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Emirates orders five more freighters

Airlines

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July 16, 2024

Emirates SkyCargo has made a firm order for five additional Boeing 777 freighters for delivery between 2025 and 2026. The US$ 1billion order will take the airline’s total order book to 315 wide-body aircraft. They will increase available main deck cargo capacity by 30% providing a long-term solution to the current capacity crunch, says the Dubai-based carrier. Emirates SkyCargo says it has had consistently high load factors and tonnages surpassing 2019 figures in its current 2024-25 financial year.

Chairman and chief executive Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, said: “Demand for our world-class product and services is growing exponentially, further amplified by Dubai’s Economic Agenda which aims to double foreign trade and reinforce the city’s position as a global trading hub. This investment in additional Boeing 777 capacity enables us to cater to customer demand and marks a step forward on our long-term strategic growth plan.

“The next phase of our strategy will include a full assessment for our future freighter fleet reviewing all aircraft options to ensure we are best equipped to respond to the evolving demands of the market and reaffirming our confidence in the role of airfreight and, more specifically, Emirates SkyCargo, in global trade.”

The carrier plans to retire its older freighters but capacity will be bolstered by ten 777-300ERs currently being converted to all-cargo configuration, taking Emirates’ freighter fleet to 17 aircraft by the end of 2025.

Swissport appoints two VPs for North America

Chris Lewis

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July 15, 2024

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Swissport appoints two VPs for North America

Handler Swissport has appointed Ajay Barolia as senior vice president cargo, and Peter Weir as senior vice president cargo commercial, for the US and Canada.

Barolia (main picture) joins Swissport from Qatar Airways, where he was most recently Vice president global cargo operations. Peter Weir (pictured below) joins Swissport from Menzies Aviation where he served over 20 years in various leadership roles responsible for cargo operations, ground handling, sales, and business development.

Swissport operates 19 air cargo centers in North America, many of them are equipped with temperature-controlled areas to handle perishables and pharma.

New 777 freighter changes the game for Maersk Air Cargo

Chris Lewis

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July 15, 2024

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New 777 freighter changes the game for Maersk Air Cargo

Maersk Air Cargo took delivery of the one of two new Boeing 777F freighters, the first of the type to be owned by a Danish airline at Boeing’s headquarters in Seattle. Maersk Air Cargo is a part of global logistics company AP Moller- Maersk (Maersk).

The aircraft is arrived at its home airport of Billund on 13 July.

Maersk Air says that both aircraft will be deployed on its existing Europe-China route with initially three flights a week, increasing later up to six weekly.

Delivery of the second 777F is scheduled for later in the third quarter of this year and will bring Maersk Air Cargo’s owned controlled fleet to 22 aircraft, including 20 Boeing 767Fs.

Head of Maersk Air Cargo., Lars Jordahn, said: “We are entering the premier league of cargo aviation. The B777F can transport more than double of payload on each flight compared to our 767Fs, and it is the most fuel-efficient aircraft in the world with the GE90 engines.”

Executive Vice President and Chief Product Officer (CPO) for Logistics and Services at Maersk, Narin Phol, described the two Boeing 777Fs as “a giant leap in terms of what we can offer our air freight customers. Besides enabling a much more efficient route structuring our 777Fs will improve the availability of space for our customers as we see a growing demand for integrated supply chain solutions which include air.”

He added: “Due to the disruptive environment in logistics, a rising number of cargo owners are choosing to reduce the number of service providers in their supply chain. Increased visibility across fewer providers enables the cargo owners to react more swiftly and much better informed in case of disruption. Availability of air freight capacity and full asset control are important aspects here.”

The Boeing 777F can fly up to 9,200 kilometers (4,970 nautical miles) and carry a maximum payload of 102 tonnes. The main deck fits pallets up to 3 metres high, and all cargo decks are temperature controlled.

UPS pharma expert joins Cool Chain board

Chris Lewis

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July 11, 2024

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UPS pharma expert joins Cool Chain board

Chiara Venuti, vice president, global drug distribution at UPS’s clinical arm Marken has joined the Cool Chain Association board. She joins as CCA plans new projects with like-minded groups in the temperature-controlled supply chain, including a study with the pharma.aero industry group.

Venuti has over 20 years’ experience in logistics, including senior positions at Kuehne + Nagel and Skycell.

Other recent CCA appointments are Natalie Niers, Chief Operating Officer, Validaide and Ian Buck, Head of Business development, Aeroturf and Vijan Chetty as treasurer.

