JFK passenger-cargo planes
fill passenger volume gap
Much needed medical supplies come in by the plane full
BY JEFF YAPALATER
Passenger cargo has become
the lifeline, literally
to millions of people around
the country. JFK Airport has
been instrumental in being
the location where many international,
especially Chinese
PPE goods, are arriving
daily. International passenger
flights are at the lowest level
in anyone’s memory. Passenger
aircraft have now been
brought into service over the
month of April to bring in
more goods than there is room
in large cargo freighters.
Since March of 2020, the
number of international
flights carrying passengers
has plummeted because of
Presidential executive orders
banning travel by passengers
from many parts of
Europe and other places.
On the other hand, the
number of planes that were
for passengers are now being
uses by the airlines to ship
cargo.
This is in addition to the
larger freighters many airlines
operate for traditionally
shipping air cargo.
Now, with the lack of human
travelers, the airlines
must continue to fly their
plane for both economical
and legal reasons and are using
the same passenger gates
as before at JFK , and at other
airports across the U.S, only
carrying cargo, much of it
Personal Protection Equipment
(PPE). Many of these
airplanes are using both the
belly and the passenger upper
level for boxes of PPE that are
masks, surgical gowns, and
ventilators. Some airlines are
taking their economy seats
out entirely while others are
actually seat belting boxes in
passenger seats.
10 AIRPORT VOICE, MAY 2020
The result can be overwhelming
at times for the
cargo handling companies
which move the cargo from
the plane into warehouses
where they wait for truck
shipments to the eventual destinations.
The amount of additional
cargo in a short period of time
can cause congestion and tension
among the trucking community
which may have to
wait for their freight to be inspected,
checked in and sorted
for driver pick-up. These situations
are hard to prevent since
these shipments of cargo are
frequent and can created bottlenecks
when expected to be
added to the regular basis of
planned flow.
Surprisingly though, these
passenger-cargo planes are
often larger Boeing or Airbus
aircraft which can be
offloaded and back in the sky
in a couple of hours if things
run right and scheduling permits.
This type of cargo influx
and new logistics is all a response
to the need by our
country for medical equipment
being shipped to hospitals,
health facilities, and suppliers
who are re-distributing
to the general public which
now is required to wear a
mask most often when out of
the house.
To make sure the facilities
continue to operte at the airports,
measures are in place
to prevent the spread of the virus.
All the cargo handlers at
the airport must wear masks,
and all are having their temperatures
checked at the
warehouses and maintaining
social distancing whenever
possible.
According to Jim Groark,
VP Cathay Pacific, the airline
has been active in both
freighter (747 type aircraft)
and passenger aircraft used
for cargo. “ We were overwhelmed
with cargo for our
freighters, so that we had to
use our passenger planes for
cargo.”
Cathay now runs both
freight and passenger-cargo
planes into JFK daily. According
to Groark, much of the
passenger cargo is PPE such
as masks, gowns and ventilators.
His Boeing 777’s and Airbus
A350’s can carry between
30-50 tons and the freighters
almost twice that amount. He
said that over a million pieces
of PPE can arrive in JFK each
day, in addition to the mail
Cathay carries.
How long this use of passenger
planes for cargo will
last is anyone’s guess. It all depends
on when the U.S. opens
the skies to international passenger
travel and how many
passengers begin to fly internationally.
In the meanwhile, this
surge in air cargo is helping
keep airlines flying, airports
functional and related companies
able to keep the pipeline
of sustenance flowing to the
public.
CBP team in the process of checking incoming cargo at JFK.
A busy Worldwide Flight Services cargo building handling thousands of consignments a day.
Swissport ground handler guides Emirates passenger-cargo flight
to the gate.
Big shipment of Salmon from Faroe Islands off Virgin Atlantic Airlines.