Two Decades of Lufthansa Cargo

Lufthansa cargo has spent the last 20 years flying around the world 3.6m times and transporting the equivalent of 9.3m elephant .
Lufthansa Cargo is celebrating two decades as an independent business after Deutsche Lufthansa AG pooled its cargo activities into a separate company.

Germany's freight flagship carrier states: "Flying cargo has always played a major role at Lufthansa and its predecessors; however, it was not until the founding of a dedicated cargo segment that the airline’s air freight business truly took off."
A few weeks after its official foundation, Lufthansa Cargo started operating with a fleet of five McDonnell Douglas DC8 freighters, ten Boeing 747-200Fs and two Boeing 737 freighters in January 1995. Twenty years later, Lufthansa Cargo flies both with MD-11F and brand-new B777 freighters.

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DHL Supply Chain boosts Chinese logistics investment

DHL Supply Chain (DSC) has more than doubled its commitment to infrastructure investment in China, with a further Euro113m added to the Euro105m committed by the German-owned logistics operator last year.

The total Euro218m investment will support the development of DHL’s Chinese network and, in particular, six new logistics facilities scheduled for completion by 2020 in Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Wuhan, Shenyang, Shenzhen and Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone.
"By working closely with our customers who provide us with their demand forecast, we have a clear roadmap of the locations we need to be in, as well as the level of the services required,” said Oscar de Bok, chief executive of DHL Supply Chain Asia Pacific. 
“In China alone, DSC will expand its warehouse facilities and transport capacities by 50% over the next three years."
DSC recently opened its state-of-the art 54,000 sq m Chengdu Logistics Centre facility in western China to support customers across a spectrum of industries including technology, consumer and healthcare. The new facility also acts as a multi-user cross-dock to support the effective and efficient transportation of products across the Western region.
Zou Yin, managing director of DHL Supply Chain China, said: "Helping companies navigate China's vast geography and varied terrain to deliver their goods safely, efficiently and cost effectively has been the holy grail of the logistics industry."
New facilities have also been introduced in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, while the roll-out of DHL Supply Chain cross-docks has been accelerated across China to allow the transfer of cargo with minimal warehousing.

Source : http://www.aircargonews.net/news/single-view/news/dhl-supply-chain-boosts-chinese-logistics-investment.html

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New Beluga to fly by 2019

Airbus is to expand its oversize air transport capability with the development of five new Beluga transport aircraft.
The future “white whales” will be based on the A330 aircraft, with a large re-use of existing components and equipment.
The current five-strong Beluga fleet – now up to 20 years old - is based on the twin-engine A300-600R and can carry a maximum payload of 47 tonnes non-stop over a range of 1,660 km.
Said Airbus: “The distinctive looking lowered cockpit, the cargo bay structure and the rear-end and tail will be amongst the items which will be newly developed.”
The European plane maker said that the A350 XWB ramp-up and other aircraft production rate increase were behind the decision to launch the development and production of the specialist freighter.
The first of the new Belugas will enter in service in mid-2019. The existing Beluga fleet will operate in parallel, and will be progressively retired through to 2025.
The Airbus Beluga replaced the ageing Super Guppy transporters from 1995 in order to supply plane maker Airbus’ final assembly lines in Toulouse and Hamburg.
Today, more than sixty flights are performed each week between eleven sites, carrying parts for all of the Airbus programmes, including the A380.
The five-strong Beluga fleet is operated by Airbus Transport International, an Airbus subsidiary airline.
With the production start of the A350 XWB in 2012 and the production ramp-up on other Airbus programmes, the Beluga fleet activity will increase substantially over the next five years.
Airbus says that flight hours per aircraft will double by 2017 (from 5,000 to 10,000 flight hours).

