NEWS FROM FREIGHT
HANDLERS GLOBALLY CARGO SHORTS
In the Red.The trade
war with China is expected
to cost the average American
about $811 a year. The
US has followed through on
its threat to increase tariffs
on $200bn worth of Chinese
goods. Tariffs on Chinese
products being imported
into the US have been increased
from 10% to 25%.
The types of products covered
by the tariff increases
includes: fresh food, processed
foods, natural resources,
chemicals, building
materials, industrial products,
electronics, consumer
goods, toiletries and clothing
and textiles.
Climate Unchanged.
Amazon shareholders voted
down an employee-backed
resolution calling for more
aggressive action on climate
change at their recent annual
meeting. The employeefiled
resolution asked the
company to develop a public
plan for responding to
extreme weather events and
weaning itself off of fossil fuels.
It was publicly backed by
more than 7,600 employees.
“We’ll be back. The enthusiasm
is overwhelming,” said
Amazon employee Rebecca
Sheppard, who works in air
cargo operations.
US-China trade war ‘to
knock US$7.5 billion off
global airline profits’, says
International Air Transport
Association at Seoul conference
Industry body says USChina
tariff dispute, along
with high cost of fuel, will
mean combined profit of
US$28 billion – US$2 billion
less than 2018 – well down on
expectations.
CAL Cargo Airlines is
proud to announce that they
have successfully completed
the CEIV Pharma re-certification
process!
Worldwide Flight Services
(WFS) had agreed
with Avinor AS, Norway’s
state-owned operator of
Oslo Airport (OSL), to create
a new cold chain seafood
cargo center at OSL that
would handle up to 250,000
20 AIRPORT VOICE, JUNE 2019
tons of seafood per year. Just
recently, WFS and Avinor
said the plans for the new facility
have been canceled.
Kalita.U.S.-based ACMI
and charter operator Kalitta
Air launched new scheduled
freighter services connecting
Los Angeles International
(LAX) to Stewart Airport
(SWF), in support of the
United States Postal Service
(USPS) at Stewart International
Airport. According to
Kalitta they will continue to
ship of JFK Airport but expand
to the less congested
upstate airport about a 90
minute drive from JFK.
Zero-Growth. Brian
Pearce, chief economist at
the IATA, forecast “zero
growth at best” for air
cargo traffic this year, noting
the impact of the trade
tariffs imposed in the first
half of 2018. The Asia-Pacific
region, which accounts
for around 40 percent of
global air cargo traffic, was
“clearly under pressure”, he
added.
Cargo profits fall. IATA
reported that EBIT margin
in its sample of 20 airlines
had fallen to 3.6% from
4.1% a year ago. IATA further
commented “a further
fall in aggregate profits for
the airline industry” for the
first quarter of 2019, in comparison
with the same three
months of last year. The
Americas held fairly steady
as a whole, while Asia Pacific
saw some improvement
– and Europe weakened significantly.
The price of oil
and subsequent creep up in
prices is seen as a major contributor
with Iran oil export
constraints affecting the
cargo bottom line.
Hello Columbus. Cargocentric
Rickenbacker International
Airport in Columbus
Ohio will receive $15m
from the Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) for airport
improvements. This airport
has grown steadily over
the years supporting Columbus
as the 14th largest US city,
and major midwest market
for shipping consumer goods.
Columbus has been one of the
beneficiary cities growing
from congested East Coast
airports and its total focus on
cargo shipping. It serves important
freight carriers such
as AirBridgeCargo Airlines
(ABC), Cargolux, Cathay Pacific
Cargo, China Airlines
Cargo, Emirates SkyCargo
and Etihad Cargo. FedEx and
UPS also fly through Rickenbacker.
JFK not in the mix. Amazon
cancelled corporate facilities
in Queens as it continues
to grow outside of NY. Cincinnati/
Northern Kentucky International
Airport was the
choice for the recent Amazon
ground breaking on its new
$1.5 billion hub. Built to speed
up already fast deliveries, the
facility will open in 2021. The
huge 1000 acre plus site will
accommodate 100 freighters
while creating 2,000 jobs. No
news on any potential Stewart
International Airport
cargo handling.
Emirates chief commercial
officer Thierry Antinori
has resigned from his
position, where he managed
commercial operations and
products, Emirates Skycargo
and Emirates Skywards.
Adnan Kazim, divisional
senior vice president,
strategic planning, revenue
optimization and aeropolitical
affairs, will take over as
acting chief commercial officer.
The news comes shortly
after the airline reported a
69% drop in its annual profits
for the 2018-19 financial
year to $237m.
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