NEWSWEEK Four airlines join ASL Aviation with Farnair acquisition A
SL Aviation Group has completed its acquisition of Farnair Group, bringing its number of affiliate airlines to seven, and its fleet of aircraft ASL owns and operates to
over 100. The acquisition of Basel (Switzer- land) based Farnair adds another four airlines
to ASL operations, Farnair Switzerland, Far- nair Hungary, Quikjet India and K-Mile. ASL
already had three affiliate airlines, Air Contrac- tors in Ireland, Europe Airpost in France and Safair in South Africa. ASL now has air operator
certificates in Europe, South Africa, South East Asia and India. ASL Aviation Group chief executive offi-
cer, Hugh Flynn (see picture) says: “With five airlines operating across Europe and Africa and with an airline now in each of South East Asia and India, ASL Aviation will considerably strengthen its position as the neutral provider
of airline services to the major express integra- tors on a global scale.” Farnair Switzerland was established in 1984 using a Seneca aircraft and it now has more than 20 aircraft in its fleet including two freighters based in Basel, an ATR 42 and an ATR 72. Far- nair Hungary is based at Budapest Liszt Ferenc
Airport operating one Beech 1900C and one Beech 1900D. It also received its first Boeing 737-400SF in 2014. Quikjet India operates an
ATR 72-200. K-Mile is based at Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok specialising in express, cou- rier and mail operating two 737-400 Special Freighter. Farnair Switzerland acquired a 45 per cent
shareholding in K-Mile on 10 March 2014. In 2013 ASL Aviation Group made a profit of 17 million euros ($20.8 million), down from 27 million euros in 2012. The revenue fell to 322.7 million euros in 2013, compared to 380 million euros in 2012. Its three subsidiaries saw cargo volumes drop in 2013; Air Contractors handled 102,606 tonnes, down from 224,682 tonnes in 2012. Europe Airport handled 52,971 tonnes in 2013, down from 75,660 tonnes in 2012. Safair handled 13,095 tonnes in 2013, down from 26,476 tonnes in 2012.
eAWB goal up
THE electronic air waybill (e-AWB) target has been doubled for 2015 to 45 per cent as the International Air Transport Association declares that in 2014 the industry will have achieved up to 22.7 per cent penetration. IATA officials point to very high e-AWB penetration levels for Qatar Airways at Doha Airport with 99 per cent, Cathay at Hong Kong International Airport, 98 per cent and Singapore Airlines achieving 82 per cent at Singapore Changi Airport. They also point to airports, such as Dubai, with over- all penetration levels of about 75 per cent. Speaking at IATA’s cargo media day, the association’s e-business cargo head, Guil- laum Drucy, says: ”This year the industry will achieve its eAWB target. At the moment we have growth rate of three to four times the rate that we had at the same time last year, and the number at 22 per cent is about double we had [in January].”
Descartes acquires e-customs firms
DESCARTES SYSTEMS GROUP has ac- quired two UK based companies, Pentant, a community system provider for import and export security and clearance, and e-cus- toms for electronic security and customs filings, for a total of £7.6 million ($11.8 million). Pentant, which was acquired for £1.8 mil- lion, provides customers with a connection to the central UK Revenue and Customs system and the European Union Import Control System by streamlining declara- tion, cargo security, and clearance. It also provides help meeting UK Revenue and Customs requirements for imports and ex- ports management through an approved inventory control system for air cargo, sea- freight and roadfreight. Following the acquisition of Pentant, Des- cartes senior vice president of European sales, Richard Dobber says: “Descartes’ growing multi-modal logistics community will now benefit from increased customs compliance domain expertise and enhanced
service levels in the UK.” E-customs, which was acquired for £5.8 million, provides a cloud computer-based product called Web- decs, which provides shippers and logistics companies with a system to make filing and security requirements simpler. It is designed to reduce complexity, increase automation and make customs declarations easier. Descartes chief executive officer, Edward Ryan, says: “By combining with e-customs, we’ve deepened our UK expertise and added more robust capabilities to our global Cus- toms and Regulatory Compliance portfolio.” Ryan believes the acquisition of e-customs will be of benefit for its existing customers. In April, Descartes acquired US firm Com- puter Management for $6.7 million, which provides security filing and cargo man- agement for airlines and partners. At the time, Ryan said: “Computer Management customers will now have access to a wider geographic range of customs filing solutions and additional added value services
....such as e-freight and Cargo 2000.”
CEVA’s Singapore expansion
CEVA LOGISTICS has expanded its pres- ence in Singapore with 48,000 square metres of warehouse and office at its West Hub Logistics Center.
The hub is the company’s largest facili- ty in Singapore. CEVA says the warehouse, located near Jurong Port, is still involved in airfreight. At the warehouse’s location, the firm provides logistics services to sev- eral companies from the energy, oil and gas, and industrial, consumer and retail
sectors. CEVA’s South East Asia executive vice president, Elaine Low, says: “This is now our largest site in Singapore, and a major investment we have made to better serve the logistics and supply chain needs of our customers. Singapore’s strategic location in Asia, combined with the country’s excellent network and international connectivity. makes it an ideal hub for many multinational companies to operate from.”
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ACW 15 DECEMBER 2014
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