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Qatar Cargo ready to roll with all-electric truck

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April 5, 2022

Qatar Cargo ready to roll with all-electric truck

Qatar Airways Cargo and engineering company Gaussin have completed testing of a fully-electric cargo pallet transporter, ahead of plans to take delivery of up to 50 production versions later in the year.

The AMDT FULL ELEC is 100% electric with a payload of up to seven tonnes and battery life of up to six hours. It is powered by LMP lithium metal polymer batteries capable of operating in high temperatures, and on-board equipment includes integrated weighing scales to check pallet weight against tag weight.

Gaussin and Qatar Airways Cargo signed a contract in 2020 for the delivery of six AMDTs including an option for 50 units, aiming to replace all diesel pallet carriers, in line with Qatar Airways Cargo’s goal of achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Emirates moves a billion vaccines

Airlines

Chris Lewis

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April 4, 2022

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Emirates SkyCargo said on 4 April that it had transported over a billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines on its aircraft within 18 months of the first trial shipment in October 2020. It has carried more than 4,200 tonnes to over 80 destinations on over 2,000 flights. Close to two-thirds of the doses were to developing countries.

In January 2021, the carrier teamed up with Dubai-based companies to form the Dubai Vaccine Logistics Alliance to speed up distribution of vaccines through the hub to developing countries. In February 2021, it signed an MoU with UNICEF to prioritise transport and delivery of the vaccines in support of the COVAX initiative.

It also expanded its pharma cool chain infrastructure at Dubai International Airport, allowing it to store an additional estimated 60-90 million doses of the vaccines at any time.

Freight industry team brings cricket to the wider world

Chris Lewis

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April 4, 2022

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Freight industry team brings cricket to the wider world

Virgin Atlantic Cargo and forwarder Woodland Group are helping the Bat For A Chance charity bring the game of cricket to girls across Pakistan. Together with construction equipment manufacturer, Energy, it has gone into partnership with FemGames, a female empowerment initiative that is currently implementing an ambitious five-year plan to bring ‘empowerment’ through sport to a hundred girls’ schools across Pakistan.

Using cricket as a launchpad, FemGames hopes to eventually add other sports, including football and tennis, to upskill the next generation of Pakistani women with valuable life skills, through quality sports and life coaching, to complement the work of the schools in education.

FemGames is the brain-child of Ebba Qureshi, a recently appointed BFAC trustee and the wife of former Pakistan all-rounder Azhar Mahmood.

Virgin Atlantic Cargo transported a donation of cricket equipment to Lahore for Roshan Sitara Primary School.

Energy has sponsored the purchase of kit to be donated to projects in Barbados, Sri Lanka and India, as well as Pakistan.

Managing director of Virgin Atlantic Cargo, Phil Wardlaw, said: “It is an honour to bring our expertise in transporting cargo to such a worthy project, and we’re grateful for the support of our freight forwarding partner, Woodland Group, in supporting this shipment.

“At Virgin Atlantic, our purpose is to empower everyone to take on the world and use our business as a force for good, through our communities, our people, and our partners. Partnering with Bat For A Chance means Virgin Atlantic Cargo can bring a real opportunity for children to participate in this wonderful sport and experience the joy of cricket, in both Pakistan and across the world.”

Air Canada expands freighter flights

Airlines

Chris Lewis

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March 31, 2022

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Air Canada Cargo is to expand its freighter network, with flights from Toronto to Halifax starting April 19 and services from Toronto to Frankfurt, Cologne, Istanbul, Madrid and St. John’s, from in May. It will follow the entry into service of the carrier’s second Boeing 767-300ER freighter aircraft.

The carrier put its first dedicated Boeing 767-300ER freighter aircraft into service on 9 December. The initial plan was to operate to Frankfurt but the new plane was pressed into service to move cargo from Toronto to Vancouver to relieve flood-hit British Columbia.

Cargo commercial managing director, Matthieu Casey, said: “The entry into service of our second freighter is yet another exciting milestone in the growth of our freighter network and provides more options and services to the cargo community.”

SWISS marks two decades of flying

Airlines

Chris Lewis

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March 31, 2022

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SWISS celebrated its 20th anniversary, marking its first-ever flight from Basel to Zurich on 31 March 2002. The Airline of Switzerland was formed from Crossair and of Swissair’s flight operations, after the former carriers went out of business in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.

