FranceReport Uncertainty is the problem


Despite the ominous shadow of the Eurozone crisis, 2011 proved to be a good year for general sales agent (GSA) Prime Air Services, but Claudia Fran- chini, managing director of the France-based GSA has been less impressed by business in 2012. “2011 was a very good year,


this year though has been very ‘stop-start’. We’ve found that airlines have lots of capacity, but there hasn’t been the quantities of cargo required to fill it,” said Franchini. “That said, we have noticed marked


improvement on inter-European routes, partic- ulalrly between France and Spain, and into the Canary Islands. But business in the Far East and the US is weak at the moment,” she added. Franchini feels that continued economic


problems facing the world are the cause: “It is not dramatically bad, the issue comes from the uncertainty.” Prime Air Services works solely with


Productive year at Toulouse airport


Toulouse airport has had a productive year in the freight business, according to Akram Troussieux, manager research and development Toulouse airport. Although the general


passenger airlines. “This also brings about issues when passenger routes drop off and we end up with cargo but no feasible routes on which to transport it,” continued Franchini. “Regarding future prospects:


mood across the industry, not just in France but across Europe, is one of decline, Toulouse is somewhat pro- tected from the economic worries in Europe by the good health of its major industries – aeronautical and health – added Troussieux. Between January and


it’s


unpredictable. Fuel prices are rising, and no forecasts are suggesting they will lower any time soon. And then there’s the euro, again. For Prime Air Services, we need to focus on read- justing to meet customer needs,” concluded Franchini.


BRIEFS • BRIEFS • BRIEFS • BRIEFS


PARIS-BASED general sales agent, ECS Group announced the acquisition of Italian GSA ATC and its daughter company ADP at the Air Cargo Forum exposition in Atlanta this month. The purchase brings one of Italy’s old- est GSA groups within the ECS fold. ECS chief executive officer Bertrand Schmoll described ADP as “one of the best GSAs in Europe,with over 1,000 people.”


AIR FRANCE-KLM has revealed a decline in its freight traffic figures for the month of September. This loss came despite a reduction in its overall capacity of 4.5 percent, with the carrier posting a 6.6 percent reduction in freight carried for the month. As a result of this loss the company experienced a 1.4 per- centage point deterioration in load factor for September, down to 63.2 percent.


working for the aeronautical field posted strong numbers, as did TNT Express freight, with 4,129 tons by the end of September,” said Troussieux. “Turkish Airlines has


known the biggest increase, posting figures of 79 tons, indicative of a 177 percent increase,” he added. Business from Lufthansa


also fell significantly, down 41.3 percent for September. On routes, 85 percent of


September freight volumes increased by 5.8 percent, up from 41,188 tons in 2011 to 43,578 tons. “A lot of business is coming from Airbus-


related freight, particularly from Air France Cargo, who are still Toulouse’s biggest cus- tomer, despite posting a 21.2 percent drop in business – equating to 718 tons. Airlines


Troussieux - 177 percent increase for Turkish Airlines


freight charter flights came from Finkenwerder, Nantes Saint Nazaire, Hawarden, and Bremen, while general cargo


out of Paris dipped significantly.” said Troussieux. Troussieux is, however, cautious: “Express


freight in Toulouse is no longer improving as it once was; this year saw only 1.4 percent growth, primarily due to the economic slow- down in Europe. “


Etihad code share for Air France-KLM


Air France-KLM and Etihad Airways have signed a codeshare agreement which, according to a statement released on Tuesday (9 October), is part of a much larger strategic partnership. This new partnership will commence on 28


October with the wide-ranging codeshare agreement seeing the two airlines offering joint codes on destinations in the Middle East, Europe, Asia, and Australia. Air France-KLM unveiled a separate new


codeshare agreement with airberlin, Europe’s sixth-largest airline, in which Etihad Airways holds a 29.1 percent share. Jean–Cyril Spinetta, Air France-KLM chief


executive officer, said: “This new partnership between Air France-KLM and Etihad Airways and airberlin reflects our Group’s strategic posi- tioning to ensure the best possible services between Europe and the rest of the world, by developing our network and partnerships.”


Page 8


15 October 2012


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