Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) has reduced the amount of plastic languishing in a landfill by the equivalent of 68 million plastic water bottles in just 12 months after converting to using BioNatur Plastic™ biodegradable stretch wrap for cargo shipments as part of its sustainability program.
Regular plastic can take 1,000 years to biodegrade in a landfill. BioNatur Plastic™ biodegradable plastics will biodegrade under landfill conditions in only 5 to 10 years (most recent testing shows LDPE stretch wrap 22.8% biodegraded in 387 days). In WFS’ case, in the past year, it has reduced the amount of standard non-biodegradable plastic going to landfill by 616,885kg.
“WFS was excited to partner with M&G Packaging and be the first major consumer of these biodegradable plastics,” said Stephanie Peacock, Worldwide Flight Services’ Director of Sourcing & Supply in North America. “With the state of the plastic recycling market over the last few years, we were desperately looking for a sustainable alternative to sending tons of plastic to a landfill. We are greatly encouraged by the results we have seen in just 12 months and to have found a truly biodegradable option that performs so well.”
WFS converted the majority of the plastic used in its North America cargo handling business over to the BioNatur Plastics™ line of sustainable products launched by M&G Packaging. BioNatur Plastic™ is a growing line of biodegradable plastic products manufactured with a 1% load of an organic, food-safe proprietary additive that allows anaerobic bacteria to digest the plastic in a landfill. Outside of a landfill the plastic has an indefinite shelf life and performs exactly like traditional plastic products.
Charles Rick, President of M&G Packaging, commented, “We’re proud to be supporting WFS’ sustainability goals and appreciate its leadership and commitment on this initiative to reduce the long-term environmental impact of plastic waste. M&G Packaging has always been a leader in developing sustainable products for the cargo industry and will continue to be a pioneer for such a worthy cause.”
PARIS: Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) has launched a new uniform for over 13,000 of its cargo and ground handling employees in its North America and Europe, the Middle East, Africa & Asia (EMEAA) operations.
The roll-out of some 125,000 pieces of uniform began in September and will be completed in 2022 for staff working in cargo handling, ramp handling, passenger services and baggage handling across WFS’ network of 170 major airport stations in 20 countries.
WFS provides cargo and ground handling services to more than 270 airlines worldwide.
“First impressions count and in a market that’s more competitive than ever, it’s important to demonstrate a corporate image which is consistent with the brand quality of our airline customers across the globe. Very often, a WFS team member is the first point of contact for our customers’ customers,” said Barry D. Nassberg, Group Chief Commercial Officer at WFS.
“As well as ensuring our quality of service delivers the very best customer experience, we want our teams around the world to look professional by wearing a uniform which proudly displays the WFS identity and is perfectly suited to each working environment across our portfolio of handling services. We hope our clients will like our new look and our staff will wear their new uniforms with pride,” he added.
After completing a full audit of its existing uniform provision in all 20 countries, WFS consulted with several suppliers and considered a series of design options before selecting its uniform provider. The new uniform is based on the distinctive blue and red of WFS’ corporate identity.
DUBAI: The Boeing Company [NYSE:BA] has appointed Kuljit Ghata-Aura as the new president of Boeing Middle East, Turkey and Africa (META), excluding the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, effective September 30, 2021.
Ghata-Aura who is returning to the Middle East, Turkey and Africa region, will be based in Dubai. He will be responsible for leading all company-wide activities and developing and implementing strategies for a region that is home to some of Boeing’s largest commercial, defense and services customers.
Ghata-Aura, who previously served as the regional counsel for Boeing India, Middle East, Turkey and Africa for almost six years, will oversee the company’s new business and industrial partnership opportunities, safety and sustainability efforts, government affairs, corporate citizenship, and expand Boeing’s presence and strengthen the company’s relationships with customers and other stakeholders in the region.
He succeeds Bernie Dunn, who is leaving Boeing after more than nine years with the company in the region.
“It gives me great pleasure to announce the appointment of Kuljit Ghata-Aura as the new president of Boeing Middle East, Turkey and Africa (META). Kuljit brings a wealth of experience to the role from many of Boeing’s most important markets and businesses, including the Middle East, Turkey and Africa region where he has spent considerable time. I look forward to working with Kuljit to drive further growth in the region,” said Sir Michael Arthur, president, Boeing International. “We thank Bernie for his great contribution to the growth of Boeing’s presence in the META region over the last seven years and wish him well for the future.”
Boeing’s presence in the Middle East, Turkey and Africa goes back several decades. Boeing has offices in the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, South Africa, Egypt, Kuwait and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The company also has several industrial and academic partnerships in the region. Today, the region is one of the world’s fastest growing commercial airplane markets, and its defense needs are rapidly expanding.
