“Success is dictated on the ground, not in the air” (Stan Wraight), was just one of a number of good sound bites over the ACHL 2023 in Athens, Greece, held 20-22SEP23. CargoForwarder Global shares its impressions. Read more >>

Through the signing of a Best Effort Declaration on 18SEP23, the Schiphol (SPL) air cargo community renews its efforts to extensively digitalize the landside process. The aim is to have the system ready by mid-2024, to reach full implementation on the handlers’ side in the year after. Read more >>

Schenker has opted to invest in two young companies that are developing innovative logistics approaches with high growth potential. These are the startups Fernride and Dexory. Both capital injections, which are minority shareholdings, open the door for Schenker to soon make its own business processes more efficient and productive, using concepts developed by Fernride and Dexory. Read more >>

This ACHL panel won ‘longest title award’ hands-down with: “The airline industry struggles to compete against the eCommerce giants, where mega companies such as Amazon and Cainiao control their own lift and market. How can the industry support the thousands of companies looking for an alternative?”

Essentially it could have been shortened to “Dealing with eCommerce.” Here is the panel’s summary. Read more >>

The partnership is based on exclusivity. According to the deal, Sovereign subsidiary, Activ Cars is contracted to deliver components and aircraft parts to the Airbus production plants in Hamburg, Bremen, and Toulouse. In doing so, Active Cars has committed to powering its vehicles with climate friendly HVO100 fuel. Read more >>

Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary is considered the most creative head among the airline bosses when it comes to squeezing money out of passengers' pockets for all kinds of extra services, be they restricted hand luggage rules, bizarre reservation and booking options, or demanding cash for inflight lavatory access. Read more >>

Impatience with Fraport's management is growing. Leading politicians, industry associations and opponents of the Putin regime are demanding that the airport operator divest itself of its stake in Pulkovo Airport in St. Petersburg (IATA: LED) sooner rather than later. Read more >>

If a German tells you “Da ist der Wurm drin!“ [There’s a worm in there!], it generally points to a problem. If GE Aerospace Research were to say the same, the phrase would take on a much more positive meaning. Afterall, they’d be referring to their ‘Sensiworm’ – a nature-inspired, miniature addition to their future workforce, responsible for future On-Wing jet engine inspection and repair. Read more >>

“Challenging” would be a euphemistic description of the situation the German air freight industry is gradually slipping into. “Extremely worrying” would be the more correct characterization of the status. At least this is the assessment of the German Aviation Association (BDL). The reasons for the gradual but permanent decline are manifold. This was confirmed by leading representatives of the industry during a recent meeting in Berlin. There is no fast-acting remedy in sight to bring about a U-turn. Read more >>

So far, staff shortages have only caused temporary hiccups in the handling of cargo shipments at Frankfurt and other major European hubs. But tonnages tend to increase, the workforce is not. Why? Because there are simply too little personnel on the labor market available for ground handling services and the wider aviation industry. At the recent meeting of the German Aviation Alliance (BDL) held in Berlin, cargo experts and panelists called on policymakers to take action fast by changing some immigration and labor laws, this way easing the shortage in personnel to a certain degree. So voiced by Pierre Dominique Pruemm (PDP), Executive Board member for Aviation and Infrastructure at airport operator Fraport AG. We publish his considerations exclusively. Read more >>

Salary is an important issue, but other topics are at least as relevant for young talents when starting their career. Accordingly, companies need to adapt their offers to match the changing expectations of new generation applicants. Markus Otto (MO), SVP Aviation Europe, DHL Express, and Frank Bauer (FB), Chief Financial Officer and Chief Human Resources Officer of Lufthansa Cargo, confirm this shift in requirements. And provide valuable hints on how companies can attract new employees. Read more >>

It’s a topic on the agenda of almost every air cargo conference, and an ongoing challenge that the entire industry has long identified as crucial: how to encourage younger generations to consider a career in air freight? CargoForwarder Global therefore asked a representative of the young talent generation, who is focussing her own career on addressing and solving this very topic for air cargo logistics related companies, for her opinion on what the industry has to offer, where the challenges lie, as well as solution measures. Here is Olga Romanova, Founder of CargoHR’s answer. Read more >>

Last Wednesday (13SEP23), the Hamburg city government announced an offer made by shipping line, MSC, to acquire 49.9% in terminal operator and logistics specialist, HHLA (Hamburg Harbor + Logistics Company). However, the plan met with massive criticism. Whether it will be implemented as intended now seems increasingly doubtful. Read more >>

Belgian air freight forwarders have been the victims of a fraud scheme, costing them hundreds of thousands of euros. A similar plot seems to have been foiled in neighboring Amsterdam. The scheme has reinforced the importance of a dedicated complaints center set up by the umbrella organization, Forward Belgium. Read more >>