Forwarders must prepare for an airfreight volume crunch driven by lack of ocean capacity, said executive director of the Airforwarders Association (AfA), Brandon Fried.
He told members of the Los Angeles Air Cargo Association (LAACA) on 20 June that a forecast surge in demand for US air cargo capacity will be largely driven by the situation 30,000 feet below on the water.
However, he added, AfA members can rise to the challenge through better communication.
Fried told the gathering that the capacity crunch will be driven by a perfect storm of cancelled China to US sailings, congestion at US airports, warehouse scarcity, labor shortage and rising inflation.
“The challenges for ocean carriers are well documented and we understand that they are looking after profit margins, but air capacity is already constrained by multiple factors,” said Fried.
“Congestion at major airports is exacerbating the strain on supply chains across the US.
“To rise to these challenges, the air forwarding community must better communicate with each other and learn to be adaptable.
“AfA is already meeting this challenge, driving the debate and developing new strategies to help the industry unite and find a common voice.”
In May, AfA launched its Airport Congestion Committee (ACC) which will present findings to private, public, and government entities as workable policies for urgent new legislation.
“The air cargo community, and the transport industry at large, has been served up an alphabet of disasters over the past few years but AfA has continued to support its members and campaign for the air cargo community at large,” said Fried.
“We do this not only through lobbying on behalf of our members but also by actively creating solutions to speed up the passing of necessary legislation by the US government.”