Cargo News

Etihad delivery of first Airbus A330-200 Freighter marks record month

Etihad Airways has taken delivery of its first Airbus A330-200 freighter aircraft.

Etihad is the launch customer for the freighter which made its maiden flight from Airbus in Toulouse to the airline’s base in Abu Dhabi on Monday evening, 9th August.

The freighter will boost the airline’s expanding fleet of cargo aircraft and arrives at a time when cargo volumes are at their highest for Etihad.

Etihad Crystal Cargo carried a record tonnage in July of more than 23,000 tonnes. More than 30,000 shipments were carried during the month, driven by increased volumes from Pakistan, Australia, China and Bangladesh. The United Arab Emirates was the top cargo destination.

In the year to date Etihad Crystal Cargo has experienced a 21 per cent growth in tonnage and a 30 per cent growth in yield. Overall cargo revenue has grown by 57 per cent since this time last year.

James Hogan, Etihad Airways’ Chief Executive Officer, said: “The arrival of our new A330-200 freighter marks a new era in Etihad’s cargo services and will support Etihad’s goal to expand that side of the business further.”

“The aircraft will bring us more payloads, at a reduced operating cost, and will offer us better connectivity in our flight network, with greater transfer flows.”

The Airbus A330-200 freighter aircraft can carry up to 64 metric tonnes of cargo and can fly up to 7,400 kilometres non-stop. It will allow Etihad Crystal Cargo to increase frequencies and build its presence in the high-growth European and Asian freight markets.

Etihad Crystal Cargo will take delivery of a second Airbus A330-200 freighter in October 2010 and the two Airbus A330-200s will join the two leased MD-11 freighters and two leased A300 leased freighters.

Air Transport Services Group purchase three Boeing 767-300 aircraft

Air Transport Services Group has said this week that its Cargo Aircraft Management (CAM) subsidiary has committed to purchase three Boeing 767-300 series extended-range aircraft from Qantas Airways and anticipates to take delivery in the third quarter. Read more

Korean Air - Number one Global Cargo Airline six years in a row

New IATA statistics have shown that Korean Air maintained and improved top traffic records in 2009 despite the global challenges that have been affecting the industry.

According to World Air Transport Statistics compiled by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Korean Air topped the global rankings for commercial airline cargo operations for the sixth consecutive year securing first place, and also ranked the 13th for commercial airline international passenger operations in 2009.

During 2009, Korean Air recorded 8.225 billion FTK (Freight Tonne-Kilometres), topping the chart for International Scheduled Freight Tonne-Kilometres, followed by Cathay Pacific (7.722 billion FTK) and Lufthansa (6.660 billion FTK). Korean Air attained the number one spot for the first time in 2004 and has consistently been one of the world’s top three freight carriers since 1993.

For passenger operations, Korean Air was ranked 13th in the chart of International Scheduled Passenger-Kilometres by recording 52.086 billion RPK (Revenue Passenger-Kilometres) in 2009, from 17th (51.321 billion RPK) in 2008.

The airline has achieved the top result for the last six years in a number of ways. New market developments and excellent service management are two of the key drivers. Eying high-potential growth in the Central Asia market, Korean Air has been developing the Navoi International Airport, positioning the airport as a logistics hub for Central Asia and expanding its global cargo network. For more prompt and efficient operations, Korean Air has operated its freighter fleet of mainly B747-400F aircraft, and continued to boost customer satisfaction through rigid quality control.

In order to enhance its global competency in passenger operations, Korean Air has continued to pursue change and innovation by expanding its global network, securing increasing transit demand and upgrading in-flight facilities. By 2014, Korean Air will have a fleet of more than 100 premium aircraft equipped with state-of-the-art new seats serving its mid and long-haul route, including environmentally- friendly next generation aircraft such as 10 Airbus A380s and 10 Boeing Dreamliner 787 aircraft.

Boeing 747-8 emerges from paint hangar in new Cargolux livery

The first Boeing 747-8 Freighter painted in customer livery emerged today from the Boeing paint hangar in Everett, Washington. The airplane sports an updated livery for launch customer Cargolux. The Luxembourg-based cargo operator has a total of 13 Boeing 747-8 Freighters on order.

Boeing delivered the last Cargolux 747-400 Freighter with a unique transition paint scheme featuring fading stripes. The new livery on Cargolux’s 747-8 Freighter is an evolution from the current design and marks the start into a new era for the company.

