vol 8 - issue 4 | october - december 2017 · november 16, 2017august 10, 2017 bengaluru|jw...

Voice of Indian Air Cargo Industry

Vol 8 - Issue 4 | OCTOBER - DECEMBER 2017

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with changing regulationsBalancing act

AbhAy PAthAkExecutive Director (Commercial)

Cargo Division, Air India

12 16turhAn OzenChief Cargo OfficerTurkish Airlines

August 10, 2017 BengaluruNovember 16, 2017|JW Marriott, Bengaluru

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FOR RegisteRatiOn cOntact

THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OFAIR CARGO AGENTS ASSOCIATION OF INDIA

(ACAAI)

ACAAI OFFICE BEARERS

PRESIDENTT A Varghese

VICE PRESIDENTSunil Arora

SECRETaRy gENERalAfzal Malbarwala

TREaSURERC K GOVIL

EDITORReji John

[email protected]

aSSISTaNT EDITORSSurya Kannoth

[email protected]

Rashmi Pradhan [email protected]

CORRESPONDENTSTwinkle Sahita

[email protected]

Shreya Bhattacharya [email protected]

SENIOR gRaPHIC DESIgNERPrasad Mohite

gRaPHIC DESIgNERRajesh Mhapralkar

DISCLAIMERViews expressed in the magazine

are not of aCaaI

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ContentsVOL 8 - ISSUE 4 • OCT - DEC 2017

Pharmaceuticals makes for the most lucrative and niche product that the air cargo players transport today. Indisputably valuable, the product however demands strict adherence to changing regulations that comes along. The air cargo industry will have to continuously adapt to these requirements for better business returns and to make it a win-win situation for both the sectors.

Cover StoryBalancing act with changing regulations

INtervIeWindian air cargo awaits a paradigm shift

INtervIeWdetermined to outpace market growth

Abhay Pathak, Executive Director (Commercial), Cargo Division, Air India, believes that Air India cargo will grow only if there is a freighter operation. In an exclusive interview, he speaks about cargo trends in India, vision for Air India cargo and much more.

In an exclusive interview, Turhan Ozen, the chief cargo officer for Turkish Airlines, speaks about the carrier’s performance in 2017 and the aggressive network expansion around the globe.

12

16

GUeSt CoLUMNair cargo taking off on the digital padThe air cargo industry has been undergoing, and will continue to undergo, a major transformation in the way it handles information writes Dheeraj Kohli, vice president and global leader -Travel and Transportation, Unisys.

NeWS

22 cci passes order in favour of acaai

24 aai to undertake construction of integrated cargo terminal in imphal

27 ulrich ogiermann leaves Qatar cargo; guillaume halleux replaces him But as acting chief off icer cargo

23 narendra modi lays foundation stone for rajkot airport

18

swiss worldcargo hosts an evening to honour its customers

rePort 21ta varghese takes over as president of acaai

UPDAte 20

Organised by

Creating a modern and agile supply chain

for auto industry in the digital age

Courtyard Marriott, Chakan, Pune

december 5 - 6, 2017

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@autosCMsummit

t A Varghese President

Air Cargo Agents

Association of India

(ACAAI)

Air logistics to pick up momentum

3

The year 2017 has entered its final quarter recently.

The last few months of this year have been quite

a challenging period for the air cargo industry in a

number of ways. The implementation of Goods &

Services Tax (GST), the slowdown in manufacturing

activities and economic growth and related circumstances have

impacted our trade.

The complexities of our business have increased manifold

during the last few years. New regulations, business

requirements, availability of funds and related issues have

become a part and parcel of the day to day conduct of our

business activities. ACAAI has recently been pursuing several

issues of concern to the air cargo industry with various Ministries,

Government Departments, Regulatory Authorities, Airlines, etc.

with the objective of boosting the exim trade activities.

GST has been a major challenge to the airfreight industry. This

new indirect tax regime is quite complex and involves multiple

compliance requirements. ACAAI has taken up the issues of

concern to our fraternity regarding this matter with the authorities

and airlines for resolution. Our efforts in this regard are ongoing

and shall continue until we are able to resolve them to the best

possible extent. In this context, there is great concern in the trade

about the fortnightly invoicing pattern and methodology which

is being followed by many airlines after the implementation of

GST. An issue of worry to our fraternity is the inability to receive

the Input Tax Credit (ITC) in a timely manner. This situation is very

alarming as it adversely impacts the working capital position of

the agents in a major way and diminishes their capability to carry

out their business.

The growth or decline of the economy has a direct correlation

with the logistics and freight forwarding industries. Recent media

reports have indicated that the GDP of our country is around 5.7

percent in the July-September quarter of 2017. This slowdown is

on account of a number of factors, including the implementation

of GST in July 2017. The decline in the GDP has adversely affected

the airfreight industry to some extent. However, the above

mentioned bold reforms of the Union Government are expected to

yield positive results in terms of greater tax compliance, digitisation

and GDP growth in the future. Global organisations such as IMF

have estimated that the GDP of our country will increase to around

6.7 percent in the next few months. There are also positive reports

about increase in manufacturing activity, which is a positive sign

and is likely to be a boost to our sector as well.

The airfreight agent’s community continues to experience

frequent problems with the Customs system ICEGATE. This

issue has been taken up with the Government Authorities on

numerous occasions by ACAAI and other trade Associations.

Regrettably, the problems of this system continue to persist,

whereby the clearance of export and import cargo is delayed at

airports across the country. It is hoped that the authorities will

resolve the system problems without further delay.

The ACAAI Convention for 2017 was scheduled to be held at Bali

from November 9-12, 2017. However, there have been numerous

reports about severe seismic activity at Bali and the possible

eruption of Mount Agung. Since the current situation in Bali is

very volatile and is likely to continue to be so for an indefinite

period, keeping in view the safety and security of the delegates

and speakers, ACAAI has decided to cancel the Convention

which was scheduled in November 2017.

A new Managing Committee has assumed office after ACAAI’s AGM

which was held on September 27, 2017. The new Committee will

strive to the utmost to address the issues of our members with the

objective of fulfilling their expectations to the maximum degree.

Season's Greetings!

OCT - DEC 2017| www.acaainews.com

From the President's desk

OCT - DEC 2017 | www.acaainews.com4

with changing regulations

Balancing act

Pharmaceuticals makes for the most lucrative and niche product that the air cargo players transport today. Indisputably valuable, the product however demands strict adherence to changing regulations that comes along. The air cargo industry will have to continuously adapt to these requirements for better business returns and to make it a win-win situation for both the sectors.

Cover story | PHARMA LOGISTICS

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OCT - DEC 2017| www.acaainews.com 5

Billions of dollars are being spent

each year on research and

development of new drugs that

help people battle serious diseases

surfacing every other day. Considering the

criticality of these lifesaving products, the

sheer wastage that could reach around

$35 billion in a year due to temperature

excursions during transport is worrisome,

feels the International Air Transport

Association (IATA). It’s not just about the

loss of the physical product but also the

associated costs in terms of root cause

analysis, replacement expenditures, direct/

indirect labor lost and wasted logistics costs.

According to industry statistics, the total

spending on medicines is forecast to reach

$1.5 trillion by 2021. In this, however, the

rise in spending on biologics and specialty

drugs would especially be substantial,

believe market experts. However, it is also to

be noted that in this thumping and profiting

market, the amount of losses incurred

will also continue to rise unless better

preventative measures are put in place.

There is a pressing need to bring change,

especially in the way the logistics industry

functions and manages the pharmaceutical

supply chain as it can shrink this wastage

to a significant level. Moreover, with

companies like Amazon increasing their

focus in the logistics space and now eyeing

the pharma market too, it becomes all the

more important for the logistics players to

buck up.

keePIng PACe wIth StrICter regulAtIOnSThe pharmaceutical goods shipped by air

are indisputably valuable and, in most cases,

require very specific handling and storage

conditions. Customers are increasingly

demanding risk lane assessments and

categorizing carriers’ services with standard

criteria. Tracking devices and real time

information is mostly a prerequisite, driven

by harsher regulations.

In the US, The Drug Quality and Security

Act (DQSA), was enacted by Congress in

2013, whose implementation is underway as

FDA begins its work under Title II of DQSA,

known as the Drug Supply Chain Security

Act (DSCSA). DSCSA outlines critical steps to

build an electronic, interoperable system

to identify and trace prescription drugs as

they are distributed in the US. DSCSA, which

has staged implementation over a 10-year

period, is designed to create a system that

will facilitate the exchange of information

(i.e., transaction information, transaction

history, and transaction statement) at the

individual package level about where a

drug has been in the supply chain.

Although the idea has its own share

of challenges that are keeping the IT

managers, packaging engineers and

logistics specialists up at night, but

blockchain is fairly advancing and is being

seen as a way out to streamline the entire

data. Today North America and Europe

consume more than 60 percent of the

total pharmaceutical products and with

such kind of regulations being envisaged,

it becomes pertinent for the air cargo

stakeholders to stay competitive.

However, meeting each customer’s

requirements and providing facilities for the

entire range of pharmaceuticals is quite a

daunting task.

“It is challenging especially when it

comes to having different facilities for

different temperature ranges. However,

these steps and investments are required in

order to be a world class pharma logistics

service provider,” believes Kristin Colville,

Delta Cargo’s managing director of revenue

management, alliances and marketing.

