PART 3 – TIACA Announcements and Decisions

UPS Secures Future of Boeing 747-8F Variant
Boeing has received a major order from parcel service company UPS, for its largest all-cargo aircraft, the 747-8F. The deal encompasses the purchase of 14 B747-8Fs and includes options for an additional 14 units.
Lauded Brad McMullen, VP Sales North America: “UPS could not have selected a better aircraft to meet its growing business needs. We’ve continued to make the    747-8 Freighter even better, and we look forward to seeing UPS introduce it to its fleet.”
For Boeing, the deal could be a breakthrough, since the 747-8F-program has been jeopardized by a lack of sufficient orders. As a consequence, they scaled down the assembly of the aircraft to 0.5 per month.
So far, 74 units of the U.S. manufacturer’s -8F production series have been confirmed as ordered with 68 delivered so far, leaving as little as 6 unfilled orders in the U.S. plane maker’s books. Thanks to UPS their number went up to 20 now, and could even reach 34 if the Atlanta based integrator converts the options to confirmed orders. Fact is, the deal secures the assembly of Boeing’s freighter flagship for the next couple of years with UPS deliveries taking place between 2017 and 2020.
Brendan Canavan, President of UPS Airlines, commented: “These aircraft are a strategic investment for increased capacity of UPS customers around the globe. The 747-8 will allow UPS to upsize our network in both new and existing markets.”
It is the first order of a large freighter capable of carrying 120 tons or more for the parcel service company after scrapping a commitment to purchase 10 Airbus A380 all-cargo aircraft back in 2007.
The step was applauded by Cologne’s Airport Chief Michael Garvens who spoke of “clear UPS signals” to operate the 747-8Fs on intercontinental routes to Cologne, the integrator’s main European hub. Besides the boost of capacity enabling additional business, the decision to replace the current MD-11Fs by the 747-8Fs is good news for the airport’s residents since the jumbo, although much bigger in size, is significantly quieter than the ageing MD-11F that is currently serving CGN, Garvens emphasized.

Boeing remains positive on long-term freighter demand
In its Paris-published World Air Cargo Forecast at TIACA, the U.S. manufacturer predicts an average annual growth rate of air cargo traffic by 4.2 percent over the next 20 years. Based on this estimation, 930 new and 1,440 converted (P2C) freighters are needed to meet future market demand, Boeing Commercial Airplanes Vice President of Marketing, Randy Tinseth told the media. The manager emphasized that dedicated freighters still carry more than half of air cargo and remain as the leading cargo capacity provider. According to the forecast, the world air cargo fleet will expand by 70 percent by 2035, adding a total of 2,370 freighters to the market.
The study sees demand for 550 large production freighters, 380 production medium wide body freighters, 400 wide body conversion freighters and 1,040 medium conversion freighters. Tinseth emphasized that markets linked to Asia will lead all other international markets in average air cargo growth. Boeing aircraft make up more than 90 percent of the world’s dedicated freighter capacity. This impressive figure hasn’t changed for a long time.

TK receives CEIV certificate
IATA’s Head of Cargo, Glyn Hughes, handed over the Center of Excellence for Independent Validators’ (CEIV) Pharma Certificate to representatives of Turkish Airlines. It applies to both freighter and belly hold operations conducted by the carrier. On that occasion TK’s Vice President of Cargo, Seref Kazanci emphasized that being CEIV validated is a clear signal to customers that they can be confident that their temp critical shipments will be handled in accordance with the stiff CEIV standards at every stage in the process.

SASI and ICF join forces
Both consultancies have made public the building of an air cargo consulting alliance “to provide the most rigorous, real world advice and solutions to the global air cargo community, based on in-depth knowledge of industry trends and requirements,” as announced in a recent statement. Both firms are major players in the consulting arena, with ICF Aviation, founded in 1963, being the world’s oldest aviation consultancy. Montreal-based Strategic Aviation Solutions International (SASI) is a highly respected and recognised advisor. Run by Stan Wraight, the founder and first CEO of AirBridgeCargo, it provides a wealth of top management expertise in operations consulting and transaction support to airlines, ACMI providers, forwarding agents, airports and other industry stakeholders.

GSF and Cargo iQ implement QMS
Chris Welsh of the Global Shippers’ Forum (GSF) and Cargo iQ’s Director Ariaen Zimmermann inked a memorandum of understanding for pushing Cargo iQ’s global quality standards further to the forefront and promote sustainability along the entire supply chain of air freight. While signing the pact Welsh said: “By combining our forces we will make sure industry performance standards meet shippers’ needs and also help shippers understand the improvements the cargo industry is making.” Key goals are sharing information and best practice, identifying options to improve the data access for customers and implementing best solutions fast.

Heiner Siegmund  /  Michael Taweel