“I am delighted to return to the Middle East, Turkey and Africa region in this significant leadership role and rejoin my colleagues as we continue to focus on partnering with all stakeholders in one of the fastest-growing and important markets for the company. Boeing has a strong presence in the region and there continue to be unique opportunities in META. We are, and continue to be committed to working closely with the civil aviation and defense authorities and our customers to help achieve the region’s aerospace ambitions and objectives,” said Ghata-Aura.
Ghata-Aura joined Boeing in 2010 and has held several leadership roles for the company in Europe, Russia, Israel, India and the META region. In addition to being the regional counsel for Boeing India, Middle East, Turkey and Africa for almost six years, Ghata-Aura also held the role of Director of Market Development for UAE from 2015-16. Prior to joining Boeing, Ghata-Aura was a partner at a large international firm practicing cross border M&A. He is a graduate of Oxford University.
PARIS: ECS Group, the global leader in GSSA business, has named its CEO, Adrien Thominet, as the new Executive Chairman, succeeding Bertrand Schmoll from 01 August 2021.
Thominet has been with ECS Group for more than 25 years, becoming its COO in 2011 and CEO in 2017. Over the past four years, the Group has seen enormous development, both in network and client base growth, including, innovation and technology.
The world’s largest integrated GSSA which is driven by its credo to be “more than a GSSA”, has worked to disrupt and reinvent the traditional GSA concept, and to future-proof the ECS Group service portfolio. In this regard, it offers airline customers a Total Cargo Management (TCM) concept, alongside a wide range of “à la carte” services and abilities.
By investing heavily on digitalization, successfully introducing and adapting a range of in-house business intelligence and training platform tools, ECS Group ensures complete alignment with the evolving needs of its airline customers. It has proven to be a valuable air cargo logistics partner not simply in its operational expertise, but also as a forward-thinking industry consultant.
Today, it represents over 150 quality airlines of all sizes across the globe, and provides capacity support to around 10,000 freight forwarders. The Group has seen exponential development on all continents, and now numbers more than 1,200 employees across 167 subsidiaries in 50 countries within APAC, Europe, North America, and Latin America. In 2020, it transported a record 1,1 million tons of cargo.
“I am honored to have been appointed Executive Chairman,” said Thominet, the new ECS Group Executive Chairman. “Given the disruption and challenges the aviation industry has recently faced with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is an acute need for flexible, resource-efficient, expert business management solutions. This is precisely the kind of support that ECS Group strives to provide.”
“Today, more than ever, the air cargo industry is at a crossroads, and our ambition as the leading worldwide GSSA, is to provide the optimum support to our customers in this changing environment. We are therefore committed to continuously improving and developing innovative, sustainable, high value-added solutions and services to best serve them,” he added.
ECS Group’s intense digital, commercial, administrative, and organizational transformations over the past few years have culminated in a revised and enhanced product offering, along with an increased focus on sustainability going forward.
“We will soon be publishing the results of our revised commercial direction with the launch of our Augmented GSA concept in the coming weeks,” the ECS Chairman noted.
LUXEMBOURG: Cargolux, Europe’s leading cargo airline, provided free transport for donated oxygen concentrators from Los Angeles, where they are manufactured, to Singapore, en route to Indonesia’s capital Jakarta as the country battles its worst COVID-19 cases.
The oxygen concentrators were donated by the Singapore Changi Airport community where Cargolux is an active member.
As a company committed to Corporate Social Responsibility principles, Cargolux said it is pleased to leverage its expertise and play its part in such initiatives.
“Cargolux and Changi airport have a long-standing relationship based on shared values. We are proud to be part of the Singapore Changi community and contribute to transporting vital medical appliances to the people of Indonesia. Singapore and Jakarta are key destinations in the Cargolux network and we are committed to supporting the communities we operate into,” said Richard Forson, Cargolux President & CEO.
Strongly committed to being a responsible global corporate citizen, the airline has been actively engaged in the fight against COVID-19. Since the outbreak of the pandemic, Cargolux has played a crucial role in keeping the supply chain moving, delivering essential supplies where they are most needed.
ADDIS ABABA: Africa’s leading aviation group, Ethiopian Airlines Group has teamed up with the Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) to establish a B767 passenger to freighter Cargo Conversion Center with the airline mulling to convert more commercial passenger planes into “preighters” to meet increasing air cargo demand in continent and other markets.
Ethiopian has so far temporarily converted at least 25 of its passenger planes into freighters since the Coronavirus pandemic began.