Colville adds that the airline strives to meet

customer demands as long as they do not

compromise the integrity of its cool chain

programme and the safety of its employees,

customers and the goods being transported.

Another airline LATAM Cargo expresses

similar views. “Providing facilities for all

ranges is considerably challenging given

the investment required, which varies

depending on the temperature range, the

strict segregation requirements and the

projected volume for each temperature

range, that continuously evolves, as

packaging solutions and different types

of pharmaceuticals get to the market

and substitute the previous ones,” shares

Cristina Onate, VP marketing & product


development, LATAM Cargo.

“We combine our high

standard pharma products with

our flexibility of delivering ad

hoc services such as charters,

in case there are very specific

needs to meet and add-on

services to specific hubs if there

is a demand for a particular

service.” LATAM Cargo has

recently introduced a Cool

Dolly (KTT) service offering in

Frankfurt to facilitate pharma

logistics. The airline has also

been awarded IATA CEIV

Pharma certification at Miami

International Airport (MIA).

Meanwhile, in its endeavour

to set a benchmark in

India for pharma handling,

Mumbai International Airport

Limited (MIAL) is bringing

significant developments in

infrastructure, processes and

facilities. Manoj Singh, Senior

Vice President & Head – Cargo,

MIAL revealed that the airport

is developing a dedicated

pharmaceutical facility by

converting the existing export

perishable terminal to exclusive

pharmaceutical terminal.

“GVK MIAL had

commissioned a state-of-

the-art export perishable

terminal at the Mumbai

International Airport in 2011.

The facility, where only

refrigerated trucks are allowed


“In order to accommodate the demand for additional capacity for all temperature requirements, GVK MIAL is developing a dedicated pharmaceutical facility by converting the existing export perishable terminal to exclusive pharmaceutical terminal."

Manoj Singh MIAL

+2 to +8 and freezer. The

flawless coordination between

the airlines and shipper/

agent while dispatching

the pharmaceuticals from

shipper factory till the time it

reaches the aircraft, guarantees

minimum exposure to the

pharmaceuticals,” stated Singh.

“In order to accommodate

the demand for additional

capacity for all temperature

requirements, GVK MIAL is

also developing a dedicated

pharmaceutical facility by

converting the existing

export perishable terminal

to exclusive pharmaceutical

terminal. It will accommodate

more pharmaceutical loose

cargo and additional 100

built ULD’s taking the overall

pharmaceutical handling

capacity to 450000 tonnes.

We are also in the process

of procuring temperature

controlled ULD transporter to

offer pharmaceutical cargo

with the desired temperature

range while transferring to the

aircraft. In order to keep the

staff updated on the latest

technologies and means of

functioning, we offer regular

trainings to the staff. Also the

pharmaceutical facilities at

the terminal are updated on a

regular basis to maintain quality

handling and ensure effective

Background: Pharmaceutical Market DevelopmentThe global biopharma sales trend continues to go upwards through 2020

By 2020 , world sales of cold -chain drugs and of biologics such as vaccines and blood plasma products will likely top $361 billion , in a global biopharma market exceeding $ 1.4 trillion.

The outlook for global biopharma sales is for continued expansion through 2020, at an average growth rate of about 4 - 5% per year.

Growth rate driven by the continuing transition to biologically based products, tightening requirements for life sciences shipments; growing internationalizationof pharmaceutical trade and broader adoption in underdeveloped economies.

Global Biopharma Sales Trend, 2014 - 2020($ Billions)

Source: Pharmaceutical Commerce

$218 $260 $309 $360$788

$876$968

$1,054

$1,006$1,136

$1,277$1,415

$0$200$400$600$800

$1,000$1,200$1,400$1,600

2014 2016 2018 2020

Cold Chain (+65% growth) Non-Cold Chain (+34% growth)Total (+41% growth)

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glObAl bIOPhArmA SAleS trend, 2014 - 2020($ Billions)

Global Biopharma sales trend continues to rise through 2020 and seamless pharma chain,”

he added.

StAyIng ClOSe tO ShIPPerS

Pharmaceutical products

are made keeping specific

conditions and ingredients

in mind, balancing with

stringent regulations and

quality controls. Therefore, the

manufacturers’ high concern

during their transportation is

understandable. Maintaining

the supply chain integrity is

only possible by understanding

their requirements.

While aviation industry

is taking note of this, many

airports, handlers, airlines are

yet to enter the compliance

loop. For instance, Stanley

Fernandes, head of export

logistics, Bharat Serums and

Vaccines Limited points out

that many a times, due to

issues like system breakdown,

shipments get delayed, creating

a huge backlog at the cold

storage facilities of the ground

handlers, thus impeding the

flow of exports.

“For pharmaceutical logistics,

integrity of the quality of the

products manufactured needs

to be maintained throughout

the supply chain and the

ability to provide evidence

for compliance with respect

to temperature requirements

during transportation from

origin to destination is

paramount. This includes

ground transportation prior to

and after air freight, the storage

at origin, transit and destination

airports, on board the aircraft

as well as the transfer to/from

the aircraft from/to the storage

areas,” explains Ryan Viegas,

head of logistics, APAC, TEVA.

“As far as the shippers are

concerned, aviation sector

includes from the time the

products are received at the

origin airport up to the time

the products exit the airport,

however this understanding

may not be the same for the

to dock, provides seamless

temperature controlled

handling to pharmaceuticals

at the desired temperature

ranges including +15 to +25,

www.jeena.com


aviation sector as there are

several agencies involved.”

COllAbOrAtIOn mAtterSTaking clue from similar views

coming from the shippers,

IATA created the Center of

Excellence for Independent

Validators in Pharmaceutical

Logistics (CEIV Pharma)

certification programme, in its

bid to bring standardisation

across the entire pharma supply

chain where GDP remains the

baseline for all programmes.

“Patient safety is a shared

objective of all stakeholders

across the air cargo supply

chain. Providing quality

services in a harmonized and

globally consistent manner is

essential. CEIV Pharma aims to

certify compliance to globally

agreed standards through

a process of independent

validation. Entities that

undergo the CEIV certification

process invest a lot of time

and resources to upgrade

their procedures, processes,

risk assessment methodology

and infrastructure,” explains

Ricardo Aitken, project manager

of Airport Passenger Cargo

Services Consulting at IATA.

Aitken opines that there is

growing enthusiasm, industry


“As far as the shippers are concerned, aviation sector includes from the time the products are received at the origin airport up to the time the products exit the airport, however this understanding may not be the same for the aviation sector as there are several agencies involved.”

Ryan ViegaSTEVA

support and recognition of

the benefits of CEIV Pharma

certification. “The combination

of extensive training and a

comprehensive 290+ point

checklist covering everything

from Quality Management

System (QMS) documentation

to on-ramp handling activities

supporting certification,

elevates staff levels of

competency and improves

overall pharmaceutical handling

and compliance which in turn

helps to ensure the integrity of

pharmaceutical shipments.”

With such initiatives being

taken, the industry is waking up

to all the challenges and even

making collaborative efforts

to strengthen pharma supply

chain integrity.

Amid the first few to adopt

a community approach is MIA,

which facilitated in the area by

raising the pharma handling

capabilities of its tenants and

local cargo community as a

whole. “We’ve done this by

advocating, encouraging, and

supporting our partners to

build their capacity for properly

handling pharma by going

through the IATA CEIV Pharma

Certification Programme – a

certification that is looked upon

very favourably by shippers

(manufacturers) who want to

entrust their air shipments of

pharma with the highest care

and standards. Since we began

this initiative a couple of years

ago, we were able to get the

commitment of five tenants

at our airport to go through

the certification programme.

Three members of this first

wave have completed their

certifications, and two more

have also become certified for

a total of five. In addition, we

are expecting another three

companies to work towards

this certification,” shares Jimmy

Nares, section chief of MIA

marketing.

The airport’s effort in

building a local airport

community with airline carriers,

ground handling companies

and a freight forwarder, who

are CEIV pharma certified,

resulted in it being designated

as the first pharma hub airport

in North America by IATA. One

such partner of MIA is ground

handling company, Swissport

International. Explaining the

efforts put by the ground

handler, Anna Renedo, VP

Global Operations – Cargo,

Swissport International

says, “The stations assign

an accountable GDP/CEIV

manager and perform regular

self-audits, which contains a

separate section that covers

GDP/CEIV compliance to

ensure they are in line with the

requirements. These audits are

on a regular basis, so once a

station has been CEIV certified

they are monitoring their

compliance on a regular basis.”

Swissport is currently GDP

validated in 10 stations with

plans for 7 more in process.

She further adds, “Part of

a station’s validation is to risk

assess every step of the process

within the cargo handling

environment. Risks are then

mitigated and very detailed

documented processes are

implemented. In addition, all

staff handling pharmaceuticals

will be given specialist training

and above this, there is a

more detailed training for

a specified manager grade.

The documentation includes

continuous performance

glObAl bIOPhArmA lOgIStICS SPendIng, 2014 - 2020($ Billions)

Cold chain logistics spending fastest in Asia and North America

Background: Pharmaceutical Market DevelopmentCold chain logistics spending fastest in Asia and in North Ame rica

Global Biopharma Logistics Spending 2014 - 2020($ Billions)

Source: Pharmaceutical Commerce

With 20% of world’s population, Europe and North America consume more than 60% of the total pharmaceutical products (in dollar terms) .

