Exclusive – DHL, Cargojet up Cologne traffic

Today (07JUL20), flight GB984 of U.S. carrier ABX Air took off at 10:35 CET from Cologne-Bonn Airport, launching a new route from CGN, via EMA, to ORD and back. The four weekly transatlantic flights are conducted on behalf of integrator DHL Express. They evidence a new tendency at DHL to serve important markets faster through decentralized express flights.
Prior to this, Canadian freight airline Cargojet added a second weekly freighter frequency to its existing CGN cargo flights, its general sales agent Skyline Air Services confirms.

Last November, DHL Express inaugurated its brand-new, state-of-the-art logistics center at Cologne-Bonn Airport, located halfway between its major hubs Leipzig-Halle and Brussels. The €123 million, futuristic building, entirely energy autonomous and emissions free, is the result of a tentative, strategic shift aiming at increasingly conducting traffic flows between secondary hubs in order to be closer and faster to local markets versus transports between global hubs followed by the regional distribution of goods.

Closer to markets
Tim Rehkopf, responsible for Deutsche Post /DHL’s (DPDHL) external communication, cites two key considerations in favor of the new, decentralized, intercontinental route: the growing transport volumes, and the direct proximity to the market. “The Chicago-Cologne flights connect us closer to the local markets, leading to shorter delivery times.” He adds to this, that similar operations are an option within DHL’s global network, but there are no specific projects standing on the current agenda. At the same time, Mr. Rehkopf points out that these market-driven, decentralized flights complement DHL’s operations via its global hubs such as Leipzig, Cincinnati, or Hong Kong, and do not deprive these very busy sorting and distribution centers of any volumes.
The ABX Air operated Boeing 767-300 freighters are capable of uplifting 55 tons per flight.

CJT doubles CGN
A few days earlier, the Canadian cargo carrier Cargojet announced that it has doubled its Cologne flights from weekly to twice weekly. As in the case of ABX Air, the Mississauga (Toronto)-based airline operates a B767-300F with a comparable transport capacity as mentioned above. This is their routing:

Toronto-Hamilton - Halifax - Cologne/Bonn - Toronto-Hamilton

Toronto-Hamilton - Cologne/Bonn - St.-John's - Montreal (Mirabel)

According to Managing Director Hassaan Aglan of Cargojet GSA Skyline, volumes are picking up on transatlantic routes between central Europe and Canada again. He points out that part of the exports flown across the North Atlantic are transited to other destinations served by Cargojet, which operates a tightly knit network all across Canada, partly in cooperation with First Air, which covers a vast region in Canada’s Northwest Territories such as Yellowknife, Rankin Inlet or Iqaluit, to name but a few.

Also, transits from Hamilton to Atlanta, Bogota, and Lima, are an option since these destinations are also serviced by Cargojet.

Heiner Siegmund

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