This page contains a Flash digital edition of a book.
ALL CARGO AIRLINES\\\ Charter group looks to boost standards


BACA - the Baltic Air Charter Association - is planning to introduce an accreditation scheme within the next six months or so, says chairman, Tony Coe. At present, there are very few standards applicable to the air broking sector, but a scheme could help push up standards in an industry in which, inevitably, the actions of a handful of rogue firms can tarnish the reputation of all operators. “There have been cases in the


past in which clients have lost a lot of money from companies operating at the margins of the law - not so much in the UK, but in other parts of the world such as the new republics of the Former Soviet Union,” says Coe. BACA is currently studying how


a system would work. As a pointer, there is


the much larger ship


broking industry, as well as general business quality standards such as ISO9001. BACA’s accreditation would probably be voluntary, and tailored according to the size of the company. BACA already vets its members, but accreditation would take the process a stage further


with perhaps different levels such as silver, gold and platinum. BACA members meanwhile


report that the freight side of their business is very quiet, with a flat market and cargo planes being laid up. New large-bellyhold passenger planes such as the 777, together with the recession, have sharply reduced the need for full freighters, says Coe. Even aid organisations are changing their logistics strategies with material stored in strategic locations rather than flown in from centralised warehouses, which again reduces the need for chartered full-freighter capacity. Those forwarders that already use their own air capacity oſten deal direct with shippers and have no need to charter additional capacity. “Plus output from China is down


and shippers are becoming very savvy about what needs to fly,” Coe points out - so a lot of the airfreight industry is really thinking long and hard about how it will position itself in future. But there are still niches for particularly in more


brokers,


remote regions where roads are poor and mountains impede


Reaching the places that other carriers cannot


The cargo charter market has been “OK but not fantastic” with a greater emphasis on smaller aircraſt to more remote locations, says Chapman Freeborn group cargo director, Reto Hunziker. “A lot of the planes are in the small jet to Antonov 12 range,” he told FBJ in an interview. Whatever the requirement –


regular traffic or one-off emergency – charter brokers will also seek out the most efficient solution, says Hunziker. Thankfully, perhaps, the number


of humanitarian emergencies throughout


the world is at a


relatively low ebb (or at least was at the time of writing) but there is still a job to be done in getting aid out to people in need. Chapman Freeborn has just


started its own operations in Libya, doing the distribution from Tripoli to remote airports where there is little infrastructure. Into Tripoli, it is possible to use the regular scheduled flights, but from then onwards the smaller chartered planes take over – a pattern of operations that is being replicated in other markets throughout the world. Chapman Freeborn Airchartering


has formed an exclusive partnership with Air Libya to place and operationally manage an Antonov An-26 aircraft based at Tripoli’s Mitiga International Airport. It offers a 5.5 ton payload and it will be available for ad hoc cargo charter requirements within Libya as well as international flights to and from the EU and North Africa. The An-26 is considered to be


one of the most versatile types in the market due to its ability to utilise short and unpaved runways in remote locations. It also features rear door loading and unloading capabilities for outsize pieces of cargo. The plan is to introduce internal


scheduled services to connect Tripoli and Benghazi with Libya’s more remote airfields - including regular operations to the oil fields in the south of the country and, says Chapman Freeborn, “will provide much needed logistics solutions in a country where few international aviation companies are currently willing to invest in establishing services.” It will also provide a viable alternative to sea freight routes to and from Europe which have been subject to high rates.


access - for example Africa or


South America. And BACA’s own members have largely stayed the course – only three have disappeared in the past year, none of them freight operators. “In fact, we’re very pleased with our membership, which is now over 210 and rapidly expanding. We’re also considering expanding to new regions of the world, such as the Middle East.”


Issue 6 2013


Cargolux returns to Chile


Tony Coe


Cargolux has reinstated its 747 freighter service to Santiago de Chile with a weekly flight, as part of its regular South American rotation on Sundays, also stopping in Viracopos, Brazil. Santiago has featured in Cargolux’s network in the past and the company has maintained


29


its cooperation with local general sales and services agent Pacific Feeder Services. Following the re-emerging demand for large capacity freighters to and from the country, the Luxembourg- based airline decided to add the Chilean capital to its network again.


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