If Asia and the rest of the world used pharmaceuticals at the same level as Europe and North America, the global market would be 3x as large.

Asia is expected to account for the largest regional share growth with more than $1.2 billion of cold-chain growth between 2015 -2019 .

$2.42 $2.90 $3.47 $4.16

$2.86 $3.06$3.28

$3.52$3.04

$3.44$3.91

$4.43$0.65

$0.70$0.77

$0.84

$0

$2

$4

$6

$8

$10

$12

$14

2013 2015 2017 2019Asia Europe North America Rest of World

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Sindhu Cargo Services Private LimitedAn ISO 9001:2008 Certified Company

No 34, Block 3, Sindhu Logistics park, Behind MVIT college, Bettahalasuru, Bangalore North Taluk, Bangalore - 562157CIN NO. U85110KA1991PTCO12381

Phone: 080-7188-8008Email: [email protected]

www.sindhucargo.com

YE

ARS O F E X C E LL E N

CE

Our NetworkMumbai

Hyderabad

Kolkata

Cochin

Pune

Coimbatore

Ahmedabad

Nagpur

Raipur

Nashik

Tuticorin

Bangalore

Chennai

Delhi

FREIGHT FORWARDING

WAREHOUSING & DISTRIBUTION

CUSTOMS BROKER

DOMESTIC TRANSPORTATION

RELOCATIONS

CONSULTANCY

Our Services


management and monitoring

processes coupled with, in the

event of issues occurring a

CAPA (Corrective and Preventive

Action) process.”

Creating a local pharma

community is, however, not

enough. Connecting such

communities is essential.

“Establishing reliable and

transparent start-to-end

pharma lanes are a natural

next step in linking pharma

certified airport communities.

Pharmaceutical shippers tell

us that they expect all air

cargo players to collaborate

- not only at an airport level,

but throughout the entire

lane – in order to increase

reliability and transparency of

the air cargo transport. This

collaboration is much needed

in order to bring down the

number of temperature

excursions of a typical air

transport shipment,” says

Nathan De Valck, cargo &

logistics product development

manager, strategic

development, Brussels Airport

Company.

Brussels Airport Company

and MIA co-founded Pharma.

Aero- a cross industry

collaboration for pharma

shippers, CEIV certified cargo

communities, airport operators


“Providing facilities for all ranges is considerably challenging given the investment required, which varies depending on the temperature range, the strict segregation requirements and the projected volume for each temperature range.”

CRiStina onateLATAM Cargo

strategic member, alongside

partner Singapore Airlines Cargo

which came on board as a

full member. Asia is expected

to account for the largest

regional share growth with

more than $1.2 billion of cold-

chain growth between 2015

-2019. Changi informed that till

date, a total of 10 companies

in Singapore have attained

certification that includes SIA

Cargo, dnata Singapore, SATS,

Global Airfreight International,

Expeditors Singapore, CEVA

Logistics Singapore, Schenker

Singapore, Kuehne + Nagel

Singapore, Bollore Logistics

Singapore and DHL Global

Forwarding.

The airport and its

partners have been investing

resources and refining their

work processes to serve

the increasing needs of

pharmaceutical shippers. “The

establishment of temperature

controlled facilities by our

ground handlers (SATS and

dnata), which can collectively

handle more than 300,000

tonnes of temperature sensitive

cargo annually, is a testament

of their commitment to serving

the pharmaceutical industry,”

says LIM Ching Kiat, managing

director, air hub development,

Changi Airport.

Meanwhile, Turkish

Cargo recently received QEP

Accreditation from Envirotainer

at its hub – Istanbul Atat–rk

Airport, as well as five other

stations across its network,

Mumbai, Hyderabad, Frankfurt,

Tel Aviv and Seoul.

So how exactly does the

aviation industry make strides

to technologically upgrade

their services that can woo

the highly-regulated demands

of the pharmaceutical

market? Janne Tarvainen,

and other air cargo industry

stakeholders, has been a

subject of much enthusiasm

since its inception in 2016.

Last year, Changi Airport

became the first airport in

Asia to join Pharma.Aero as a

with growing competition amid the

air cargo players to make the most

out of pharmaceutical segment,

how important is it for you to

comply with the shippers’ demand?

how accessible and flexible is the

airport if the customer wants any

particular service?

Pharmaceutical cargo constitutes major

portion of the air EXIM business at

Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport

(CSIA), in particular air exports. GVK

MIAL is committed to further grow

this commodity segment at CSIA in

collaboration with the pharmaceutical

players. Accessibility and flexibility

have been at the core of our operations

mIAl ASPIreS tO beCOme IndIA’S Preferred PhArmA hubThe criticality of pharmaceutical products is indisputable and customers are increasingly demanding risk lane assessments. So when Mumbai International Airport became the first Indian airport to join the Pharma.Aero initiative in early 2017, it came as a breadth of fresh air to pharma stakeholders. manoj Singh, Senior Vice President & Head Cargo, MIAL, reveals the efforts that the airport is making to meet its client’s expectations.


managing director, Finnair

Cargo says that continuous

process development,

investments in modern

facilities and new technology

to improve monitoring and

reporting capabilities is a

must. “Back in December

2016 we implemented a

new cargo management

system, SkyChain, to improve

shipment related data quality.

Once our new terminal, the

COOL Nordic Cargo Hub

at Helsinki Airport opens,

SkyChain will be connected

to the warehouse automation

systems of the new terminal.

The integration of these

systems will provide us with

a whole new ecosystem that

will enable proactive planning

and steering of cargo flows

and our resources. It will also

enable active monitoring

and immediate actions, if

needed e.g. in the terminal’s

dedicated temperature

controlled areas featuring

ambient monitoring sensors

especially while handling sensitive air

cargo commodities. Customised processes

have been crafted for clients who are

into exporting products of highly fragile

nature and strong KPI compliance.

All these measures have resulted in

enhancing our performance and meeting

our client’s expectations.

what is the current status of IAtA’s

CeIV certification?

GVK MIAL is in the process of obtaining IATA

CEIV certification in collaboration with our

stakeholders and service providers. Also,

we are a strategic member of Pharma Aero,

working closely with global airports, freight

forwarders and Pharma manufacturers.

Mumbai airport gateway has a strategic

location, state-of-the-art facilities and

supported by robust pharmaceutical

industry. After CEIV certification, we are

committed to further strengthen Mumbai

as Pharma Gateway by promoting pharma

trade lanes with US, Europe and African

destinations. With the expansion and

modernization of our temperature control

facilities, we anticipate the pharmaceutical

market share to increase by further 10

percent over the coming years.

how important do you think is

creating a collaborative end-to-end

pharma lane? how much enthusiasm

do you see among the air cargo

players for establishing pharma trade

lanes?

A collaborative end-to-end pharmaceutical

lane between airports will enhance the

pharmaceutical EXIM business between the

stations, improve the quality of handling

the pharmaceuticals and enhance the

performance of the trade lane. In order to

facilitate e-freight and real time data flow

of entire pharmaceutical logistics chain we

are working on strengthening the pharma

trade lanes in digital manner. Number of

airports, airlines and freight forwarders are

coming forward in establishing pharma

trade lanes with CSIA. We are optimistic

that CEIV and Pharma.Aero will add more

value to this concept.

connected to SkyChain to

prevent any deviations from

shipper’s instructions. In

addition, the new warehouse

automation and the cargo

management system will

provide improved reporting

capabilities in response to

customers’ expectations of

supply chain transparency,”

informed Tarvainen.

Tarvainen terms the airlines’

brand-new COOL air cargo

terminal as the most modern

in Europe with a separate

dedicated 3000 square metre

area for pharmaceutical cargo

and perishables.

Meanwhile, Mark

Whitehead, Chief Executive

of Hong Kong Air Cargo

Terminals Limited (Hactl) says,

“WHO GDP and IATA CEIV

Pharma provide a convenient

and uniform indication that

Hactl is compliant with all

the requirements of pharma

shippers. We actually exceed

these standards, having

invested heavily in equipment

(such as thermal dollies for the

ramp, and modifications to

our terminal and refrigerated

facilities), training procedures

- and so have not yet

been asked to provide any

additional safeguards. If

shippers require delivery to

or collection from mainland

China or any location in Hong

Kong, this can be provided

by our value-added logistics

arm, Hacis, which is also fully-

compliant and operates TC

vehicles.”

Whitehead, however,

mentions that there are still

airports, handlers, airlines and

others who are not in the

compliance loop so cannot

guarantee to maintain the

required conditions. “The

biggest challenge is to

persuade the entire industry

to adopt and comply with

the recognized standards.

Until that happens, some

airports and carriers – and

even countries - will have an

advantage,” he says.

The foundational premise

therefore is clear. The

pharmaceutical industry is

becoming more innovative and

more accessible than ever

before. Also, more commercial

and clinical trial drugs are being

shipped to more patients across

the world. The air cargo

industry will have to

continuously adapt to the

unique requirements for the

transportation and come up

with the most tailored solutions

to make it a win-win situation

for both the industries.


intervieW | AbHAy PATHAk

awaits aIndian Air Cargo

paradigm shiftIndian government’s decision to disinvest Air India will hopefully bring the debt-ridden airline on track. Air India has the capacity advantage over a network combined with 58 domestic and 29 international stations. Abhay Pathak, executive director (Commercial), Cargo division, Air India, believes that Air India cargo will grow only if there is a freighter operation. In an exclusive interview with Indian Transport & Logistics News, Pathak speaks to rashmi Pradhan on cargo trends in India, vision for Air India cargo and much more...

what kind of transitions

have you brought in the

cargo operations of Air India

after you took charge?