Source : http://www.aircargonews.net/news/single-view/news/new-beluga-to-fly-by-2019.html 

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UTi charters B747F to ease US port congestion

US dockside port congestion has prompted UTi Worldwide charter a weekly B747F from Shanghai to Chicago.
The global supply chain services and solutions company says that the scheduled service is intended to ease the backlog of goods needed in North America.
"Congestion at west coast US ports has reached a critical level and we think it will get worse before we see any improvements," said Ed Feitzinger, UTi's executive vice president, global operations
Feitzinger added: "Airfreight demand has spiked in recent weeks to levels not seen in years. In order to provide relief to North American importers during these extraordinary times, we are offering dedicated premium lift service to the US Midwest."
The first charter is scheduled to depart Shanghai on November 24, with a second charter scheduled for December 1. The flights will arrive in Chicago's O'Hare International Airport and UTi can arrange on-forwarding to other destinations.
"Our charter service offers shippers an alternative to having their freight sit on a dock and miss this important selling season or be forced to shut down a factory for want of parts," Feitzinger added.

Source : http://www.aircargonews.net/news/single-view/news/uti-charters-b747f-to-ease-us-port-congestion.html

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Paper-less air cargo supply chain facility introduced at Bengaluru airport

Air India SATS Airport Services Pvt Ltd (AISATS), a 50:50 joint venture between Air India Limited and SATS Limited, a gateway services and food solutions provider in Asia, has introduced an e-freight initiative at its Bengaluru Airfreight Terminal facility.

With this launch, AISATS BLR has taken a step towards IATAs e-freight initiative, building a paper-free air cargo supply chain and replacing it with cheaper, accurate and reliable electronic messaging, AISATS said in a statement.

To facilitate this, AISATS has incorporated its Airport Community System (ACS), a web-based electronic platform that enables seamless electronic data interchange (EDI) between various stakeholders in the air cargo value chain. With this system in place, AISATS is well-equipped to do away with the traditional paper-based shipping data consolidation, and move towards electronic data management.

"With this online portal, freight forwarders and cargo handling agents will have complete shipment visibility and be able to send data demanded by multiple carriers, customs, and airport operators electronically through a single portal without doing duplicating data entry efforts on separate platforms," AISATS said.

The ACS will also help in creating airline booking requests and sending the same electronically to the airlines including creating and printing of Master Air Waybill, House Air Waybills and Bar Code labels. This is set to ease sending FWB / FHL messages to airlines as well as create and print customs clearance documents.

Willy Ko, CEO, AISATS, said: "Since its inception, AISATS has always been committed towards minimising impact of its operational processes on the environment. This e-freight initiative is yet another effort by AISATS and it is a big stride towards fulfilling its desire to protect the environment. Not only will this green initiative increase operational efficiency but it also help to preserve the environment by effectively reducing paperwork."

Source: http://www.business-standard.com/article/current-affairs/paper-less-air-cargo-supply-chain-facility-introduced-at-bengaluru-airport-114111800467_1.html

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Cargolux posts best ever October figures

Cargolux, Europe’s largest all-cargo carrier, posted its best ever October, with its fleet of 22 Boeing 747 freighters breaking records for tonnage, revenue and block hours.

Tonnage grew 6.7 percent and net revenue was up 9.9 percent from a year ago, making October the second-best month in the Luxembourg-based airline’s history after November 2013.

The carrier said it also achieved the highest daily utilization of all operators of the 747-8F at more than 16 hours a day through October.

The combined fleet of 11 747-8Fs and 11 747-400Fs operated 9,379 block hours during the month and flew 1,672 flights, including 362 from its Luxembourg hub, second only to the performance in November 2013.

Cargolux said it expects to “substantially” improve on the October results in November with more than 10,000 block hours flown in a single month for the first time ever, coupled with further increases in tonnage and revenue.

The airline made a net profit of $8.4 million in 2013 on revenue of $1.99 billion as traffic grew 16.7 percent to a record 753,848 metric tons.