“The design stands for continuity and commitment while confirming the fundamental principles that made Cargolux successful. The red, white and blue stripes symbolize the company’s roots in Luxembourg, its hub and home base,” said Ulrich Ogiermann, chief executive officer of Cargolux.

The new livery features a distinctive new red tail and an additional logo on the belly further promotes the brand.

Boeing will deliver the first 747-8 Freighter to launch customer Cargolux in the fourth quarter of this year.

Qatar Airways new B777 Freighter goes into operation

Qatar Airways has begun cargo operations using its brand new Boeing B777 Freighter, with the plane’s first flight departing from Doha for Amsterdam early Tuesday morning.

The new cargo freighter was delivered to the airline’s hub at Doha International Airport over the weekend following a non-stop flight from Boeing Everett factory in Seattle, Washington.

The B777F is the latest addition to the Qatar Airways fleet, now numbering 83 aircraft, and adds significant capacity to the airline’s burgeoning freighter network.

The new aircraft has a payload capacity of 102 metric tons, almost double the capability of the airline’s Airbus A300-600 freighters.

Over the coming weeks, the new freighter is set to operate to several of Qatar Airways Cargo’s dedicated freighter network points, including Amsterdam, Lahore, Dubai, Karachi, Chennai, Sialkot, Frankfurt, Amman and, from 1 June three weekly freighter services to Hong Kong.

Beyond, the new Boeing freighter will be used primarily on long haul routes connecting East and West transportation lanes, extending from Hong Kong in the Far East to the United States in the West.

Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker said the delivery of the new freighter signalled a dramatic shift in the airline’s cargo business.

“The capacity of the Boeing freighters is unrivalled and the plane’s economics make it an attractive addition to the Qatar Airways’ fleet.”

“It’s an opportune time to be introducing more cargo capacity to our fleet as the State of Qatar is growing at a phenomenal pace, as are other parts of the Gulf region, and we are primed to take advantage of this growth.”   

“With a total of three new triple seven freighters joining the fleet in a little over 12 months, the airline’s dedicated cargo capacity will effectively quadruple in size,” said Al Baker. 

The Boeing freighter has the longest range of any twin-engined freighter, and is based around the B777-200 Long Range aircraft of which Qatar Airways has six in its passenger fleet operating the airline’s ultra long-haul routes to Houston, Melbourne, and from June 24 Sao Paulo and Buenos Aires.

Al Baker added that the cargo facilities at New Doha International Airport will further cement the airline’s position as a key player in the region. The new airport is scheduled to be operational from the end of 2011.

“Qatar Airways is looking forward to capitalising on the growth in the region and subsequent demand for quick, efficient transportation of goods.

“The state of the art facilities at New Doha International Airport will further complement Qatar Airways’ cargo fleet growth as we develop our world class transportation hub.”

Qatar Airways has 16 Boeing B777 aircraft in its passenger fleet with the delivery schedule for the full order of 32 B777s, including a total of three freighters, to be completed by the end of summer 2011.

In addition, Qatar Airways currently operates a modern fleet of 83 aircraft to 89 diverse cities across Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific and North America. The airline has over 200 aircraft pending delivery with the orders worth more than US$40 billion.

*Images courtesy of Boeing

Abu Dhabi Airport is ACN's "World's Best Cargo Airport 2010"

Abu Dhabi International Airport received the international accolade of “Best Cargo Airport 2010” at an award ceremony in London last night, as part of the 27^th annual ‘Air Cargo News Awards’.

Using the latest independent data from Airport Council International (ACI) for 2009, Abu Dhabi International Airport was judged to be the world’s “Best Cargo Airport of the Year”, as it outpaced in growth all the other large cargo (over 300,000 metric tons category) airports across the globe.

Huraiz Al Murr Bin Huraiz, Chief Commercial Officer at (ADAC), the operator of Abu Dhabi International, said: “Abu Dhabi International Airport is rapidly becoming a recognised international hub for both passenger and cargo carriers. It is, therefore, an honor to have been recognised for the efforts ADAC is making in supporting the growth of our existing and prospective partner airlines in the cargo and freight industry.”