I joined Air India cargo around

seven to eight months ago and

have been focusing on how to

make things better. Everyone in

the organisation is working in

a conventional manner which

is not their mistake. When I

brought about the changes,

obviously the team was

uncomfortable. But when they

realised that these changes

are doable and resulted in

getting revenue and achieving

the targets, the team slowly

started building up. Under the

leadership of former Air India

chairman Ashwani Lohani,

cargo division received its due

attention, as he realised that

with little efforts, cargo can

generate more revenue than

passenger. At most of the in-

ternational destinations (Korea,

USA, Europe, Australia), we have

appointed a GSA based on

MGR (minimum guarantee rev-

enue) policy. This concept has

been implemented around four

months ago and resulted in

positive response and increase

in revenue manifold. I have

brought about many schemes

to facilitate and motivate the

distribution channel.

elaborate on the schemes

for distribution channels?

We are directly establishing

relationship with corporates

and incentivising them to con-

vert them as loyal customers

of Air India. We have launched

many incentives to motivate

the freight forwarders, small

agencies and end users. If you

make the business simple (with

limited terms and conditions)

there is always a room for

growth. The objective of the

various schemes (block a space,

own a flight, monsoon maaza

etc.) is to maximise revenue on

each flight. There was no com-

mission/incentive for danger-

ous and valuable goods. Both

are high revenue and high yield

segments. If I cannot motivate

the freight forwarders then they

will not come forward to do

business with us. With these

changes and initiatives things

are going in the right direction.

what are the new

initiatives in the pipeline?

We are aggressively thinking


of developing a City Cargo

concept at tier II and III cities.

The connectivity from city to

airport is a problem in small

cities, hence we are looking at a

single window facility wherein

an agency will be hired to trans-

port the cargo from the city and

put on board and vice-versa.

In addition, we are thinking of

launching a mobile app for end

users, for which bids have been

invited. A complete state-of-

the-art mobile app wherein the

cargo can be tracked, traced as

well as barcoding can be done.

The selection of party will hap-

pen in the next three months.

We want to make the business

transparent and digital.

Please throw some light on

the cargo trends in India.

Not much attention has been

given to the cargo sector in

India. We have started too late

as compared to other countries.

The logistics and infrastructure

are the biggest problems in

India. Most of the airports are

not well equipped with cargo

handling facilities. In our coun-

try cargo is not considered as

a core product but a second-

ary product. The customer

opts for air services due to the

speed with which it delivers.

Compared to passenger side of

business, cargo will generate

more profits in terms of revenue

vs expenditure, if considered se-

riously. So far none of the Indian

carriers are operating a freighter.

If you do not look after your

customers then someone else

will. The entire cargo is taken

away by most of the interna-

tional players and, certainly they

must be making money.

Wherever a new airport is

built, the old airport is be-

ing converted into cargo hub

without any proper infrastruc-

ture. The space has not been

designed or allocated for cargo.

There is monopoly at most of

the domestic and international

airports in the country as far as

cargo handling is concerned.

The warehouse management

should have been more com-

petitive or left with the airlines

to run it. That is the prime area

of concern. The warehouse

management charges are quite

expensive. The warehouse at

our airports are handled by Air

India and we don’t charge for it,

that is our USP in the domes-

tic sector. The other airlines

depend on airport operators

or third party (appointed by

the airport) on revenue sharing

basis. At the smaller airports,

attention is not given to cargo,

resulting in primary cargo

business of 70-80 percent from

major metros. These smaller

airports need infrastructure.

Although there is a growth in

the market, the yields are going

down due to unnecessary com-

petition between the airlines.

There is a need for stability in

the market and require a para-

digm shift in cargo operations

and we are working on that.

going forward what is your

vision for Air India cargo?

Air India has seamless connec-

tions and has adopted a hub

and spoke model of operations.

Air India has direct connectivity

to five-six destinations in the

US. We connect to tier II and

III cities in India directly to the

US. We are a leading player in

Europe from India. This helps us

to build up our cargo network.

Air India cargo will grow

only when we have a freighter

operator. We are bringing

cargo from all corners of India

but the gateway is choked. We

cannot carry more than 10

tonnes. We are examining the

possibility of outsourcing Air

India’s freighter operations (we

will not make any investment).

We are not looking at operat-

ing our own aircraft. There are

many freighters who want to

go for such arrangements. Air

India could take a lead in this

market and start operations

with the US and Europe route. I

feel there is a potential

requirement. The demand

needs to be created. We need

to create perceptions in the

minds of people. We need to

be competitive in the interna-

tional market. We are the

largest airline catering to the

e-commerce sector. The

business opportunities are

great. One must design, fit in,

create a perception, build up a

belief and make profitable

returns. The bottom line is

profits and profit comes not

only from revenue but also

cost. One should be conscious

of cost. You may have revenue

if the cost is high that doesn’t

make sense.

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intervieW | TuRHAn Ozen

Turkish Airlines, founded in 1933, operated its first international air cargo shipment in 1936. Today Turkish Cargo, the cargo division of Turkey’s national flag carrier, is one of the fastest growing air cargo brands of the world and offers services to 120 countries. For the first half of 2017 Turkish Cargo reported an income growth of 24 percent year-on-year basis. In the recent past it has launched seven new services to take its total cargo destinations to 72 which in the beginning of 2016 stood at 55. In an exclusive interview turhan Ozen, the chief cargo officer for turkish Airlines, speaks to reji John about the carriers performance in 2017 and the aggressive network expansion around the globe. Ozen was appointed to the current position less than a years ago. Edited excerpts.

Could you please give us

an update on the turkish

Cargo performance in the

first half of 2017?

Our growth rate January to

July amounted to 28 percent

on revenue and transported

volumes. This growth is

naturally built on positive

trends of global air freight

market, on which we got

a significant market share.

We are also determined to

continue to outpace market

growth rates and make our

momentum sustainable in the

coming years.

there has been quite

an aggressive network

expansion in the first half

of 2017 with new freighter

destinations added to your

network in Africa, far east,

europe and South America?

what has been the response

to these network additions?

do you see the demand

improving in those regions

where you have introduced

freighter coverage in the

recent past?

During 2017 we reached up to

72 destinations with the open-

ings of Africa (Johannesburg,

Madagascar, Kano and

Dakar), Europe (Prague,

Oslo, Paris, Riga) and

South America (Sao Paulo).

We succeed to expand our

business and increase our

market share in all of the

new destinations sooner

than planned.

what was the average

load factor seen in the

first half of 2017? do you

expect to see the load

factor improving in the

months ahead?

Since the beginning of this

MarketGrowth

Determined to outpace


"We focused intensely on pharma and temperature controlled cargo worldwide. We have seen remarkable demand mainly in Western & Central Europe and in India. The total volume increase in these segments is up to 30 percent in some markets"

year, we increased our

load factor by 7 to 8

percent. We expect it

to further increase with

another 2-3 percent until

the end of the year.

what has been your

focus on high yield

cargo like pharma and

perishables from some

of the key markets that

you operate?

We focused intensely on

pharma and temperature

controlled cargo worldwide.

We have seen remarkable

demand mainly in Western &

Central Europe and in India.

The total volume increase in

these segments is up to 30

percent in some markets.

do you think over capacity

and low yield are still the

overall problems of the

air cargo industry? And

how have you managed

to address these issues at

turkish Cargo?

Over capacity and low yield

problems have diminished

since the fourth quarter of

2016 due to soaring cargo

demand worldwide. How-

ever, I expect that the growth

has already reached its peak

and the market will eventu-

ally start to stabilize soon in

relatively lower growth rates.

By the beginning of next

year the capacity investments

will probably catch up. The

yield and over capacity will

become a challenge again.

how is turkish

Cargo approaching

the proliferation of

e-commerce and e-retail

and do you see increasing

volume and demand from

this sector in your overall

volumes?

E-commerce and express

business is the fastest growing

products of our portfolio mainly

ex China and Far East. We keep

on our investments with our

systems and throughout our

network to grow even further.

what is the status of the

new cargo facility being

built in Istanbul for turkish

Cargo’s growth and what

plans do you have to

increase the volume of

cargo carried?

Istanbul’s new airport will be

opened in the last quarter of

2018 and by then Turkish Cargo

hub capacity will be doubled.

With additional investments,

Turkish Cargo handling capac-

ity can reach up to 3.5 million

tonnes by 2023.

under your leadership

how do you intend to

differentiate turkish Cargo

from other carriers? Is

there a focus on directly

connecting with your high

yield shippers?

All the shippers, high yield or

low, are very important for

Turkish Cargo as they’re all our

customers. We should under-

stand their evolving expecta-

tions, requirements very well

and accurately translate them

all into our offerings. This is

the reason why we always aim

to keep close to the shippers.

From the commercial perspec-

tive, our customers are always

our local and worldwide agents

and forwarders and will be so

in the future.

how crucial is the

digitalisation process at

turkish Cargo and what are

some the specific steps you

are taking to transform all

cargo process into digital?

