Making Lufthansa Cargo Great Again - Part 2

To attract new customers Soeren Stark highlighted in particular in his presentation to the German ACD the introduction of ‘myAirCargo’ which targets Lufthansa passengers who purchase outsized or heavy pieces of art, souvenirs, paintings or other items which by size or weight don’t fit luggage requirements. “It’s an innovative and individualized new door-door product that can be easily booked via our App,” Herr Stark explained. The concept, he added, “surely spurs our creativity.”
Of greater interest for the industry should “td.Basic”, their newly introduced low cost product that has an extended transport time compared to the existing “td.Pro” offering for goods flown as general cargo. It’s only in the market since some weeks so it’s too early to draw an interim conclusion, said the LHC manager.

A critical look at this particular sheet in the presentation highlights the fact that e-commerce shown as last point but hardly mentioned or discussed in the Q+A session.
Surely, the German flag carrier is not just going to rely on td.Basic and myAirCargo to boost revenues to where they should be.
Mr Stark even indicated in his speech that e-commerce is a word in almost everyone’s mouth, but very few are understanding how to proceed.
Is LH Cargo one of these also? It seems this subject, which we feel is essential for the survival of most legacy carriers in the future, is not high on their “need urgently to-do list.”
We hope we are wrong.

No iPhone for cargo in sight
Touching cooperation issues Soeren stated that partnering with ANA Cargo and soon Cathay Cargo as well as United Cargo in Q3 of 2017 isn’t the end of the line, without naming further candidates.
Coming back to his carrier’s new strategic “Cargo Evolution” approach to go onto the offensive he said “we still haven’t invented the iPhone for air freight yet since the business we are in is way too complex for an All-in-One revolutionary solution. That’s why they opted for gradual reforms to get to new heights by bringing contents to life standing in their “Cargo Evolution” platform. 
If it works out as expected by the LHC managers only time will tell.

ACD honours Dieter
The emotional highlight of this year’s last ACD meeting came when club President Winfried Hartmann handed over a certificate to Dieter Haltmayer of forwarding agent Quick Cargo Service acknowledging his 50-year air cargo club membership. From now on, Dieter is a Member of Honour, no longer required to pay annual contributions.

No changes in cargo responsibilities
Noteworthy was also the first appearance of Jacqueline Casini at the ACD, Lufthansa Cargo’s new Director Communications, who succeeded Michael Goentgens in this position. Asked by CargoForwarder Global three days later about the future of the cargo division of Brussels Airlines after Lufthansa announced the takeover of the Belgian carrier she said that it’s a very early stadium to comment on this.
For the time being things will be left as they are, Jacqueline stated. Therefore, SN Cargo remains being responsible for their own air freight business even if the Eurowings name will be painted on the hull of the carrier’s fleet soon in addition to their own brand.
Practically this means that Lufthansa Cargo will market the lower deck capacity of the existing Eurowings aircraft on all long-haul flights operated by the carrier while Brussels Airlines Cargo continues selling the capacity of the Belgian airline.
It remains to be seen if this model endures in the future.

Heiner Siegmund  /  John Mc Donagh