Saif M. Al Mazrouei, Chairman’s Office Manager at ADAC receives the “Best Cargo Airport Award 2010”

As one of the leading commentators on the industry, Air Cargo News has been running the “Cargo Airline of the Year” Award for the past 26 years. Introduced in 2003, the “Cargo Airport of the Year” award was, for the first time this year, split in to two categories – the “Over 300,000 metric tons” and “Below 300,000 metric tons”. Abu Dhabi International Airport was the inaugural winner in the ‘Over 300,000 Tons’ category.

On that note, Abu Dhabi airport company has won few other awards this year including the latest Skytrax Award in which Abu Dhabi International Airport was named the “Most Improved Airport 2009-2010” Moving it up from number 47 of last year to become the world’s 26^th airport.

Lufthansa first‑quarter loss but Lufthansa Cargo benefits from increase in demand

The Lufthansa Group has posted an operating loss of 330 million euros for the first three months of 2010; the figure is 286 million euros less than during the same period the previous year. After a crisis-related decline in demand in 2009, combined with a major slump in prices, the Passenger Airline Group and Logistics business segment were able to significantly improve traffic performance in the traditionally weak first quarter.

However, the slump in prices continues to place a burden on the result of the Passenger Airline Group. An extreme winter, as well as the strike and the threat of further industrial action by the pilots’ union, Vereinigung Cockpit, led to additional revenue losses and follow-up costs. Lufthansa Group posted a net loss of 298 million euros for the first quarter of 2010; the figure had stood at -267 million euros for the same period a year earlier.

Speaking at the presentation of the quarterly figures, Lufthansa Executive Board member and CFO Stephan Gemkow commented: “A recovery in demand is not enough to secure a good result, cost efficiency and increasing revenues even further are also absolute musts. We have laid the foundations in all business segments and introduced the corresponding measures to safeguard earnings. We remain convinced that Lufthansa shall emerge from the crisis a stronger Group.”

The Passenger Airline Group business segment witnessed an increasing rise in traffic revenues during the first three months of the year. However, due to crisis-related lower prices, an extreme winter and the pilots union’s strike at Lufthansa and Germanwings in February, the Passenger Airline Group recorded a heavy operating loss of 373 million euros. Lufthansa Passenger Airlines contributed a loss of 236 million euros to the negative operating result, Austrian Airlines contributed -66 million euros, bmi -45 million euros, Germanwings -34 million euros and also included was a contribution of one million euros from SWISS. All of the airlines in the Passenger Airline Group continue to implement measures to safeguard earnings in an attempt to adjust to the structural changes in the market.

The Logistics business segment recorded a significant rise in revenue during the first three months of the year and posted an operating profit of 35 million euros thanks to increased sales, higher prices and strict cost management. Cost reduction measures continue to be applied; however, in view of the positive economic development in this business segment, the reduced working hours programmes have now been terminated at the German locations. Lufthansa MRO however recorded a decline in revenue for the first quarter. However, due to record date valuation changes in the previous year’s result and the positive effects of measures to safeguard earnings, it still managed to post a higher operating result of 71 million euros. The highly challenging economic conditions also led to a decline in revenue in the IT Services business segment. However, at three million euros, the operating result was a positive one and even an improvement on the previous year’s figure. The Catering business segment recorded a decline in demand and posted an operating loss of two million euros. Adjusted after the non‑recurring effect of a court settlement concluded after arbitration proceedings, which had a positive effect on the previous year’s result, the operating result for the quarter represented an improvement in comparison to the previous year.

Gemkow commented on the results of the individual business segments for the first quarter saying: “In terms of improving efficiency, all the business segments have now already achieved a lot and that is a strong performance by all of the employees; but we want to achieve even more here. With the second best first-quarter operating result in its history, Lufthansa Cargo in particular, has proven that strict cost management and global alignment do pay off.” Gemkow was optimistic for the current business year saying: “The Executive Board of the Lufthansa expect a rise in revenue and a positive operating result for the Group.”

He added that the development of the business year to date had further strengthened its expectations of achieving a positive operating result higher than the previous year’s. However, the condition for this would be that flight operations and operational developments in the other business segments are not disrupted by a repeated or prolonged regulatory ban on flights. He also identified additional risks in possible further industrial action, the development of the oil price and the consolidation of bmi and Austrian Airlines, which will continue to burden the result during the current business year.