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Christmas bonus for air cargo as rates soar due to west coast port congestion

Costs for chartering a freighter to fly from China to the US have skyrocketed, with as much as a 100% rise in rates over the last few months.

While November lease rates for a round trip might rise, normally, to about $400,000 for a 747F, from $300,000 earlier in the year, one air cargo source familiar with the matter told The Loadstar this month prices have been “exceptionally strong, touching $600,000 in a few cases”.

UTi announced last week that it was scheduling 747 charters to Chicago from Shanghai to help shippers beat the congestion at US west coast ports in advance of the holiday season.

Shipping line prices have also increased, with many carriers implementing congestion surcharges, which come into effect today, of up to $1,000 per teu – a significant hike when the spot rate for a Shanghai-US west coast container is currently about $2,000 per teu.

MSC, which filed its congestion surcharge notice as early as May, issued an advisory stating: “This action is due to the labour-related disruption on the US west coast ports that has caused significant delays at this time, not only with our vessels, but with terminal operations and intermodal processes. For this reason, MSC is absorbing significant costs to ourselves, obliging us to charge $800 per 20ft, $1,000 per 40ft and $1,125 /40ft high-cube in order to recover our losses.”

Yang Ming said it too had “absorbed significant additional costs and expenses” brought on by the congestion, and from today would add surcharges ranging from $800 to $1,266 to any US west coast or Canadian gateway port.

The growing congestion problem has led to shippers, in particu
lar in the garment and hi-tech industries, seeking air charters instead.

“This November, charter rates have been north of $500,000, and the market for early December is tight,” said one air charter source.

“Nearly all of this general cargo was sea-to-air conversions, in order to get goods into the stores before US Thanksgiving.”

It is thought, however, that some forwarders have lost out by chartering freighters for their customers who did not want to pay the higher lease rates.

While some media have reported that the west coast congestion could continue until February’s Chinese New Year, December demand for freighters is being led by the integrators and is not necessarily related to the west coast port problem.

“Early December will continue to be tight, but this is different business to what is being flown now. There is not so much sea-to-air conversion,” said one source.

DHL is thought to be “snapping up capacity” for December, while one source indicated that FedEx had wet-leased two 747Fs from Atlas Air and two from Kalitta.

The demand has also had a slight knock-on effect in other markets, with a tightening of capacity expected at the end of November between China and South America, and there are even some indications that China-Europe is beginning to pick up – although one loss-making cargo airline is rumoured to be bucking the money-making trend, offering below-market rates for the fourth quarter.

Meanwhile, White House officials have met with shipping trade groups in an attempt to find a resolution to the US west coast port issues.

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17TH WCA FIRST ANNUAL CONFERENCE 2015

For the 17^th consecutive year, WCA will once again host the world’s most dynamic event for independent logistics companies. Acknowledged globally as the most important conference of its kind, independent freight forwarders from the world’s premier global network will come together for face-to-face meetings with their peers from around the world.
Thanks to the unprecedented opportunities to build new relationships and strengthen existing ties, the conference is firmly established as the most productive business-generating platform of the year. The event has grown every year without exception and the 2015 conference will offer even greater avenues for you to develop new partnerships and secure more business.
The 17^th WCA First Annual Conference will be held from 29 Jan - 1 Feb and acts as the launch event for the prestigious WCA Conference Week, which runs from 2-5 Feb and integrates all WCA networks into the world’s largest logistics meeting.
WCA Conference Week is a must for all members of WCA – with millions of dollars of new business generated from One-on-One Meetings with fellow members, potential partners and existing colleagues, as well as from the extensive social networking events.
Members of WCA make up the world’s most powerful grouping of independent freight forwarders with 5565 member offices in more than 762 cities and ports – more logistics power than all other logistics networks combined.

Source : www.wcaworld.com

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Ten-month cargo volumes of Neva-Metal grow 10% to 2,6 million tonnes

A Severstal stevedoring unit, St. Petersburg based terminal operator Neva-Metal CJSC in January-October 2014 handled about 2,6 million tonnes of cargo, which represents a 10% growth on the ten-month period of 2013, the terminal operator said.