Ethiopian Airlines Group Chief Executive Officer Tewolde GebreMariam said the conversion center will be built inside the airline’s MRO facilities at Addis Ababa International Airport. IAI will begin its business converting three of Ethiopian’s B767-300 passenger aircraft into freighters.
‘’In line with our Diversified Aviation Business Model of Vision 2025, we have been increasing our
cargo capacity in fleet, ground service infrastructure and cargo connectivity network. Accordingly, we are partnering with IAI, one of the global technology leaders in the Aerospace industry, in building a cargo conversion center in our MRO facilities in Addis Ababa Airport,” said GebreMariam.
“The Cargo Conversion Center in Addis Ababa airport will expand its services to all airlines in Africa and the wider region. We are very happy that we are able to collaborate with IAI to enable us to expand our cargo and logistics services which is already the largest and leading cargo network in Africa. The capacity building will also help us expand our MRO services with cutting edge technology and knowledge transfer,” he added.
Yossi Melamed, IAI’s Executive VP and General Manager of Aviation Group, the company is delighted to work with Ethiopian and pledged to work side-by-side with the airline to meet its increasing cargo business.
“We are witnessing a sharp rise in the demand for cargo aircraft as a result of the rise in e-
commerce, which has peaked to record levels during the COVID-19 pandemic. IAI has an excellent
reputation as a conversion center of passenger-to-freighters aircraft, and we are constantly
receiving requests to open such conversion centers in more and more locations around the world,” said Melamed.
“The conversion line in Ethiopia will join existing conversion sites IAI operates at its campus in Ben Gurion International Airport and in Mexico. It is to be recalled that Ethiopian MRO, with its internal capacity, temporarily converted 25 of its passenger aircraft to freighter to boost its cargo capacity as demand to transport emergency medical supplies soared,” he added.
Ethiopian serves more than 130 international passenger and cargo destinations across five continents. Its fleet includes ultra-modern Airbus A350, Boeing 787-8, Boeing 787-9, Boeing 777-300ER, Boeing 777-200LR, Boeing 777-200 Freighter and Bombardier Q-400 double cabin with an average fleet age of five years.
RIYADH: The International Air Transport Association (IATA) says it welcomes the commitment of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to further reopen borders and resume international air connectivity.
Saudi Arabia has taken measures to ease travel restrictions to the Kingdom and enhance passenger facilitation with the necessary health protocols to manage the COVID-19 pandemic, by:
“We welcome the recent steps taken by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to restore air travel and enhance the passenger experience during a challenging time for aviation. Saudi Arabia recognizes aviation as a catalyst for economic growth and modernization, and we are pleased to see the Kingdom’s continued prioritization of aviation as a key to achieving Vision 2030. After more than one year of border closures, the kick-off of the National Aviation Strategy will bring to life plans to triple the number of passengers to the Kingdom and fly to 250 destinations,” said Kamil Al Awadhi, IATA’s Regional Vice President for Africa and Middle East.
In 2019, a total 977,000 jobs and SAR240bn of GDP were supported by aviation in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The crisis has put 361,000 of those jobs and SAR85bn at risk. Restoring connectivity is key to speeding up the recovery of Saudi Arabia’s international market as passenger demand is not expected to return to 2019 levels before 2024.
“Prior to the pandemic, Saudi Arabia was one of the most connected countries regionally and internationally in the Middle East. The impact of the crisis has been significant, with a 96% fall in connectivity compared to before the pandemic. The recent measures to open borders and ease travel restrictions are essential to restoring Saudi Arabia’s connectivity as well as realizing the Kingdom’s Vision 2030,” continued Al Awadhi.
“We continue to call on governments, including the government of Saudi Arabia, to remove all travel barriers to help restore demand and revive the travel and tourism sectors that countries greatly depend on for their economies,” he concluded.
BRUSSELS: The international freight transport organizations of the Cargo Integrity Group are calling for urgent action from actors in global supply chains to reduce the risk of pest transference through international cargo movements.
The five partners in the Cargo Integrity Group, known as CIG, recognize the vital importance of focusing on the threat of invasive pests to natural resources across the world, and of the urgency in crafting risk reduction measures that address the situation.
This call to action follows the intentions by pest control experts under the auspices of the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC), to take all-encompassing, internationally imposed steps to mitigate such risks. One measure under serious consideration is the mandatory certification of cleanliness for all containers prior to loading on board a ship, a measure that would have significant impact on global trade when it comes to both time and cost.
Lars Kjaer, Senior Vice President of the World Shipping Council (WSC), explains the CIG partners concerns around these very broad proposals: “We know that more serious risks occur among certain types of goods and from identified regions. The CIG recommendation centers on the need to provide proper risk assessments in defined trades and focus mandatory measures on these high-risk areas and cargoes.”