Swiss carriers gain environment accolade

Airlines

Chris Lewis

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July 10, 2024

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Swiss carriers gain environment accolade

SWISS and Swiss WorldCargo have secured their first-ever validation under Europe’s EMAS environmental management system. They have also earned the international ISO 14001 certification for environmental management systems. As a result, SWISS will now be publishing an annual environmental report.

EMAS is a voluntary-membership framework, established by the European Union to help companies continuously improve their environmental performance. Validation requires the company to meet all the standards of the ISO 14001 international environmental management norm and satisfy further demands regarding transparency and continuous improvement. EMAS is regarded as the world’s most demanding environmental management system.

New chambers put temperature controlled containers to the test

Technology

Chris Lewis

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July 10, 2024

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New chambers put temperature controlled containers to the test

Temperature-sensitive pharmaceutical specialist Envirotainer has opened three new testing chambers at its site in Rosersberg, near Stockholm. The company now offers six chambers including four medium-sized, one large that handles temperatures from -40°C to +60°C, and one small chamber for freezing conditions down to -70°C.

In addition to climate testing, Envirotainer has invested in an EMC chamber to verify that its containers continue to meet stringent electromagnetic compatibility standards. The company can currently certify emissions for its containers below one gigahertz, which speeds up the approval process and benefits customers with faster delivery of compliant solutions. Future plans include investment to enhance testing capabilities up to 6 GHz and potentially assess how radiation affects packaging solutions.

Breeze blows the cobwebs from cargo insurance

Chris Lewis

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July 10, 2024

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Breeze blows the cobwebs from cargo insurance

Digital insurance platform Breeze has completed its integration with the WebCargo by Freightos air cargo platform. Forwarders now have instant access to an insurance quote when they place a booking, removing the need to source insurance separately. It also reduces policy costs and booking times. Initially, Breeze’s integrated insurance offering in WebCargo will be available to forwarders in the US and UK.

Lufthansa Cargo appoints head of global markets

Chris Lewis

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July 10, 2024

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Lufthansa Cargo has appointed Anand Kulkarni to the new position of head of global markets. He will lead and manage the sales regions and the digital sales department in regions including Germany, Austria and Switzerland, Europe, Middle East, Africa, South Asia & CIS, Americas and Asia Pacific.

Kulkarni was previously head of global expansion at General Logistics and prior to that spent 15 years with DHL in various management positions in Asia Pacific and EMEA. He was also part of DHL’s Global Aviation Strategy project which led to the creation of cargo carrier AeroLogic.

He holds a Master’s degree in Finance from the London Business School, UK, and a Master’s degree in Transportation Engineering from the University of Connecticut.

All kudos to ACS for kudu shipment

Brokers

Chris Lewis

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July 9, 2024

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Air Charter Service helped move eight-month-old greater kudu, Linus, from a North American zoo to his new home in a conservation area in Chile. The greater kudu is a large woodland antelope, typically found throughout eastern and southern Africa, and male adults have distinctive spiral antlers that can grow as long as 1.8 metres.
ACS Americas president Richard Thompson commented: “The zoo is a non-profit organisation, and so, in the past, had always used commercial services for any animal transport, but Linus’s crate was too tall for this, so they contacted ACS for a solution. We had to have careful consideration of Linus’s comfort and wellbeing and it was decided that two different aircraft, with a stopover in Miami, would be the best option.

“We sourced a Boeing 767 in Memphis with availability for the charter to Miami, and so arranged for Linus to be transported by road to Memphis Airport with the veterinarian and our customer, who were to travel with Linus all the way to his new home in Chile.”
On arrival in Miami, ACS arranged for Linus to be transported to a USDA-approved facility for an overnight stay, ensuring his comfort and compliance with quarantine regulations. The following morning, he was chauffeured back to Miami airport and boarded a Boeing 747 bound for Santiago in Chile.

Back to college with WestJet

Airlines

Chris Lewis

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July 9, 2024

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Canadian carrier WestJet has launched Campus’Air to provide students and university staff cost-effective shipping for personal effects. Qualifying students and employees of select Canadian universities will receive a 50% discount on published domestic freight rates via the WestJet Cargo contact center. Most shipments will arrive within 24 hours, subject to flight availability and connections.

The initiative currently applies to domestic shipments only, but WestJet Cargo is encouraging students whose universities are not currently featured to reach out for possible future inclusion.