SHORT SHOTS

Air Belgium steps into the cargo business

Leisure carrier Air Belgium, based at Brussels-Charleroi Airport (CRL), intends to operate freighter aircraft, thus introducing an additional business field. Appropriate plans were confirmed by the airline to the media on Saturday (30JAN21) with the first 2 all-cargo aircraft expected to arrive already in MAR21. They will be based at Liège Airport, along with 4 more freighters that are to be added to the fleet by the end of this year. Although it was left open as to which freighter models ABB (ICAO Code) is looking at, much speaks for the Airbus A330F. This particular variant would complement the existing fleet of 4 A340-300 passenger jetliners flying for ABB, but which have been taken out of service until MAR21 due to the pandemic induced lack of travelers.
For Air Belgium CEO, Niky Terzakis, the move resembles a return to his former business as Managing Director of TNT Airways which he left in 2016 when it was taken over by FedEx. The airline and cargo veteran has over 30 years of experience in the freight industry. Coming from the EMS International Post Corporation, he moved to TNT Express, where he was responsible for the carrier’s operational business while organizing TNT’s “Super Hub” project at Liège Airport. Terzakis was also instrumental in TNT's move from Cologne-Bonn to Liège, which took place in 1998, due to unrestricted night flight guarantees at LGG, and generous subsidies paid by the regional Walloon government.

Jettainer provides plug&fly solution for smaller airlines

Lufthansa Cargo’s ULD Management subsidiary, Jettainer, rolled out its “plug&fly” solution on 26JAN21, thus opening up the ULD service solution to smaller and mid-sized airlines. “plug&fly takes the hassle out of ULD management for the customer. By focusing on the core service, it offers customers a quick, easy, and transparent way to realize cost advantages," Jettainer’s Managing Director, Thomas Sonntag, stated. Those cost advantages can be as much as 15% since smaller and mid-sized airlines now also have the opportunity of optimizing their ULD fleet by outsourcing it to Jettainer.
As a global leader in ULD management, Jettainer already steers around 100,000 ULDs in 500 international destinations, taking responsibility not just for the placing of the ULDs, but also their repair and maintenance, all the way through to providing inhouse controllers if customers request this. Recognizing a market niche for smaller airlines with ULD fleets of less than 2,000 units that would benefit from a less comprehensive service solution, Jettainer came up with “plug&fly”. This industry-first is a basic version of its full-service package and offers a fixed price solution based on the number of units in the fleet. “plug&fly” allows for seamless, quick implementation, so that airlines can begin optimizing their fleets right away using Jettainer’s integrated IT solution which builds on artificial intelligence and ensures real-time ULD availability and inventories. Thus, smaller airlines no longer require complex, costly, and less efficient inhouse IT to coordinate their fleets. Whilst the ULDs remain their property, by outsourcing their fleet management, they benefit from the flexibility that Jettainer’s large network provides.  

“Big carriers are not the only ones who get to enjoy optimized ULD fleets and the smart global management services provided by Jettainer’s industry experts. Many other airlines with fleets of up to 2,000 ULDs can now reap the rewards too. To arrive at this destination, we had to take a separate, more streamlined approach that we are now rolling out with plug&fly,” Sonntag explained.

Rock-it Global harmonizes brands

Rock-it Cargo USA subsidiaries Rock-it Cargo (founded 1978 in Los Angeles, USA to service all kinds of live entertainment and touring events in the arts, music, sports, broadcasting industries as well as humanitarian relief, across air, sea, and road logistics) and Sound Moves (founded 1996, specialized in international freight forwarding of live event and music touring cargo, with branches in the United States and Europe) will be singing in one voice soon, given the decision to fusion the two into “Rock-it Global”. Over the course of the first quarter of 2021, the offices and vendor networks will merge, though throughout the process, Rock-it Global will focus on continued smooth operations, as Rock-it Cargo CEO & President Paul Martins underlined: “Same people, same phone numbers, same email addresses, same great experiences, it makes sense. When you've got the best operators in the world functioning in two different silos, you need to bring that power together to create an unbeatable organization that can provide tailored solutions for critical projects anywhere in the world, delivering for our customers the ultimate peace of mind.” The new company logo, website and management team will be unveiled in late Spring.

The final decision for the merger came about during the pandemic, David Bernstein, Non-Executive Chairman of the Board of Rock-it Cargo Holdings, explained: “We've reorganized Rock-it in a way that we believe will provide for the best customer experience and expertise available in global entertainment logistics. The time our people have been off the road has allowed us to internally assess our strengths and ask how we could be stronger and more prepared when our clients signaled it would be time to get back out. This move positions us for what lies ahead.” Paul Martin added: “We devoted significant time and effort to bring this to fruition. I'm also extremely pleased that Duane Wood, founder and CEO of Sound Moves is joining the Executive Team as Chief Strategy Officer. His experience leading Sound Moves will be a remarkable asset to the new combined company as well as the entire group of companies under our umbrella.”