First-quarter figures 2010

During the first three months of 2010, the Lufthansa Group generated revenues totalling 5.8 billion euros, equivalent to a year-on-year increase of 14.8 per cent. The traffic revenue rose by 20 per cent to 4.6 billion euros. During the reporting period, the Group’s operating income increased by altogether 10.2 per cent to 6.4 billion euros.

Operating expenses rose by 14.8 per cent to 6.7 billion euros during the first quarter of the year. This was mainly due to the higher fuel costs which rose by 330 million euros; equivalent to a year-on-year increase of 44.7 per cent, which was both price and volume related. The fees and charges were 28.7 per cent above the previous year’s figure.

The Group recorded an operating loss of 330 million euros for the first quarter, 286 million euros less than in the same period during the previous year. The decline can mainly be attributed to the negative developments in the Passenger Airline Group business segment. The Group posted a result of -298 million euros; during the same period last year, it stood at ‑267 million euros.

Lufthansa’s capital expenditure during the reporting period totalled 534 million euros, of which 477 million euros were spent on the expansion and modernization of the fleet. Operating cash flow totalled 564 million euros, the free cash flow (operating cash flow minus net investments) stood at 278 million euros. At the close of the first quarter, the Group’s net indebtedness stood at 2.3 billion euros. The Group’s equity ratio increased to 24.2 per cent as a result of Amadeus IT Holding S.A. going public, the related sale of shares in the company and the revaluation of the stake held by the Lufthansa Group.

*) Last year’s figures have been partly restated in line with measurement changes required by IAS 39.

**) Operating result plus write back of provisions divided by revenue

Etihad Crystal Cargo launch service to Erbil

Etihad Crystal Cargo, a division of Etihad Airways, has launched a weekly service from its hub at Abu Dhabi International Airport to Erbil in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

The service operates an A300-600F freighter to Erbil with a payload of 42 tonnes on the route. Flights commenced last month on March 26 and will operate every Tuesday and Saturday.

Cargo flights to Erbil are Etihad’s second cargo service to Iraq, following a twice weekly service to Baghdad.

Des Vertannes, Executive Vice President of Cargo said: “We are very pleased to be operating our  second service to Iraq.

“Our service to Baghdad has built a strong customer base in the country and we look forward to continuing our contribution to developing commercial ties between the UAE and Iraq.”

With its fleet of two Airbus A300-600 aircraft and two MD11, Etihad Crystal Cargo has 22 cargo freighter destinations in the Middle East and Africa and 70 destinations across the globe.

Iberia freight cargo up 40% this month even with volcanic ash

Iberia has carried 40 per cent more freight this month – 41.5 per cent more outgoing and 51.60 per cent more incoming – compared to April, 2009. This increase is partly due to the closing of airports in Northern and Central Europe for the past six days because of the volcanic ash cloud, which caused operations to be shunted to the Iberia Cargo Terminal.

1,000 tonnes landed in Barcelona yesterday alone

Air shipments from the Americas were unloaded in Madrid for surface haulage across Europe, while European freight was moved by land to the Madrid Cargo Terminal, where Iberia flew it to North American and Latin American destinations.

To deal with the additional tonnage, Iberia used air freighters and raised from four to twelve the number of freight distribution trucks which stood in for aircraft on some routes.

Yesterday Iberia set a new record for freight handling at Barcelona Airport, as 1,000 tonnes arrived aboard freighters diverted from other European destinations.

As the situation slowly returns to normal in Europe, Iberia continues to carry the perishable goods that are its speciality, including tropical fruit, fish from Chile and American shellfish.

JAL to revise cargo fuel surcharge for May 2010

Japan Airlines (JAL) has applied to the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) to revise from May 1, 2010, its international cargo fuel surcharge for flights departing from Japan only.

Since April 1, 2009, JAL started adjusting its cargo fuel surcharge levels on a monthly basis by using the one-month average fuel price of Singapore kerosene of the month before last. As the average fuel price of Singapore kerosene for the month of March in 2010 was US$87.54 per barrel, the benchmark fuel price used for calculation of the fuel surcharge level in May will be within the range of US$85.00 to US$89.99 per barrel (refer to table below).

The international cargo fuel surcharge will therefore increase on long-haul international routes from 73 yen per kg to 80 yen, on medium-haul international routes from 63 yen per kg to 69 yen, and on short-haul routes from 53 yen per kg to 58 yen accordingly.

JAL Cargo Fuel Surcharge for May 2010