In the midst of expansion The Brazilian air cargo market has grown quickly of late, spurred on by the nation’s rapid economic
expansion. More of the same is expected in coming years, with Brazil’s hosting of the 2014 FIFA World Cup and 2016 Olympic Games likely to offer further significant boosts to the local logistics industry
A
ccording to a spokesman for TAM Cargo in São Paulo: “With the for- mation of the LATAM Airlines group, the cargo business of both companies will be integrated.
“LAN Cargo and TAM Cargo will analyse
the commercial and operational aspects to cre- ate this new group. The cargo business will bring together the best practices, strengths and competitive advantages of both companies to
help them in their respective markets and routes,” he declared. For example, the spokesman explained, cus-
tomers will benefit from “TAM Cargo’s experience and strengths in the Brazilian domestic market and LAN Cargo’s leadership in worldwide cargo operations. “Customers will receive specific notices and
news and will be able to keep themselves informed through the LAN Cargo and TAM Cargo websites of how this inte- gration will materialise and how to access the air cargo products and services.” There is, as yet, no exact
timeline for the integration of LAN and TAM Cargo, he said, the schedule being dependent upon the public offering of shares and the response of the appropriate authorities. How- ever, if the process should go ahead: “We will be the leader in the air cargo business in Latin America,” the spokesman said.
Cargolux inaugurates B747F flights to Manaus
Cargolux, Europe’s biggest all- freighter carrier, has launched a new connection to the Brazil- ian city of Manaus. The first flight of a Cargolux
B747 freighter routeing Lux- embourg - São Paulo - Manaus - Quito - Bogotá - Maastricht - Luxembourg took off from its home hub at Findel Interna- tional airport on 19 May. “Brazil is an important mar-
ket for Cargolux, it is the economic engine of the region,” explains Frank Reimen, CEO and president of Cargolux Airlines International. The carrier points out that
biggest industrial centres pro- ducing electronic and various other consumer goods. “The presence of multina-
tional companies has stimulated demand for fast and reliable air cargo trans- port, which is precisely what we offer our customers,” Reimen pointed out. Brazil has been served by
Reimen: “Brazil ... is the economic engine of the region”
the city – the capital of the state of Amazonas – boasts a population of nearly 2 million and has a free trade zone that hosts one of the country’s
the carrier since 1997 and the new connection to Manaus’s Eduardo Gomes International airport adds the country’s third-busiest air cargo gateway to the Cargolux network. Cargolux currently operates
a fleet of 12 B747-400 freighters and three of the all-new B747-8Fs. It serves 60 destinations with scheduled all-cargo flights.
It has not been all plain sailing of late for São Paulo-headquartered general sales and services agent Brasil Cargo Service (BCS), confesses commercial manager João Ferreira. Over the first quarter, March turned out to
be a better month than January or February, but business is still below expectations, with the European market especially struggling.
Brasil Cargo Service ready to meet the challenges Nevertheless, the main customers – such as
Delta, TAAG, Cargolux and Aeromexico – are maintaining a strong schedule with widebody aircraft, Ferreira pointed out, and business has been particularly good on Aeromexico. Even in these challenging times, BCS is look-
ing to spread its wings and hopes to reopen its Manaus office in the near future, for example.
Away from the proposed merger, TAM
Cargo recently announced its investment in a new cargo terminal in São Paulo, Brazil’s biggest city.
With 14,000m2 of space and able to handle
1,000 tons of freight every day, the new facility is expected to provide an eight-fold increase over the current capacity of the TAM business unit operation at São Paulo Guarulhos Interna- tional airport. As for the outlook for the Brazilian air freight
industry, TAM Cargo is insistent that it remains a very positive one, given the country’s recent economic growth and the forthcoming FIFA World Cup and Olympic Games. “These major
events are a great opportunity for TAM Cargo,” the spokesman insisted. “We believe that during the World Cup in
2014 and the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, the Brazilian market will have additional traffic load and demand. To meet this higher demand for services, we are continually improving our cargo terminal operational structures, products and processes, resulting in the faster delivery of shipments. “In the international cargo segment, we are
continually improving our management sys- tems, resulting in faster processing and better revenue monitoring,” the TAM Cargo spokesman concluded.
➤
28 May 2012
Page 7
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12