Cargologic Germany - Hard to Get Off the Ground

It could be interpreted that there are some elements working behind the scenes in order to delay or make sure that Cargologic Germany does not take to the skies in the near future, or even at all.
Here is the project’s current status:

No green light for the AOC yet
Cargologic Germany managers were positive a couple of months ago that the issuance of their Air Operator Certificate (AOC) was only a matter of filing the correct documents and that the AOC would be ready for them to commence operations in February of this year.
However, this has not been the case and it seems that another lengthy delay can be expected before the new German freighter airline with a Russian background, can take to the air.
Normally the AOC issuance should not be a problem considering that Cargologic Germany has their first Boeing 737-400 freighter which is completely airworthy and has the relevant documentation on hand.
So, what else can be behind the delay?

Is Cargologic Germany posing a threat to others?
This question has to be raised now as the process is surely taking too long.
The German civil aviation authorities (LBA), as usual refrain from commenting on this or other AOC applications and Cargologic officials who were issuing positive statements a month or two ago, are remaining relatively quiet.
So, is it a competitive issue whereby others are insisting that the new carrier is a threat to their cargo services.
Hard to believe at the moment considering that Cargologic Germany which has their first aircraft based at Leipzig Airport, with a second B737F to follow pretty soon, has indicated that they will concentrate on moving incoming e-commerce shipments on short and medium haul routes out of Leipzig with a fleet totaling three B737-400Fs.
No, it looks like the situation is as we had indicated some months back when it was made known that Cargologic Germany was being formed.
In other words, a mixture of competition fears and what our colleagues at online portal airliners.de recently correctly brought again to light, the fact that Russian influence in German - Russian aviation rights could become a problem. The carrier is German registered due to the fact that the owners, though both Russian nationals, also have EU citizenship. There is however the fear in some German aviation circles that Russia’s influence in future bilateral discussions could become too one-sided and that Cargologic Germany could grow itself into another German international cargo player running alongside AirBridgeCargo Airlines and thus present a heavy competitive Russian influence, directly or indirectly, in the German air cargo scene.
Would this really be the case?
Some say - no and that Germany needs a reliable start-up air cargo carrier to ensure that e-commerce transport within Europe gets a foothold.
Wait and see.

John Mc Donagh