In the reporting period container traffic at Neva-Metal terminal totaled some75,000 TEUs.

Neva-Metal CJSC, part of Severstal's transport division, operates at Third cargo area in Sea Port of Saint-Petersburg. The company started in 1995. The terminal operator specializes in handling / storage of containerized and general cargoes delivered multimodally to the terminal (by sea-going vessels, rail cars and trucks).

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Cargo traffic at Russian seaports in Jan-Oct 2014 grows 6% to 518.5 million tonnes

Handling of exports, imports and transit cargo at Russian seaports in January-October 2014 increased by 6% compared with the same period last year to 518,5 million tonnes, the Association of Commercial Sea Ports (ASOP) of Russia said.

The ASOP statistics shows that dry cargo amounted to 239.9 million tonnes (+ 13.3%), including: coal - 97.2 million tonnes (+ 14.7%), containerized cargo - 39 1 million tonnes (+ 5.8%), grain - 25.5 million tonnes (a 1.8 times surge), ferrous metals - 19.4 million tonnes (+ 6%), mineral fertilizers - 12.4 million tonnes ( + 16.5%), ferry traffic - 6.8 million tonnes (+ 24.5%), timber - 4 million tonnes (+ 7.2%) and scrap metal - 3.9 million tonnes (+33.3 %). There was a decline in volumes of ore - to 5.3 million tonnes (-14.6%) and of non-ferrous metals - to 2.7 million tonnes (-15.7%).

The ten-month volume of liquid bulk edged up 0.5% to 278.6 million tonnes, including crude oil - 158.5 million tonnes (-8.4%), oil products - 107 million tonnes (+ 15.1%) and liquefied natural gas - 10.1 million tonnes (+12.2 %).

Overall, in the reporting period shipment of exports at the country's seaports totaled 411.9 million tonnes, which represents a 7.8% gain from Jan-Oct. 2013, while imports segment saw a 5.2% decline to 36.5 million tonnes. Transit cargoes increased by 2.3% to 39.7 million tonnes, short sea traffic volume rose 2.1% and totaled 30.4 million tonnes.

The ports of the Arctic Basin handled 29.9 million tonnes of cargo, which is a 22.8% drop on last year's figure. The volume of dry cargo increased to 21.7 million tonnes (+ 4.8%), of liquid bulk – plummeted by more than twofold to 8.2 million tonnes. Cargo throughput of the port of Murmansk shrank by 27.1% to 18.8 million tonnes, including JSC Murmansk Commercial Sea Port - 13.8 million tonnes (-4.1%). Port of Arkhangelsk's cargo volume fell by 10.5% to 3.4 million tonnes. The port Varandey demonstrated strong performance at 4.9 million tonnes (+ 9.5%).

Cargo throughput at the terminals of the Baltic Sea ports increased to 188 million tonnes (+ 4.6%), including dry cargo segment - 74.6 million tonnes or + 9.6%, liquid bulk - 113.4 million tonnes (+ 1.6%).

The port of Ust-Luga handled 62.8 million tonnes, which represents a 21.2% growth year-on-year, Big Port St.Petersburg - 51.3 million tonnes (+ 6.5%), Port of Visotsk - 14.9 million tonnes (+ 10.4%), Port of Kaliningrad - 11.6 million tonnes (+ 2.5%), Port of Vyborg - 1.4 million tonnes (+ 17.2%). Exports / imports volume at the Port of Primorsk shrank by 14.3% to 46 million tonnes.