E-AWB adoption is one of the

most important targets of

Turkish Cargo and its advan-

tages play critical role in

increasing the quality of

customer service. Today we are

living in a digital world where

data exchange is the key

indicator of E2E integration

between stakeholders. E-AWB is

the most significant step of

digitalisation in air cargo business

because awb is the main

document of the air transporta-

tion. As Turkish Cargo, our E-AWB

penetration is more than 80

percent in several origins. We will

keep our momentum and we

will focus on further steps such

as single process, e-freight in

near future.

digital pad

Air cargotaking off on the

The air cargo industry has been undergoing, and will continue to undergo, a major transformation in the way it handles information, writes dheeraj kohli

The rise of information

technology and the

advent of the digital

world have disrupted

all businesses across the

world. The Air cargo indus-

try is no exception to this.

Customers, regardless of the

business they are dealing

with, expect brands to be up

to date with regard to the

technology that they use.

Once again, the air cargo

industry is no exception and

is vital to the global economic

system. Unlike ocean freight,

goods sent via air cargo are

generally of high-value and

time-sensitive. Keeping this

in mind, the industry has

been undergoing, and will

continue to undergo, a major

transformation in the way it

handles information.

the ChAllenge Of dIgItISAtIOn Digitisation will modify

the supply chains from the

originating shippers to their

end-customers. We see end-

customers making more and

more purchases from the

comfort of their homes and

frequently requesting instant

delivery. On the other hand,

automation, advanced robot-

ics and powerful forecasting

algorithms change the pro-

cesses at the shippers’ side of

the supply chain. This brings

about a drastic change of

global product flow regard-

ing geography, size and lead

times. For instance, instead of

one master shipment of 100

units to a distribution centre,

100 individual shipments

of one unit will need to be

shipped directly to customers.

Furthermore, these ship-

ments are not limited to local

markets; customers in a much

larger and newer geographi-

cal areas will be served in this

new age.

Another development in

the air cargo industry is that

the International Air Transport

Association (IATA) has estab-

lished new industry standards

and regulations with a view

to modernise the sector glob-

ally. New business procedures

such as Cargo2000, e-Cargo

and e-Airway Bill are being

touted as industry game-

changers. Cargo2000 utilises

Electronic Data Interchange

(EDI) between partiesto keep

track of each step in the air

cargo supply chain. E-Airway

Bill removes the requirement

of a paper Airway Bill. There

is therefore no longer a need

to print, handle or archive the

paper; largely simplifying the

air cargo process.

However, the major chal-

lenge faced by air carriers

is that IT systems used by

most of them are decades

old in many cases. IATA and

other such industry bodies

are constantly developing

and redefining customs

and procedures, and these

changes are more often than

guest Column | DHeeRAj kOHLI

not technologically oriented.

The fundamental nature of

the air cargo industry is such

that it is heavily dependent

on information technology

systems. Factors such as the

globalisation of modern com-

merce, the need to coordi-

nate with a multitude of third

parties and evolving regula-

tory frameworks add to this

dependency on information

technology. It is interesting to

note that air cargo players are

lagging behind their counter-

parts in the passenger airline

sector in terms of the technol-

ogy they use.

E-commerce and evolv-

ing delivery methods are the

primary factors driving the

shift in the cargo sector. This

digital disruption leads to the

air cargo industry becoming

more and more complex.

Players will need robust and

flexible information technol-

ogy solutions to keep up with

these changes and the com-

petition. The total number of

transactions is rapidly increas-

ing. Experts project that the

air cargo industry will witness

a steady Compounded An-

nual Growth Rate (CAGR)

of approximately 4 percent

over the coming years. The

fact that the modern air

cargo supply chain utilizes

the services of a multitude

of players across sub-sectors

adds further complexity in

the sector.

One way that air carriers

can thrive in this age of digital

disruption is by crafting mo-

bile apps to provide various

services and information to

cargo agents, forwarders, and

customers. These services

can include tracking ship-

ments from mobile devices,

checking flight schedules,

and managing airway bills.

Effective data communica-

tion and cooperation are the

need of the hour. This way,

air cargo carriers can reduce

costs and increase efficiency.


In this competitive business,

the key lies in figuring out

how to streamline operations

and ensure better customer

experience. All this has to be

done bearing in mind that,

today, customer demands

are have become increasingly

sophisticated.

the COnneCtedCuStOmerA strong understanding of

the customer’s needs and

wants is essential to succeed-

ing in the air cargo industry.

The primary desires of a

customer of the air cargo

industry can be boiled down

to three requirements. These

are increased speed, lowered

costs and enhanced reliabil-

ity. By using technology and

data, the supply chain can be

simplified, reducing the time

taken to make deliveries. The

cost factor too can be low-

ered by increasing efficiency

through information technol-

ogy and data communication.

Mobile technology is

another factor that has dis-

rupted and has the potential

to revolutionise the way air

carriers conducts business.

Mobile technology em-

powers both customers and

the carriers in novel ways.

involves knowing where

his or her goods are. And as

many consumers are already

connected to the internet, the

foundation for this is, in most

cases, already established.

Process data: Driven

by data and the ability to

visualise information, such

as the frequent or recurring

routes taken, the types of

goods shipped, or the types

of services demanded, air

carriers will be better posi-

tioned to provide custom-

ers with real-time updates

on flight information and

customer service. This also

enables the development of

customer profiles that offer

deeper insight.

To succeed in the digital

age, airlines and air carriers

need to embrace data and

analytics that serve as the

foundation for how they can

personalize and market their

offerings, specifically based

on customers’ preferences,

as this will ultimately create a

more rewarding cargo experi-

ence -- which leads to more

revenue. However, ensuring

that the right software and

systems are in place will also

enable carriers’ systems to

seamlessly communicate with

each other, so that their day-

to-day operations are as con-

nected as their customers’.

Dheeraj Kohli is vice

president and global head

of Travel and Transportation

for Unisys, a global informa-

tion technology company

that specialises in providing

industry-focused solutions

integrated with leading-

edge security to clients in the

government, financial services

and commercial markets.

dheeraj kohli is vice president and global head of Travel and Transportation for Unisys, a global information technology company that specialises in providing industry-focused solutions integrated with leading-edge security to clients in the government, financial services and commercial markets.

Air carriers can thrive in this age of digital disruption is by crafting mobile apps to provide various services and information to cargo

agents, forwarders, and customers. Effective data communication and cooperation are the need of the hour. This way, air cargo carriers can reduce costs and increase efficiency.

It can enhance capabilities

to track and process cargo.

Furthermore, it can provide

on the spot access to critical

and actionable data. Mes-

saging services, accessible

via mobile devices, can be

utilised on-the-go to com-

municate policy changes,

service interruptions, updates,

and other vital information.

Mobile technology clearly will

continue to play a key role in

further improving customer

service and flexibility by the

air cargo industry. And that in

turn can only benefit the cus-

tomers who use their services.

This is why new technol-

ogy and its adoption become

crucial in the air cargo indus-

try. Air carriers must invest in

newer technologies in order

to effectively keep up with

the demands of the con-

nected customer to remain

competitive. But this requires

several key considerations.

Look to the cloud: By

leveraging modern, cloud-

based software, air carriers

can easily and seamlessly in-

corporate new solutions into

their own enterprise system.

Additionally, some companies

are now offering catalogue-

based cloud services, allow-

ing carriers to choose the

specific solutions they need,

while helping to drive down

operating costs.

leVerAge teChnOlOgy fOr greAter VISIbIlItyA key component of assist-

ing the connected customer


uPdAte| ACAAI AGM

TA Varghese takes overas President of ACAAI

The 47th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI) was held on September 27 at

Kohinoor Continental Hotel in Mumbai. TA Varghese, the current

vice president of AcAAI, has been elected unopposed as the

new president of ACAAI. Varghese replaces Hemant Bhatia who served

the post for two years. Sunil Arora, the current Secretary General has also

been elected unopposed to ACAAI’s vice president post.

M Afzal Malbarwala of Galaxy Freight as taken over as Secretary General

and CK Govil of Activair Airfreight India as Treasurer. The members of

Managing Committee are Samir Shah of Star Freight, Mahesh Trikha of Aargus

Global Logistics, Ronald Goveas of Skylink Freight Forwarders, Jaideep Raha

of Jetex Oceanair, Siddharth Jairaj of TVS Dynamic Global Freight Services,

Shashi Kanchan of Penta Freight and Ashish Asaf of SA Consultants &

Forwarders.

The AGM also adopted the audited account for the financial year 2016-

17. A report of the Managing Committee for the year 2016-17 was also

presented at the AGM.

According to an official statement released by ACAAI, the 44th ACAAI

annual convention to be held in Bali has been cancelled. As per the

statement, “There have been numerous reports about the severe seismic

activity and possible eruption of Mount Agung, resulting in the evacuation of

almost 100,000 locals from Bali. Since the situation in Bali is a natural disaster

which is very volatile and is likely to continue for some time, considering the

safety and security of the delegates and speakers, the Convention Committee

has decided that it would be prudent to cancel the ACAAI Convention in

November 2017.”


hosts an evening to honour its customersSwiss WorldCargo

sWiss World CArgo | RePORT

Swiss WorldCargo

hosted a memorable

evening to honour

and acknowledge

its customers and partners at

the Hard Rock Café in Andheri,

Mumbai in the first week of

August.

Alexander Arafa, Head of

Cargo Area & Contribution

Management, was present

for the event. It’s Arafa’s first

visit to India after assuming

the new responsibility at Swiss

WorldCargo. He thanked the

customers and partners for their

continued support despite the

tough ground conditions. He

was full of praise for the Swiss

WorldCargo’s Mumbai team

and its customers, for their top

notch performance, leading

Mumbai station as one of the

top performers within the Swiss

WorldCargo.

