Aircraft lessor Air Transport Services Group (ATSG) confirmed this week that pilot employees of its Air Transport International (ATI) subsidiary have ratified an amendment to the collective bargaining agreement between ATI and the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA). ALPA is the largest airline pilot union in the world and represents more than 60,000 pilots at 34 US and Canadian airlines. Jim O’Grady, president of ATI, informed: “We are pleased that our pilot group has ratifie

Emirates SkyCargo has continued its product expansion with the addition of an aircraft on the ground (AOG) offering. The Dubai-hubbed carrier said the core aim of Emirates AOG is to transport parts on the quickest possible flight connection without compromising on the quality of handling and customer service. The new product includes a late cut-off time for cargo acceptance at origin – up to four hours prior to scheduled time of departure for shipments weighing less than 100

Cargo demand at European airlines seemed to plateau in January, with only Lufthansa reporting a demand increase of note. The latest monthly figures show that IAG Cargo registered a decrease in traffic, there were small improvements at Finnair and Air France KLM (AF KLM) and Lufthansa registered a larger improvement. Performance during the month was affected by winter conditions. The Germany-based carrier group saw cargo traffic increase by 6.3% year on year in February to 828

Damco has revealed plans to streamline cross-border e-commerce for its clients, with an initial priority of tackling the lack of a proven returns solution in China. The Netherlands-based forwarder and supply chain solutions specialist noted that domestic e-commerce sales rates are expected to flatten in the coming years, while the cross-border segment of the market is set to continue its rapid growth. Moreover, it pointed out, the Asia Pacific region is leading the way and, i

A similar B737-400F, operated by ASL Luxembourg-based aircraft trading and leasing company Vallair has delivered a Boeing 737-400F to ASL Aviation Holdings (Ireland). The aircraft recently went through a freighter conversion followed by a “C” Check with integration maintenance performed in the US. The lease term is for 48 months with a 24-month extension option. Gregoire Lebigot, president and chief executive of Vallair, stated: “This is the first aircraft Vallair is leasing

Panalpina handled 995,900 tons of airfreight in 2017, the highest in the company’s history. The global supply chain services provider gave the figure in its second Integrated Management Report, summarising the company’s activities during 2017 in terms of business performance and sustainability. Plus, both profitability and earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) in the airfreight segment improved quarter on quarter. Airfreight-related highlights of the 2017 report includ

Major freight forwarders continue to make progress in developing online sales offerings but there is much more work to be done if they are to capitalise fully on the opportunity presented. The latest annual survey by freight rate portal Freightos looked at the online offering of the world’s top 20 freight forwarders. The company approached the forwarders posing as a fast-growing e-commerce company to test how easy it is to request and receive a quote for a booking. It found t

China Cargo Airlines has inaugurated a new Boeing 777 freighter connection between Shanghai-Pudong International Airport and Germany’s Frankfurt Airport. Frankfurt Airport welcomed the freighter with a traditional ribbon-cutting ceremony. China Cargo Airlines, a subsidiary of China Eastern, is flying the service twice a week, on Wednesdays and Sundays. However, according to Fraport, operator of Frankfurt Airport, China Cargo Airlines expects to increase the frequency of its f

Turkish Cargo recently netted a vast transport contract – moving 1.5m live fish to Oman from Izmir. The 1.5m baby Gilt-head breams weighed in at around 100 tonnes and were accompanied by aquaculture engineers who checked the pH balance, oxygen and water temperature levels of the fish every hour. The transport was carried out on a charter basis utilising one of the airline’s Boeing 777 freighters and the whole operation needed to be completed in 40 hours. Turkish Airlines chie

Japan's All Nippon Airways (ANA) is acquiring two Boeing 777 freighters in response to the "expanding market in Asia, China, and North America". In a short statement with few hard details, parent group ANA Holdings said: "The delivery is scheduled for 2019, and ANA Holdings is looking forward to actively acquiring the growing cargo demand using the synergies of the expanding passenger flight network and the large freighters." While ANA is a major operator of the 777 passenger