Freight traffic at the ports of the Azov-Black Sea basin totaled 158.5 million tonnes, which is 10.2% more than a year earlier. Dry cargo segment increased by 17.6% to 59.8 million tonnes, liquid bulk cargo totaled 98.7 million tonnes (+ 6.2%). The port of Novorossiysk terminals moved 101.7 million tonnes of cargo (+ 8.6%), Tuapse port operators handled 18.4 million tonnes (+ 27.9%), of the Port of Taman - 8.5 million tonnes (+ 19.1%), Port Kavkaz - 8.4 million tonnes (+ 28.1%), Port of Azov - 5.3 million tonnes (+ 18.2%), Port of Yeysk - 3.3 million tonnes (+ 7.2%) and Temryuk port transshipped up to 1.7 million tonnes (+ 3.7%).

In the ten-month period the Caspian sea ports loaded / offloaded 6.6 million tonnes (-0.7%), including dry cargo - 2.8 million tonnes (+ 9.9%), liquid bulk - 3 7 million tonnes (-7.5%). Throughput of the port of Makhachkala decreased by 3.4%, of Olya port - by 8.1%, while the Port of Astrakhan demonstrated a 5.9% growth.

The Far East Basin ports' cargo volumes in January-October amounted to 135.5 million tonnes (+ 12.7%). Dry bulk segment rose 16.4% to 81.0 million tonnes, liquid bulk cargo – by 7.8% to 54.5 million tonnes.

Vostochny Port cargo volume jumped by 20.4% to 48.5 million tonnes, Port Vanino reported a 7.2% gain to 21.2 million tonnes, Port of Nakhodka throughput increased by 14.8% to 17.6 million tonnes, port of Prigorodnoye moved 13.3 million tonnes (+ 0.5%), handling of imports/exports at the Port of Vladivostok rose to 12.9 million tonnes (+ 6.8%), terminals of De Kastri handled 6.5 million tonnes of cargo (+ 14.9%) and Port Posiet - 5.7 million tonnes (+ 22.3%).

Association of Commercial Sea Ports (ASOP) was founded in 1987. Currently ASOP unites more than 50 Russian organizations and enterprises of maritime transport. The Association includes commercial sea ports, forwarding and agency companies, research institutes and maritime transport schools. The outcome data of the Russian port complex is based on statistical reports, covering all stevedoring companies operating in the country.  Complete statistics is presented in the quarterly report of ASOP "Cargo traffic at the ports of Russia, CIS and Baltic countries." 

Source:http://en.portnews.ru/news/190226/

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Apple’s iPhone 6 boosts Asia-Pacific cargo numbers

SHIPMENTS of the iPhone 6 helped boost air-cargo figures in the Asia-Pacific in September, ­resulting in regional growth beating the global average.

But aviation officials warn the improvement in global business confidence has stagnated and this could hit air cargo.

Asia-Pacific carriers emerged from a first-quarter slowdown to post a 5.7 per cent increase in cargo traffic compared to a global average of 5.2 per cent.

The International Air Transport Association said the region was benefiting from a rebound in trade activity that included ­increased air-freight shipments from China. Capacity rose 5.6 per cent, leaving load factors relatively flat. The 5.2 per cent rise in global freight tonne kilometres was 0.8 percentage points ahead of the 4.4 per cent average growth in demand for the year so far.

“Although the overall growth rate continues the positive trend of recent months, regional variations are significant,” IATA said.

“Airlines in Asia-Pacific, North America, Middle East and Africa all posted strong growth figures (between 5 per cent and 17 per cent above the previous year’s levels).

“European airlines, however, saw a decline of 1.6 per cent compared to September 2013 and Latin American airlines reported little difference from 2013 with growth of just 0.3 per cent.”

IATA director general Tony Tyler said the European decline was “a worrying trend” reflecting general uncertainty in the European economy amplified by sanctions against Russia.

“Overall, improvements in ­global business confidence have stagnated, which could mean a bumpy road ahead,” Mr Tyler said.

The IATA director was more upbeat about global passenger growth, which rose 5.3 per cent in September as load factors inched ahead to 80.3 per cent.