Silk Way West Airlines expands Japan service

From 11FEB21, Silk Way West Airlines (established 2012) will begin a twice-weekly service between Baku’s Heydar Aliyev International Airport, Azerbaijan and Tokyo Narita Airport, Japan, following a code-share agreement it signed with Nippon Cargo Airlines last week. Though Silk Way West Airlines already has weekly Japanese services running to Osaka Kansai airport since 2018, this latest partnership is the first time that the heart of the Silk Road is connected directly to Japan’s main international air cargo gateway. President of the Silk Way Group, Mr. Zaur Akhundov announced: “We are delighted that the new air bridge will connect our two capital cities directly for the first time in our history, and that the geographic reach of our regular flight network continues to expand and now fully covers North Asia. At the same time, we are constantly improving the air transportation infrastructure at Baku airport in order to meet the global demand for cargo services, and I can say with confidence that we are fully ready to handle any cargo, including temperature-sensitive goods.”

“The opening of this new route comes further to many years of cooperation with several partners in the region and in this regard, I would like to recognize the valuable contribution of Silk Way Group Executive Advisor Mr. Katsutoshi Tanaka, and Regional Director of Silk Way West Airlines in Japan Mr. Emre Mercan, thanks to whose combined efforts an agreement was signed between Silk Way West Airlines and Nippon Cargo Airlines. The signing of this agreement opens a new page in the history of relations between Silk Way West Airlines and our Japanese partners”, Silk Way West Airlines President Mr. Wolfgang Meier emphasized.

CargoAi’s Board is now complete with new CCO

CargoAi announced last week that Magali Beauregard would be joining the 2019-founded, fast-growing air cargo digital booking platform from 01FEB21 as its Chief Customer Officer. Her nomination completes the Board, which now consists of Matthieu Petot, Chief Executive Officer, Mathilde de Rocquigny, Chief Commercial Officer, Elena Volkova, Chief Product Officer, François-Xavier Gsell, Chief Technology Officer, and Magali Beauregard, Chief Customer Officer.

Magali Beauregard joins Singapore-based CargoAi over from Lufthansa Cargo, where she worked as the Head of Commercial Asia Pacific in its Singapore office, and prior her almost 6 years with Lufthansa Cargo, held the position of Senior Account Manager at Booking.com’s Singapore office. She thus brings experience both in digital booking platforms and in air cargo, as Matthieu Petot explains: “To head the customer department at CargoAi, we needed someone who had a highly pragmatic vision of customer needs. With the combination of her experience of SAAS platforms and her total understanding of air cargo, Magali fits the bill perfectly. A real achiever who has genuine passion for the industry, we couldn't hope for anyone better placed to design the best-in-class customer-based product and customer journey we need.”

Magali Beauregard outlines her fascination for the new platform: “CargoAi has very quickly established itself as a major player in the digitalization of the air cargo industry thanks to its unique approach. The customer experience is central at CargoAi, allowing us to improve digital solutions designed for airlines, freight forwarders and GSAs. I can't wait to join this talented team and to help develop the best solutions for our clients.”

PayCargo’s e-vangelical addition to the Board

“Michael has been described by many as the 'e'vangelist for the movement to move to full electronic documents in air transport. He shares PayCargo's digital vision, and will bring invaluable experience to our Board,” Eduardo Del Riego, Global Chief Executive Officer of PayCargo, explains the “e” in “evangelical”. “We continue to strengthen our management team as we look to further growth and development over the coming months.” Michael White is the latest addition to PayCargo’s Board, which welcomed two new Vice Presidents, Marta E Ramirez, and Ken Nieze, in DEC20. Having been accorded USD35 million from global venture capital and private equity firm Insight Partners to expand the global adoption of its electronic payments network and accelerate investments in its market-leading technology, PayCargo’s latest Board member brings not only a focus on digitization, but also security in air cargo, and looks back on a varied career spanning four decades, across aviation, logistics, and government positions and committees. His 25 years in air cargo include posts at Frontier Airlines, United Airlines, Cargo Service Center, the Air Transport Association, SkyLink USA, Cargo Network Services, and most recently as the Founder and President of Trade Network Consultants LLC.

Michael White’s statement on being appointed to the PayCargo Board: “I am looking forward to being a board member of PayCargo, a company that has improved the efficiencies of companies in the logistics sector. During the past few years there has been a move towards digital solutions by the transport industry and PayCargo is a leader in interfacing digital financial capabilities that are needed by many companies. My goal as a member of the board is to bring my 40+ years' experience in aviation, logistics and government to help guide the company to be able to expand and look for other opportunities in the future.”