At Ostend Airport new broker Zeus.Aero hopes to find tailor-made solutions for an ever-increasing demand for time-critical cargo, says Operational Manager Nicolas Janssen.
Zeus.Aero is a subsidiary of The Aviation Factory, based at Antwerp Airport. This company has specialised in business and tour flights and now wants to venture into the cargo market. “Even if we
think we are capable of shipping everything in air freight, we like to focus on emergency consignments,” says Mr Janssen.
“As production plants still swear by the ‘just in time’ principle, they tend to keep their stocks as low as possible and prefer to rely on a constant flow of spare parts for assembly.”
Small aircraft
“We are regularly approached by customers who want us to pick up some spare parts at another producer to be delivered at their own plants, which have had to halt their production lines.
“Deploying a small aircraft enables fast delivery and the company’s services are supported by the fleet of a specific operator who does not want to be named so as not to chase off other brokers.
“We have ATR 72’s, ATR 42F and SAAB 340’s at our disposal,” says Mr Janssen.
OST ideal
Relief consignments is another niche Zeus.Aero wants to enter, together with on-board courier services. For emergency and relief transport Ostend is the ideal airport, Mr Janssen states.
“At other airports like Liege or Brussels you have to queue at the handlers,” he adds. “In OST we are the first in the queue.
Nicolas Janssen knows both the air cargo business and Ostend Airport very well, having worked for handling agent Aviapartner and later for Network Airline Services, the former Ana Aviation, which
swopped OST for LGG six years ago.
Marcel Schoeters in Brussels
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