Asia-Pacific airlines were up 4.8 per cent on a year ago.

This was a weaker rise than August, but IATA said the trend was positive and reflected better demand conditions in the region, including stronger trade activity. European growth slowed to 3.9 per cent, but was hit by a 14-day Air France strike and weakness in the eurozone economy.

Load factors on European carriers hit 84.7 per cent, the highest for any region and a 1 percentage point rise on last year. North America recorded the second lowest demand rise of 2.1 per cent while Middle East carriers were the highest at 15.8 per cent.

Africa brought up the rear with growth of just 1.8 per cent compared to last year, down significantly on the August year-on-year growth of 7 per cent.

IATA cautioned this could not be necessarily interpreted as a result of the Ebola epidemic, due to the region’s volatility.

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Canada Aims To Allow Shippers To Self-Screen Air Cargo

Transport Canada is proposing to allow shippers to screen their cargo before it reaches an airport, rather than solely relying on carriers to do so, in order to bridge security gaps and prevent terrorist attacks.

The Canadian government said relying on carriers to screen all cargo for explosive devices would be “slow and impractical,” resulting in bottlenecks, slowdowns and additional costs. This new initiative would bring up the standard of air cargo screening and save C$202 million in the next decade, according to Transport Canada.

The government agency said the proposed amendments to the Canadian Aviation Security Regulations 2012 outline a voluntary program that allows shippers to become “known consignors.” To qualify, a shipper must be a registered Canadian business; successfully pass a Transport Canada security assessment; provide Transport Canada with a cargo security plan that outlines their facility, personnel and cargo security procedures; and successfully pass an on-site compliance assessment.

Transport Canada said the initiative was prompted by threats like the October 2010 incidence in which explosive devices were found in air cargo headed to the U.S. from Yemen. Those threat spurred the U.S. to create Air Cargo Advanced Screening Initiative, which is much like the one Ottawa is seeking.

About half of all air cargo in Canada is carried on passenger flights, totaling more than 400 million kilograms annually, The Canadian Press reported.

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Five-year Forecast Shows Improved Outlook for Air Cargo

Geneva - The International Air Transport Association (IATA) Airline Industry Forecast 2014-2018 shows that international freight volumes are expected to increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.1% over the next five years. Emerging economies, particularly in the Middle East and Africa, will be the fastest-growing markets.

International Freight Developments:

• The Middle East is forecast to be the fastest growing region over the forecast period with a CAGR of 4.7%.
• The second-fastest growing market, Africa, will have a CAGR of 4.4%. Asia-Pacific and Latin America, both with a CAGR of 3.8%, will be the joint third-fastest growing markets.
• The mature markets of Europe and North America will grow at 3.0% CAGR and 2.8% CAGR, respectively.
• By 2018, the ten largest international freight markets will be the United States (10,054,000 tonnes), China (5,639,000), the UAE (4,974,000), Germany (4,763,000), Hong Kong (4,648,000), Republic of Korea (3,487,000), Japan (3,480,000), the United Kingdom (2,808,000), Chinese Taipei (2,350,000) and India (2,223,000).
• Iran is expected to be the fastest growing country (of nations with more than 100,000 tonnes of cargo per year) for air freight volumes over the forecasting horizon with a CAGR of 7.0% per annum. However, it is growing from a low base so it will add just 44,000 tonnes of freight by 2018 for a total of 156,000 tonnes.
• The second fastest-growing market, India, will experience a CAGR of 6.8% to add 622,000 extra tonnes. Bangladesh (339,000 total freight tonnes), Ethiopia (319,000) and Nigeria (276,000) make up the remainder of the top five.
• Another notable growth country will be Qatar. With a CAGR of 5.7% it will be the sixth-fastest growing and it will see 361,000 additional tonnes to take its total freight tonnes to 1,484,000.

Source : http://www.wcainterglobal.com/eng/news.asp?id=961

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