The partners in CIG are committed to ensuring that international trade is conducted in a safe, secure, and environmentally sustainable manner. They rigorously promote the use of the ‘Code of Practice for the Packing of Cargo Transport Units’ published by the IMO, the UNECE and the ILO (the CTU Code).
The serious issue of the transfer of invasive pests between different natural ecosystems is very much a part of this commitment. It is also crucial that the development of any such controls is undertaken in full consultation with other appropriate bodies, in particular the international agencies responsible for the governance of world trade and for the regulation of different modes of transport, as well as supply chain stakeholders and industry practitioners.
“There are identified risk areas and cargoes which must be addressed, and the CIG partners look forward to contributing essential industry expertise to the work of the IPPC to ensure an effective and efficient set of recommendations and best practices to stop the transfer of invasive species,” concludes James Hookham, Secretary General of Global Shippers Forum.
DOHA: Qatar Airways Cargo has extended its cool chain industry partnerships by joining Cool Chain Association (CCA), a non-profit organization, effective 28 July 2021. Founded in 2003, the association aims to reduce food wastage and improve the quality, efficiency and value of the temperature sensitive supply chain by facilitating and enabling vertical and horizontal collaboration, education and innovation amongst its members and stakeholders.
Guillaume Halleux, Chief Officer Cargo at Qatar Airways said, “Through our membership with Cool Chain Association, we look forward to collaborating with its members, and contributing to CCA’s vision of improving quality of temperature-sensitive products, increasing sustainability and reducing waste, thereby also contributing to the health of the planet, which aligns with our sustainability programme WeQare.”
“CCA members are focused on developing tangible programmes and backing projects which help reduce food waste and ensure that life-saving pharma consignments safely reach their destination and this has never been more relevant than now,” said Stavros Engelakakis, Chairman, CCA.
“We are pleased that the cargo carrier’s Senior Manager of Climate Control Products, Miguel Rodriguez Moreno is joining the board, Qatar Airways Cargo’s shared commitment to our goals and its vision for WeQare combined with Miguel’s wealth of experience in the cool chain supply chain makes him the perfect addition to our association.”
Qatar Airways Cargo will join CCA and its members to deliver contributions in improving the cool chain and sustainable transport of temperature-sensitive pharmaceutical and perishable cargo. Such concrete contributions like the CCA Technical Committee, that oversees and assists in projects addressing critical points affecting product quality along the cool chain, as well as developing standards and initiating projects will indirectly reduce global hunger and contribute to overall health of people and the planet. Through the membership, the airline will also participate in Cool Chain Association’s board meetings and focus groups to contribute its expertise.
The carrier has established innovative solutions for the air freight of pharmaceuticals and perishables. It has also invested considerably in quality handling, infrastructure, digitalisation, facilities, people and procedures at each of its destinations, including the Doha hub, adhering to high operating standards for transporting all temperature-controlled products.
GENEVA: Global air cargo demand, measured in cargo ton-kilometers (CTKs), was up 9.4% compared to May 2019, indicating continued strong growth in the industry, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
Seasonally adjusted demand rose by 0.4% month-on-month in May, the 13th consecutive month of improvement. The pace of growth slowed slightly in May compared to April which saw demand increase 11.3% against pre-COVID-19 levels (April 2019). Notwithstanding, air cargo outperformed global goods trade for the fifth consecutive month.
North American carriers contributed 4.6 percentage points to the 9.4% growth rate in May. Airlines in all other regions except for Latin America also supported the growth, IATA said.
Capacity remains constrained at 9.7% below pre-COVID-19 levels (May 2019) due to the ongoing grounding of passenger aircraft. Seasonally adjusted capacity rose 0.8% month-on-month in May, the fourth consecutive month of improvement indicating that the capacity crunch is slowly unwinding.
Underlying economic conditions and favourable supply chain dynamics remain supportive for air cargo:
Global trade rose 0.5% in April; The Purchasing Managers Indices (PMIs) – leading indicators of air cargo demand – show that business confidence, manufacturing output and new export orders are growing at a rapid pace in most economies.
The cost-competitiveness of air cargo relative to that of container shipping has improved. Pre-crisis, the average price of air cargo was 12 times more expensive than sea shipping. In May 2021 it was six time more expensive.
“Propelled by strong economic growth in trade and manufacturing, demand for air cargo is 9.4% above pre-crisis levels. As economies unlock, we can expect a shift in consumption from goods to services. This could slow growth for cargo in general, but improved competitiveness compared to sea shipping should continue to make air cargo a bright spot for airlines while passenger demand struggles with continued border closures and travel restrictions,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General.
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