Unilode Aviation Solution to supply, manage and repair unit load device (ULD – airfreight containers).
At present, Geodis leases one A330-300 aircraft, converted into a freighter, and flies to Amsterdam, Chicago, Stansted and Hong Kong to fill the gap in regular airline schedules during the pandemic.
Unilode’s chief commercial officer, Marc Groenewegen, said: “Geodis’ investment into its own dedicated aircraft is a great example of freight forwarders taking ownership to overcome air cargo capacity shortages. From Unilode’s pooled ULD fleet we are able to quickly supply containers and pallets needed for GEODIS’ freighter aircraft operations. Additionally, we also reduce costs and carbon emission associated with the repositioning of damaged equipment, as Unilode has its own ULD repair centres.”
Green fuel group for Russia
Seven companies and organisations have signed a declaration to set Eurasian alliance for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).
The grouping – which consists of Volga-Dnepr Group, Airbus, Gazprom Neft, Aeroflot Airlines, National Research Center Zhukovsky Institute, Federal State Unitary Enterprise State Research Institute of Civil Aviation and the S7 Group – will ramp up SAF production in Russia and stimulate its further usage.
General director of Volga-Dnepr Group’s AirBridgeCargo Airlines arm, Denis Fisenko, said: “Volga-Dnepr Group is one of the major air cargo market players in the world. From our side, we are taking actions to mitigate a negative environmental impact – initiatives aimed at fuel consumption efficiency, deployment of eco-friendly freighters with lower CO2 emissions, the introduction of GoGreen initiatives and, most importantly, our efforts to increase load factor and guarantee that we transport vital cargoes other than empty space. The creation of the Eurasian SAF alliance is another step towards a more sustainable air cargo industry. We believe that only collaboration and joint efforts will help us to overcome the barriers preventing SAF introduction in Russia.”
Air Canada presses new freighter into service for flood relief
Air Canada put its first dedicated Boeing 767-300ER freighter aircraft into service on 9 December with an inaugural flight from Toronto to Vancouver carrying a full load of cargo. Originally scheduled to first fly to Frankfurt, Air Canada Cargo deployed the aircraft early to provide more capacity to relieve flood-hit British Columbia.
Air Canada Cargo has already boosted cargo capacity into Vancouver from Toronto, Montreal and Calgary in November to allow for the transport of critical supplies.
The new aircraft is currently planned to operate between Toronto and Frankfurt for the remainder of 2021, in addition to the flights to Vancouver. In 2022, it will also serve Miami, Quito, Lima, Mexico City and Guadalajara, primarily out of Toronto. Madrid, Halifax and St. John’s are planned when the second aircraft is delivered in the first half of 2022.
The Boeing 767-300ER freighters will allow Air Canada Cargo to offer five different main deck configurations, increasing the overall cargo capacity of each aircraft to nearly 58 tonnes or 438 cubic metres, with about 75% on the main deck.
New deal to create Abu Dhabi-Brussels pharma corridor
The Abu Dhabi-based vaccine logistics HOPE Consortium, Abu Dhabi Airports, Brussels Airport Company and the Pharma.Aero group have signed a deal to establish a fully compliant origin-to-destination pharma air corridor between Abu Dhabi and Brussels Airports. The dedicated pharma trade lane will unite key compliant and sector certified supply chain stakeholders, including forwarders and ground handling agents.
A second declaration was signed by the HOPE Consortium, Pharma.Aero, Khalifa University of Science and Technology and the University of Antwerp to host the second edition of the Pharma Logistics Masterclass course focused on critical challenges and developments in pharma supply chains and logistics, by Khalifa University in Abu Dhabi from 5-9 September 2022.
Earlier this year, a delegation from the HOPE Consortium met with pharmaceutical industry stakeholders in Brussels to showcase Abu Dhabi’s global vaccine distribution success. Thanks to its network of partners, the HOPE Consortium has handled over 200 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines, contributing to vaccination programmes in over 40 global destinations.
Brussels Airport is ae leading pharma and life sciences hub with over 750 million vaccines handled at the airport, serving 60 destinations worldwide.