The carrier says that its early years were marked by rigorous restructuring and uncertainty over its continued viability. An initially oversized aircraft fleet had to be substantially downscaled, together with the original workforce, before the new company could generate profits. The new SWISS also lacked the critical mass required to survive alone in the fiercely competitive air travel marketbut its future was secured in 2005 through the company’s integration into Germany’s Lufthansa Group.

SWISS today serves 92 destinations from its Zurich hub and 46 points from Geneva and carries more cargo and passengers than any Swiss airline has ever transported in the past.

During the Covid pandemic between March 2020 and February 2022, SWISS’s Swiss WorldCargo airfreight division performed 2,650 all-cargo flights that transported over 69,300 tonnes of cargo and provided Switzerland besides many with urgently-needed medical supplies such as facemasks and vaccines.

The High Chaparral

Chris Lewis

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March 31, 2022

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FedEx Express is to test Elroy Air’s Chaparral autonomous air cargo system in its ‘middle-mile’ logistics operations, moving shipments between sorting sites from next year. California Bay-based Elroy Air is building the first end-to-end autonomous vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aerial cargo system in the US.

Elroy Air unveiled its Chaparral autonomous aircraft in January 2022. It can autonomously pick up 300-500lbs of cargo and deliver it up to 300 miles. The Chaparral is capable of longer-range flights without the need for additional infrastructure, such as airports or charging stations.

FedEx and Elroy Air will pursue certifications and begin flight testing in 2023.

KN-chartered Antonov brings aid to Ukraine

Chris Lewis

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March 30, 2022

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KN-chartered Antonov brings aid to Ukraine

Freight forwarder Kuehne+Nagel chartered a Ukrainian Antonov An-124 freighter to fly 111 tonnes of aid from Sharjah airport to the aircraft’s home country, via Poland, on 29 March. The shipment was sourced from UNICEF’s warehouse in Dubai and landed in Poland the same evening for trucking to Ukraine. Kuehne+Nagel International chief executive Detlef Trefzger, said: “It is symbolic in itself that we can make one of the largest deliveries of aid to Ukraine with a Ukrainian Antonov airplane. The forwarder has pledged to offer emergency aid to Ukraine worth 10 million Swiss francs in the form of logistics services.

Forwarder Woodland finds room to grow in LA

Forwarding

Chris Lewis

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March 30, 2022

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Forwarder Woodland finds room to grow in LA

Global forwarder Woodland Group has moved into a new and larger space in Los Angeles. Weekly export consolidations to Australia and Europe. It offers full omni channel logistics services covering import, export, domestic, FCL, LCL, air and warehousing services, along with in-house customs brokerage. Woodland, which opened its first US location in 1991, specializes in transatlantic air consolidation and in serving Australasia from the US.

DHL signs deal for six more freighters

Express

Chris Lewis

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March 29, 2022

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DHL Express has signed a deal with aircraft leasing company Cargojet for five additional B767 freighters in 2022-23.

Cargojet provide ACMI, CMI, charter, and aircraft dry lease services to support DHL’s international requirements for Europe and North, South, Central and Latin America, as well as Asia and currently operates 12 freighters to service its requirements.

DHL also intends to be Cargojet’s inaugural launch customer for the B777 wide body long-range converted cargo freighter, which are expected to be deployed in late 2023 or early 2024.

Qatar Airways offers eBooking on CargoWise

Chris Lewis

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March 29, 2022

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Qatar Airways offers eBooking on CargoWise

Qatar Airways Cargo and software company WiseTech Global have launched a direct eBooking solution, building on the flight schedule and operational data exchange implemented last year. The eBooking connection between WiseTech’s CargoWise platform and Qatar Airways Cargo management system, CROAMIS, enables freight forwarders using CargoWise to choose their flight and confirm a booking in real-time, without having to leave the platform. Bookings made through the platform can also be modified.

Head of airline connectivity at WiseTech Global, Scott McCorquodale, said: “The air cargo industry has historically been very manually-based, which contributed to substantial inefficiencies. This has all changed in recent years, with many airlines now firmly prioritising their digital transformation projects. With the new eBooking connection now available to CargoWise users, forwarders are able to confirm their bookings without any input from airline staff – dramatically speeding up the process, and allowing forwarders to focus on providing value-added services to their customers.”