keynote feature


The various challenges surrounding the shipment of dangerous/hazardous goods by air are significant but they an be overcome by those with the appropriate training, procedures and equipment. Phillip Hastings reports


Dangerous goods – hard to handle


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mplementation at the start of this year of the latest edition of the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) Dangerous Goods Regulations (DGR) – which includes some amendments of particular relevance to sectors


of China’s export community – highlighted the fact that the safe handling of dangerous goods remains a key challenge for the global air cargo industry. The importance of meeting that challenge was


summed up by Dan Gardner, chief executive officer of the international business unit of North American freight transport and global logistics group Pacer International, which includes forwarding/Customs house brokerage operation RF International and air freight business OWL Air. “Even before 9/11, compliance with the


regulations governing the transport of hazardous goods absolutely had to be a priority for any


AIR LOGISTICSCHINA


organisation, be it goods travelling on a passenger aircraft or an all-cargo aircraft, simply because there are human lives at stake,” stated Gardner, whose previous forwarding industry experience included executive positions with DHL Global Forwarding and Fritz Companies (acquired by UPS in 2001). “Proper identification and labelling of cargo in line with hazardous materials requirements is paramount.”


OBVIOUS RISKS However, despite the obvious risks associated with any failure to ship dangerous goods correctly, a mixture of ignorance and commercial pressures sometimes results in that “proper identification” failing to happen, confirmed forwarders and carriers spoken to by Air Logistics China. “Only recently we got a shipment from quite a


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