Also speaking on the oc-

casion, Shankar Iyer, Head of

Cargo Africa, Middle East &

India thanked all the customers

and ground handling partners

including Mumbai International

Airport Limited (MIAL), for their

professionalism, support and

requested all to join and cel-

ebrate the success along with

his team.

Top performing freight

forwarders were acknowledged

and awarded for their outstand-

ing contribution and support.

Swiss WorldCargo, Mumbai also

honoured airport partners MIAL

along with their handling agent

Cargo Service Center (CSC).

agility logistics B V Chinai and Company India Consolidated Freight Forwarders

Cargo Service Center Expeditors International India galaxy Freight

link Forwarders Malca-amit JK logistics Mumbai International airport

Skyways air Services Transline air Cargo Services UT Worldwide India/DSV


NEWS

The Air Cargo Agents Association

of India (ACAAI) had filed

a complaint before the

Competition Commission of India

(CCI) in December 2012 alleging

anti-competitive activities of

International Air Transport

Association (IATA) in India. CCI

referred the case for investigation

to the office of the Director

General Investigation (DG). After

receiving DG’s investigation

report, CCI issued its order in

June 2015. ACAAI was aggrieved

by this order as it was erroneous

on both facts and law and the

issues raised by ACAAI were not

adequately taken cognisance

of by the CCI. ACAAI therefore,

preferred an appeal against

the CCI order before the then

Competition Appellate Tribunal

(COMPAT) in August 2015. [The

COMPAT has been replaced

by the National Company Law

Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) in

May 2017].

In November 2015, the former

COMPAT issued its order regard-

ing ACAAI’s appeal, wherein it

stated that the DG had commit-

ted quite a few serious proce-

dural errors in not adopting the

due processes for investigation of

all aspects of ACAAI allegations of

abuse of dominant position and

consequential violation of both

Sections 3 and 4 of the Competi-

tion Act by IATA. The COMPAT

inter alia stated in its order after

detailed analysis of the submis-

sions made by both sides that

the Commission had failed to

take cognizance of all ACAAI’s is-

sues and set aside the impugned

order of CCI. The COMPAT

remanded the matter back to

the DG for a fresh investigation

of all aspects of ACAAI’s original

allegations which formed part of

the information before the CCI.

This was a significant victory for

ACAAI and in this instance against

various anti-competitive actions

and policies of IATA. Accordingly,

the DG’s office has initiated a

fresh investigation in this matter.

This matter is currently sub judice

and under active investigation by

the DG.

ACAAI recently learned that

while the entire issue is sub ju-

dice before the DG post order of

“remand” by the former COMPAT,

as stated above, a fresh informa-

tion (complaint) had been filed

by IATA against ACAAI before the

CCI on June 7, 2017. The timing

of this fresh filing by IATA against

ACAAI, though seemed a well

calculated strategy, but finally

proved untenable in law as the

CCI rejected the same by a final

order. The copy of the final order

in Case No. 29 of 2017 is available

on the website of the CCI. IATA

attempted to make untenable al-

legations to the effect that ACAAI

was in violation of the provi-

sions of the Competition Act by

compelling its members not to

sign up for the CASS programme

which IATA seeks to enforce in

India. This allegation was consid-

ered on merit by the CCI and CCI

rejected the same by passing a

final order under Section 26 (2) of

the Competition Act.

The order dated 12 September

2017 of the CCI stated that the In-

formant (IATA) has not produced

any evidence to establish that

OP 1 (ACAAI) has taken coercive

action against any of its members

who have agreed to participate

in the Cargo Account Settlement

Systems (CASS) implementation.

The Informant has merely stated

that OP 1 is controlling the free

will of its constituent members

without any direct or indirect

evidence suggesting that it is

forcing its member agents to fol-

low its dictates.

The commission notes

that the Informant has itself

admitted in the information

that there is an overwhelming

response from member agents

of OP 1 in support of introduc-

tion of CASS and various cargo

CCI passes order in favour of ACAAI

agents came forward voluntarily

to get their enrolment done for

the training program. The infor-

mant has also submitted that

after the introduction of CASS

on June 1, 2015, there has been

a phenomenal increase in the

number of participating cargo

agents with more airlines and

agents actively participating

in CASS of their own volition.

It is also an admitted fact that

14 airlines and more than 416

agents have received training to

work on the CASS program. All

these indicate that there is no

collective boycott on the part of

member agents of OP 1 and the

member agents are taking inde-

pendent commercial decision

to participate/not to participate

in the CASS program.

The commission notes that

the informant has failed to furnish

any material that could prima

facie suggest an agreement

amongst the OPs, in contraven-

tion of Section 3(3)(b) read with

Section 3(1) of the Act. The

commission, therefore, is of the

view that no prima facie case of

contravention of the provisions of

Section 3 of the Act is made out

against the OPs. Accordingly, the

matter is ordered to be closed in

terms of the provisions of Section

26(2) of the Act.”


NEWS

Prime Minister Narendra

Modi laid the foundation of a

greenfield airport in Rajkot. The

state government of Gujarat had

proposed a greenfield airport

at Hirasar, Rajkot as the existing

airport is capacity constrained

with no further scope for

expansion and upgradation due

to urbanization and commercial

development around the

existing airport. The proposed

site for the greenfield airport

measuring 2534 acres is next to

the National Highway (NH-

8B) connecting Ahmedabad

and Rajkot and is located 27

kilometre east of the existing

Rajkot Airport. An area of

293.255 hectares was handed

over by the state government to

Airports Authority of India (AAI)

in August this year.

It has been decided that the

AAI shall take up development

works in a phased manner. In the

initial phase, development works

are proposed to be undertaken

at a cost of Rs 1405 crores.

The ceremony was also

graced by Vijay Rupani, Chief

Minister, Gujarat; Ashok Gajapathi

Raju, Union Minister for Civil

Aviation; Nitin bhai Patel, Deputy

Chief Minister, Gujarat and other

senior ministers.

The AAI in a press release said

that the airport is going to have

many environment-friendly fea-

tures like double insulated roof-

ing system, rainwater harvesting

system to recharge the ground

water level, usage of eco-friend-

ly local building material, LED

lighting, sensor-fitted electrical

Leading freight forwarder

Penta Freight recently moved

their headquarters into a new

office in Mumbai as part of their

upgradation and rebranding

plans to commemorate its 25th

year of business. The office was

inaugurated by Peter Gerber,

Chairman of the Executive Board

and CEO - Lufthansa Cargo AG.

Penta Freight, a specialist

service provider in Pharma

and Chemicals logistics, is also

developing a state of the art

transit warehouse and cross

docking facility, with special

temperature controlled zones

and designated areas for

hazardous cargo, the company

said in a press release. The facility

is in close vicinity of the Mumbai

Air Cargo Complex. The company

is also growing its existing fleet

of refrigerated trucks to further

Narendra Modi lays foundation stone for Rajkot airport

Penta Freight moves forward with Mumbai headquarters

and sanitary fittings, energy

efficient chillers, solar power

system and a green belt along

the periphery of the airport and

along the approach road to act

as a noise barrier.

While addressing the attend-

ees during the ceremony, PM

Modi said that 96 percent of the

land used for the new airport

coming up between Rajkot

and Surendranagar districts, is

barren land of the government

of Gujarat.

Commenting on the airport

project being handled by AAI, the

civil aviation minister said, “Rajkot

is the fourth largest city in the

state of Gujarat. Since the existing

airport has no scope of further

expansion and is not positioned

well to meet the potential traffic

demand, the new airport being

constructed by AAI will surely

meet the futuristic demands of

Rajkot and will further add to the

infrastructural development of this

expanding city.”

enhance their cold chain logistics

and 3PL offering.

They have recently added

a domestic cargo division

to the existing portfolio of

services under the aegis of

PentaXpress. The new division

offers customised door to

door multimodal solutions

for domestic distribution for a

diverse range of B2B products.

With a pan-India presence,

Penta Freight operates their own

offices across eight branches in

Peter geber, Chairman of the Executive Board and CEO, lufthansa Cargo, opens the new Penta Freight office in Mumbai as Prasanan Kurup and Shashi Kanchan, directors of Penta Freight look on

the country and a joint venture in

the USA. The company says that

plans are afoot to open offices

in strategic tier 2 and 3 cities.

With its existing ISO and C-TPAT

certifications, Penta continues its

commitment to excellence and

has pledged to be a part of the

pioneer IATA CEIV Pharma initiative

led by MIAL in India.


NEWS

India, Japan sign open sky pact

Leslie Thng joins Vistara as CEO AAI to undertake construction of Integrated Cargo Terminal in Imphal

India and Japan will now be able

to operate unlimited number of

flights between the two countries

as an open sky pact was signed

between the two nations.

The agreement is as per

National Civil Aviation Policy,

2016, which permits the

government to enter into an

‘open sky’ air services agreement

on a reciprocal basis with SAARC

nations as well as countries with

territory located entirely beyond

a 5,000 kilometre radius from

New Delhi.

The pact followed Prime

Minister Narendra Modi and his

Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe

holding strategic discussions on a

wide range of issues.

An official release said India

and Japan exchanged RoD

(Record of Discussions) on civil

aviation cooperation with respect

to open sky.

