Dubai based Emirates SkyCargo, the air freight daughter company of Emirates Airlines, has decided to change their cargo handler at Frankfurt Airport by chosing LUG aircargo handling as their new partner. A move which comes as a surprise to many in the FRA cargo scene.
The present marriage lasted 26 years
A surprise move in the sense that Emirates cargo handling has been in the hands of Fraport Cargo Services, now Frankfurt Cargo Services (FCS), for the past 26 years. FCS had even given Emirates
their own dedicated warehouse and office space at Frankfurt’s Cargo City South and there have been no recent rumours there that the Dubai based carrier was planning to change handlers.
CargoForwarder Global has been assured by sources close to the deal that the move to LUG aircargo handling was definitely not a price driven issue. LUG will take over the complete cargo
handling in FRA as from 1. October 2017.
Emirates currently turns over more than 70.000 tonnes of air cargo each year in Frankfurt. The deal will give LUG aircargo handling approximately another 6.000 tonnes per month. Surely a
welcome bonus for LUG’s CEO, Patrik Tschirch and his team after their long standing client Cathay Pacific Cargo was forced to move its air cargo over to the Lufthansa Cargo premises after CX
Cargo and LH Cargo joined forces some months back.
There’s always a reason behind each move
Emirates SkyCargo is not one of those carriers who easily switch handlers, unless they feel that their product image or operational flexibility is at stake.
The carrier operates eight freighters per week out of Frankfurt. Six of these are DXB/FRA/DXB rotations and the remaining two are Frankfurt to Mexico flights. On top of this Emirates Airlines
with their three daily passenger flights to and from Dubai (1 x A380 and 2 x B777) offer the cargo market ample belly capacity on top of that offered on the freighter services.
Frankfurt Cargo Services (FCS), who handled EK, has been busy since the majority share was taken over by Worldwide Flight Services, in expanding their business and have attracted various larger
air freight carriers into their premises. Could it be that Emirates, despite having their own terminal, feel that they are not getting the quality of service they expect or had gotten used
to?
LUG CEO Patrik Tschirch confirms that they will be employing additional staff to handle the increased tonnage and that LUG has ample space in their premises to give EK SkyCargo an optimal service
for the future.
John Mc Donagh
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