THE E-AWB REVOLUTION:
THE BENEFITS FOR AIR CARGO SECURITY IATA
defines e-cargo as the set of all processes and electronic messages that support a fully paperless air cargo supply chain. Whilst
e-freight focuses on commercial and transport documents, the scope of e-cargo is broader and includes particular security and safety related processes and documents. The air waybill (AWB) is the contract of carriage between the carrier and the shipper, where the freight forwarder very often acts as shipper. The electronic AWB (e-AWB) is an electronic equivalent to the paper AWB that has been used by the industry for many years. IATA and its airline members are committed to implementing e-AWB as the first step towards the e-freight vision, with the target to achieve 100% e-AWB penetration by the end of 2015. FIATA, the International Federation of Freight Forwarder Associations, supports the introduction of the e-AWB and encourages its members to switch from paper to e-AWB as soon as feasible. In 2012, the Global Air Cargo Advisory Group (GACAG), which includes representatives of most of the end-to-end air cargo stakeholders, developed a roadmap to 100% e-freight. This roadmap defines the approach, structure and targets for the e-freight programme moving forward and includes the move to 100% e-AWB by end 2015.
Why the AWB is Important for Security
The AWB is not primarily a security document, hence an ASI reader might wonder at first why ASI decided to dedicate an article to it. However, the e-AWB initiative supports and enhances security for three key reasons:
§ The data on the AWB is very often used to support risk assessment following the transmission of advance electronic information to Customs. Furthermore, it is considered as a supporting document for customs declarations.
§ The AWB very frequently includes security information related to the chain of custody (in particular the consignment security declaration information such as who secured the cargo, when and how).
§ The move to the e-AWB and subsequently to e-freight improves data quality and reduces the opportunity to manipulate data thus assisting industry and regulators alike.
The AWB is a contractual document and therefore it has not been developed for the purpose of a security declaration, a customs declaration, or for advanced electronic information. However the information available on the AWB includes information requested by some authorities. For example the data sets foreseen by the World Cargo Organisation (WCO) SAFE framework of standards for advanced electronic information, includes data elements available on the AWB. This implies that the move from paper AWB to e-AWB will benefit authorities due to:
26 Download your FREE ASI "iPad/iPhone APP" NOW April 2013 Aviationsecurityinternational
§ The fact that information is now electronic vs. on paper to enhance risk assessment.
§ The availability of such information earlier in the process since the e-AWB data can be available, on request, before the cargo arrives.
§ The improved quality of the data.
Many countries request air cargo stakeholders to provide an audit trail of who secured what shipment, and how and when the shipment was secured. In the paper world, this is managed by additional security information documented on the paper AWB, including the use of stamps. To transmit this information in an electronic environment, the electronic consignment security declaration (e-CSD) was developed by IATA, with involvement of airlines, freight forwarders ground handling agents, regulators and international organisations. Recently an enhanced standard layout for the e-CSD has been agreed with ICAO that includes additional data fields for electronic messages associated to an e-AWB. When moving to e-AWB, airlines and freight forwarders have the choice between processing a paper consignment security declaration and implementing the e-CSD.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48