“It opens skies between

India and Japan ie. Indian and

Japanese carriers can mount

now unlimited number of

flights to the selected cities

of each other’s countries,” the

release said.

Currently, Japanese carriers

- All Nippon Airways and Japan

Airports Authority of India (AAI) will un-

dertake construction of Integrated Cargo

Terminal at Imphal Airport after obtaining

grant-in-aid under Trade Infrastructure for Ex-

port Scheme (TIES) of Ministry of Commerce

& Industry, Govt. of India. The Government of

Manipur had planned to establish an Export

Import Cargo Terminal (EICT) at Tulihal,

Imphal Airport under ASIDE Scheme of the

Ministry of Commerce & Industry.

The proposed Integrated Cargo Terminal

is expected to give a boost to the export

of handicraft items and perishable cargo.

This will also help generate employment

opportunities in the North Eastern region

of the country, thereby fostering economic

development of the region. In addition to

this, the EICT will help establish better con-

nectivity with South & Southeast Asia and

give a boost to trade between India and the

ASEAN countries.

The estimated cost construction of the

cargo terminal is Rs 16.20 crores. Out of this,

the Ministry of Commerce & Industry has

sanctioned a grant of Rs 12.96 crores under

TIES. The balance amount to construct will

be met out of internal sources of AAI.

Airlines - fly into India while Air

India and Jet Airways BSE operate

services to Japan.

Last year India signed open

sky agreements with Greece,

Jamaica, Guyana, Czech

Republic, Finland, Spain and Sri

Lanka. India also has open sky

agreement with the US, among

other countries.

Vistara, a joint venture of Tata group

and Singapore Airlines and India’s

finest full-service carrier has appointed

Leslie Thng as Chief Executive Officer

effective October 16, 2017. Thng

succeeds Phee Teik Yeoh, who returns

to Singapore Airlines to take up a senior

appointment. Thng has taken over as

the airline’s new CEO post all requisite

approvals from the Government of India

and regulatory authorities.

Thng joins Vistara from Budget

Aviation Holdings (BAH, A Singapore

Airlines Holding Company) where he

was serving as the Chief Commercial

Officer.

“I am delighted to be joining

Vistara that has transformed air travel

experience in India and cultivated a

reputation of setting new standards in

service excellence in the Indian aviation

industry,” said Thng. “I look forward to

the opportunity to build on the strong

foundation and momentum created

by Phee Teik Yeoh, and work with the

wonderful team of Vistara. I hope to

get the support of all stakeholders,

including the customers, to take Vistara

through its next phase of growth and

development,” he added.

Thng, who started his career in SIA

in 1999 and held many senior positions

in the airline, has significant leadership

experience and deep knowledge of

the aviation sector across international

markets and various businesses. Prior

to being appointed Chief Commercial

Officer for Budget Aviation Holdings,

he was Chief Executive of SilkAir. Thng

holds a Bachelor Degree (Honors)

in Business Administration from the

National University of Singapore.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with his Japanese counterpart Shinzo abe


NEWS

Three more members join Pharma.Aero

Justin Carr joins as Vice President Cargo Commercial, Etihad Cargo

Jaipur and Srinagar Airports ranked best airports in ACI-ASQ Survey

Pharma.Aero welcomes an ad-

ditional three companies into

the organisation to foster strong

collaboration amongst all the

key stakeholders involved in the

pharmaceutical supply chain.

The two joining air cargo

stakeholders are Expeditors

and Envirotainer. Additionally,

the organisation welcomes 7th

airport member, Montevideo

Free Airport. This brings the total

number of companies in Pharma.

Aero to eighteen members.

Nathan De Valck, chair-

man of Pharma.Aero, said, “The

Pharma.Aero membership base

is expanding to include all stake-

holders in the pharmaceutical

supply chain. Our cross-industry

collaboration now involves

pharmaceutical manufacturers,

airports, airlines, logistics service

providers and solution provid-

ers. This large scope allows us to

tackle a broad range of improve-

Etihad Cargo has welcomed Justin Carr as Vice

President Cargo Commercial. Carr, who has more

than two decades of logistics industry experience,

joins the Abu Dhabi based carrier from DHL where

he was Head of MNC Business Development for the

Middle East and Africa region. In his new role, he is

responsible for the business’s commercial proposi-

tion including global sales, key accounts, product

teams, and Etihad Cargo’s freighter platforms.

Peter Baumgart-

ner, Chief Executive

Officer of Etihad

Airways, said, “We

welcome Justin to

the team at this

exciting and chal-

lenging time in the

air cargo industry.

His experience and

familiarity with the

region and custom-

ers are already pay-

ing dividends.”

The Jaipur and Srinagar Airport got

first and second rank respectively

in the category of 2-5 million pas-

sengers in ACI-ASQ Survey. Airports

Authority of India chairman Guru-

prasad Mohapatra along with his

team received the ACI-ASQ Award at

a function held in Mauritius recently.

During the event, Mohapatra

said, “I am very happy to be a part of

the award receiving ceremony with

Member (Ops.) along with the deserv-

ing winners: APD (Airport director),

Jaipur and APD, Srinagar. I wish more

AAI airports to come into this category

so that I come next year to cheer

several APDs. I urge other AAI airports

to please take up my challenge. Big

cheers for Jaipur and Srinagar.”

This is for the second consecu-

tive time that Jaipur Airport has been

rated the best airport in the world in

the traffic volume of 2 to 5 million

passengers per year.

The Airport Service Quality (ASQ)

Awards are the aviation industry's

prestigious accolades. The awards

recognize the airports which have

achieved the highest passenger sat-

isfaction ratings in the ASQ Survey

- the world's benchmark measure of

airport excellence.

ment projects in the Pharma.

Aero working groups. Together

with these air cargo stakeholders,

we will develop global pharma-

ceutical trade lanes, implement

best practices and share market

knowledge and expertise.”

Pharma.Aero welcomes other

IATA CEIV airport communities,

shippers, airline carriers, logistics

companies and other phar-

maceutical stakeholders with

like-minded goals to become

members.

Peter Van Domburg,

district manager Belgium &

Luxembourg, explains, “Close

partnerships, consistent global

execution, targeted commu-

nications, and deep industry

expertise allow Expeditors’ lo-

gistics specialists to successfully

navigate through the complexi-

ties of the healthcare industry.

Pharma.Aero personifies the

answers to these needs and

why Expeditors believes in the

success of this kind of collabo-

ration which helps preserve the

integrity of Healthcare products

for the patients at the end of

the supply chain.”

“MVD Free Airport is confident

that joining Pharma.Aero will pro-

vide a solid platform for a better

understanding of key tendencies

and issues present throughout

the pharmaceutical supply chain.

It hopes to provide the network

with strategic insights on the

challenges faced throughout

emerging markets and the best

practices and lessons learnt that

will enable the industry itself to

raise the bar in terms of qual-

ity distribution standards,” says

Bruno Guella, managing director

at MVD Free Airport.

Anna Levander, CSO at Envi-

rotainer, explains, ”At Enviro-

tainer we feel very strongly that

bringing the industry together

to collectively further best prac-

tices based on real experience

is the way forward to secure

the integrity of Pharmaceutical

products.”

Brussels Airport and Miami Air-

port are the founding members

of this initiative in October 2016.


NEWS

AAI undertakes expansion of existing airport infrastructure at Tirupati and Kadapa

Tony Douglas to lead Etihad Aviation Group as its CEO

Emirates SkyCargo obtains revalidation of pharma certification at Dubai hub

Airports Authority of India has approved

the plan for expansion, strengthening

and upgradation of existing airport

infrastructure at Tirupati and Kadapa

Airport. The project plan for extension

and strengthening/resurfacing of exist-

ing runway at Tirupati Airport will make

the airport capable to cater handling of

wide-body aircraft. This will meet the

demand of growing international traffic

and international charted flights at the

airport. The estimated cost of the work

is Rs 177.10 crores and the project will be

completed within 24 months from the

date of commencement of work.

Tirupati Airport has been declared

an international airport recently and has

a huge tourist potential. The augmenta-

tion of infrastructure facilities com-

mensurate with growth of air traffic will

bring positive results for Tirupati Airport.

Similarly, extension and strengthen-

ing work of existing runway for the

operation of up to A-320 type of aircraft

and the work of Taxiway and Apron

along-with construction of isolation bay,

pavement against blast erosion, Runway

End Safety Areas (RESA) and perimeter

road, grading of strips etc. at Kadapa

Airport will be undertaken by AAI at a

total cost of Rs 94.44 crore. Government

of Andhra Pradesh has entered into a

MoU with Airports Authority of India to

facilitate upgradation of Kadapa Airport.

Emirates SkyCargo has

received a revalida-

tion of the European

Union Good Distribu-

tion Practices (EU GDP)

certification for pharma

operations at its hub

in Dubai. The annual

surveillance audit for

the revalidation was

conducted by Bureau Veritas, Germany.

The air cargo carrier originally received its EU GDP certification in 2016 for its

operations across the Emirates SkyCentral cargo terminals at Dubai International Air-

port and Dubai World Central as well as the 24/7 bonded trucking service connect-

ing the two hubs. This made Emirates SkyCargo the operator of the world’s largest

multi-airport GDP certified hub with over 8,600 square metres of dedicated pharma

facilities including the purpose built pharma terminal at Dubai International Airport

inaugurated in September 2016.

The carrier’s original GDP certification in 2016 and the subsequent revalida-

tion this year confirm that Emirates SkyCargo has established and maintained

its quality management system in line with the requirements of the GDP

standard.

September 2017 also marks one year since the launch of Emirates SkyCargo’s

specialised pharma product- Emirates Pharma. The carrier’s comprehensive

range of temperature controlled transport services for temperature sensitive

pharmaceutical products offers customers three levels to choose from- Emir-

ates Pharma, Emirates Pharma Plus and Emirates Pharma Active. These levels

have been developed based on a requirement mix based on the temperature

sensitivity of the product, the packing solution used and the origin/ destination

of the shipment.

Etihad Aviation Group has announced Tony

Douglas as the new chief executive officer. The

CEO’s appointment was announced by the

chairman of Etihad Aviation Group, Mohamed

Mubarak Fadhel Al Mazrouei. Tony Douglas will

join the company in January 2018.

Douglas joins Etihad from the United King-

dom’s Ministry of Defence, where he has served

as CEO of the Defence Equipment and Support

department, responsible for procuring and sup-

porting all the equipment and services for the

British Armed Forces.

In the UK, he held senior positions with airport

operator British Airports Authority ( BAA, now

Heathrow Airport Holdings Limited), and as CEO

and group chief executive designate of Laing

O’Rourke. His roles under airport operator BAA

included managing director of Heathrow Termi-

nal 5 project, Group Supply Chain director, Group

Technical director, and CEO of Heathrow Airport.

Previously, Douglas held senior positions

in the UAE, most notably as CEO of Abu Dhabi

Airports Company and as CEO of Abu Dhabi Ports

Company where he was responsible for the suc-

cessful delivery of Khalifa Port.

Al Mazrouei, Chairman of the Board of Etihad

Aviation Group, commented, “We are delighted

to have Tony return to Abu Dhabi to lead Etihad.

He has guided the transformation of large organ-

isations in the UAE and the UK, and he under-

stands the UAE and the region. He is also deeply

knowledgeable about commercial aviation and

keenly familiar with Etihad’s challenges and op-

portunities in a rapidly changing industry.”

As Group CEO, Douglas will work with the

Board and leadership team to expand and imple-

ment a range of strategic initiatives to position

Etihad for sustained success in an increasingly

competitive regional and global aviation market.

Douglas said, “Etihad is a force in global avia-

tion that must continue to adapt and evolve on

its own and with industry partners. It is an eco-

nomic and employment engine for the UAE and

the region. With new infra-

structure and attractions

like the expanded airport,

Louvre Abu Dhabi,

and Abu Dhabi Global

Market, Etihad has a

central role in supporting

the UAE’s position as a

global hub of transportation,

tourism, commerce, and

culture.”


NEWS

Ulrich Ogiermann leaves Qatar Cargo; Guillaume Halleux replaces him but as Acting Chief Off icer CargoQatar Airways’ Chief Officer Cargo

Ulrich (Uli) Ogiermann who an-

nounced his decision to leave

Qatar Cargo said the only reason

for doing so is purely personal

and family.

“My mother is indeed quite

ill (aged 89) and I think I should

stand by her side more than I can

do from Doha. It’s purely person-

al/family reasons why I decided

to move the center of activities

back to Europe,” Ogiermann.

Ogiermann also confirmed

that his position has been taken

by Guillaume Halleux, who is the

current Vice President of Cargo for

Asia Pacific at Qatar Airways. Hal-

leux, a French national has been

with Qatar Cargo for less than a

year and half. Before joining Qatar

Cargo, Halleux held key positions

at Bolloré Logistics and Air France.

goes to them. Probably bigger

than just growing the size of

the operation it was our push

for quality and operational

performance that has made a

difference,” he said.

“It has just been great to see

QR Cargo getting better and

bigger all the time. We are now

probably the largest Pharma car-

rier worldwide and this has been

a major breakthrough, convinc-

ing shippers that we have the

cool chain under control being

based in the Middle East, with

Express and Mail also developing

fast,” he added.

Ogiermann said that QR is a

great company and “I am very

grateful for the opportunity that

was given to me and my team

to develop this cargo operation

here (Doha).”

“I have handed over to Guillaume

Halleux already,” he said.

"Guillaume Halleux has been

appointed as the company’s

Senior Vice President Cargo and

Acting Chief Officer Cargo, effec-

tive 12 October," said QR Cargo

in an official response.

Speaking about his associa-

tion with QR Cargo since 2012,

when he took the position of

Chief Cargo Officer at the Doha

headquartered global airline,

Ogiermann says it is tremendous

and credits the growth and suc-

cess to his entire team.

“It has been a tremendous

joy to see the development

of QR cargo over all the years,

coming from number 14 just

years ago to soon be number

2 (inshallah), which was purely

a team effort and without so

many capable people around

me nothing would have been

achieved. The praise really

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NEWS

Etihad Airways picks IBS Software’s cargo management solutionEtihad Airways has entered into

a multi-million dollar, multi-

year contract with IT solutions

provider IBS Software for its cargo

management solution, iCargo,

to manage the airline’s air cargo

sales and operations worldwide.

This system will automate its

network-wide booking, pric-

ing and capacity management

functions with real-time revenue

management based evalua-

tion capabilities. iCargo will also

perform real-time shipment status

monitoring and quality manage-

ment as shipments traverse its

extensive network.

IBS was selected to replace

Etihad Cargo’s existing system

after an intense selection process

that spanned several months.

Once implemented, Icargo will

connect an international team

of users across the business and

will interface seamlessly with a

host of other system applications

within the IT landscape of the air-

Boeing and Air India recently cel-

ebrated the delivery of the airline’s

125th airplane from Boeing. The

airplane is the 27th 787-8 Dream-

liner for the national carrier.

“Boeing airplanes are, and

always have been, the foundation

of Air India’s fleet, providing us with

the very best in economics, fuel

efficiency, flexibility and passenger

comfort,” said Rajiv Bansal, chairman

and managing director, Air India.

“Taking delivery of our 125th Boeing

airplane and 27th 787 Dreamliner

marks an important day for Air

India. The 787 has been integral to

our expansion and competiveness,

enabling us to open numerous new

and nonstop routes and provide

our customers with an unrivalled

flying experience.”

Air India was an original mem-

ber of the 787 Dreamliner launch

group and took delivery of its first

787-8 in 2012. In all, the airline now

operates 27 787-8 Dreamliners,

along with 777-200LRs (Longer

Range), 777-300ER (Extended

Range), and 747-400s.

“Boeing and Air India have been

strong partners in aviation for more

than 70 years and it is a proud

moment in our shared partnership

to deliver their 125th airplane,” said

Dinesh Keskar, senior vice president,

Asia Pacific and India Sales, Boeing

Commercial Airplanes.

Air India operates the 787

Dreamliner to all its destinations in

Europe and to other cities in the

Gulf, Asia and Australia.

Blue Dart Express Limited has posted Rs 41.39 crores profit

after tax for the quarter ended September 30, 2017 marking

a 3.29 percent fall from the same quarter in the previous

year. The logistics major had clocked a net profit of Rs 42.80

crore in the year-ago period.

Revenue from operations for the quarter stood at Rs

702.83 crores.

Anil Khanna, managing director, Blue Dart said, "The

economy is still reviving from the after effects of demon-

etisation and now GST, which has impacted growth across

certain large industry verticals.”

Khanna, however, added that the outlook is moderate and

holds the potential for long term benefits. The firm will main-

tain a keen focus on managing cost pressures and improving

efficiency and EBIT to sustain its performance, he said.

air cargo management solu-

tion in the world today. This is a

strategic milestone for IBS and

heralds the beginning of a long

and productive business relation-

ship,” said VK Mathews, executive

chairman, IBS Group.

Etihad has chosen iCargo as

part of its move to a futuristic and

fully integrated platform. In the

new business model, where IT

becomes the enabler, iCargo will

address the airline’s need for a so-

lution to manage their inventory

sales and operations.

iCargo is an integrated solu-

tion that supports the require-

ments of airlines’ freight business

providing enhanced web-

enabled features that optimise

operations, enhance profitability

and provide scalability. The solu-

tion helps manage the increasing

volumes of cargo movement

requirements of freighters,

ground handling agents as well

as airports.

line. The real-time availability of

operational information through

iCargo will help generate action-

able intelligence, vastly improv-

ing and streamlining the selling

process, revenue generation and

quality of service. In addition,

through its online booking capa-

bility, Etihad Cargo will enable an

additional channel that will allow

it to be open for business 24

hours a day.

David Kerr, senior vice presi-

dent, Etihad Cargo, said, “iCargo

will enable us to be available to

our customers 24 hours a day

through a fully integrated online

booking portal. This will sig-

nificantly enhance our customer

service offering.”

“We are also working with

IBS to develop the functionality

to support our customers with

our product provision, loy-

alty programme and incentives

programme. The development

of this platform will allow Etihad

Cargo to implement end-to-end

integration of processes, provi-

sioning for real-time data and

greater operational efficiencies.”

“To be chosen yet again by

a leading airline is a reiteration

that iCargo is the most definitive

Boeing delivers Air India its 125th airplane

Blue Dart reports Rs 41.39 crore profit in Q2 2017

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vol 8 - issue 4 | october - december 2017 · november 16, 2017august 10, 2017 bengaluru|jw...

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