Business Line : Traffic volumes dip at new airport, says AP Minister

The Andhra Pradesh Government has said that the traffic at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport at Shamshabad dipped when compared to the volumes at the Begumpet airport that was shut down in March 2008 to make way for the new airport.
Replying to a question by Mr Pratap Reddy (Congress) in the Assembly, the Minister for Ports and Airports, Mr M. Venkataramana Rao, said that the passenger traffic dipped to 16,400 a day at the new airport from 17,400 a day at Begumpet airport.
He cited the sharp increase in ATF (Aviation Turbine Fuel) prices and poor road connectivity to the airport as the reasons for the dip in traffic volumes.
The number of aircraft traffic movements too saw a decrease at 208 a day at the new airport from 239 at the old airport that was closed for commercial aviation operations.
He, however, said that there was an increase in the number of international passengers, whose number had gone up to 4,000 a day from 3,400. The domestic passenger volume had come down by 1,600 (a day) from 14,000 to 12,400.Members from the Congress and some Opposition parties had called for the setting up of a House Committee to look into the collection of high-user development fee (UDF) by the GMR Hyderabad International Airport and other issues related to the new airport. The Airport Minister turned down the plea.
Responding to a plea on passing a resolution calling for waiver of UDF for Haj pilgrims, the Speaker, Mr K.R. Suresh Reddy, said the House could not allow resolutions against private parties.

Business Line : Deccan Express to raise funds worth $200 m

Deccan Express Logistics, an air and ground distribution network company formed by Capt. G.R. Gopinath, plans to raise $200 million to fund the project, which is expected to become operational by the first quarter of the next financial year.
The company has appointed Edelweiss, an investment banking and financial services company, to arrange for funding from private equity and help it with a business model to run its fully integrated logistics service.
Capt Gopinath told Business Line that he hopes to raise $70 million in the next four months, while the remaining funds were expected to be arranged within three years with the help of Edelweiss.

Tie-ups
Deccan Express signed a memorandum of understanding with GMR Group on August 13 for setting up express cargo operating facilities at Delhi and Hyderabad International Airports. The GMR Group has invested in the two airports with the licence to operate them.
Last month, Deccan Express had also signed an MoU for establishing a cargo hub at Nagpur Airport. With the three airport hubs and the road and rail linkage, the company would strengthen its distribution network for efficient logistics support.
The company will be taking delivery of two cargo aircraft from Airbus soon, while it plans to acquire eight more carriers to strengthen its fleet, said Capt. Gopinath.
He said with a large number of special economic zones expected to take off in the next two years, the company was looking to provide connectivity for the cargo from the SEZ through its multimodal express distribution network. The company was working out a franchise model for the road network.

Business Line : Perishable cargo centre in Hyderabad

Sensing huge potential for movement of perishable cargo such as horticulture, poultry and pharmaceutical products, the GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd will set up a 13,000-tonne cargo facility for perishable commodities at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) at Shamshabad. "The Rs 40-crore facility will help both exporters and importers of these commodities," Mr A Vishwanath, Chief Commercial Officer (CMO), said in a press release.
The APEDA (Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority) would give a subsidy of Rs 20 crore. The CPC (Centre for Perishable Cargo) would give a boost to horticultural activity in Andhra Pradesh. The centre would have an initial capacity of 13,000 tonnes a year. This would go up to 25,000 tonnes a year in the second phase (2013-2014). "We have estimated that there is a potential of 5,000 tonnes in the short term. We also expect huge demand from the retail and pharma industries. The potential in the latter segment is put at 3,000 tonnes," he said. - Our Bureau

Business Line : Express cargo hubs at Delhi, Hyderabad airports

GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd (GHIAL) and Delhi International Airport Pvt Ltd (DIAL) have signed memoranda of understanding with Deccan Cargo & Express Logistics Pvt Ltd (Deccan Express) for developing express cargo hubs in Hyderabad and Delhi.
A release from GHIAL said that Deccan Express will initially utilise the cargo terminal operated by Hyderabad Menzies Air Cargo Pvt Ltd (HMACPL).
“HMACPL will offer over 300 sq. m within the domestic wing of the cargo terminal for the exclusive use of Deccan Express, which will develop the express cargo facility at the airport as a hub for its business in the central and southern regions of India,” the release added.
DIAL will also offer over 2,000 sq. m to Deccan Express at the Delhi Airport for setting up of the facility and the latter will develop the express cargo facility at the Delhi Airport as a hub for its business in North India.
The operations of Deccan Express are expected to commence from January 1, 2009, and shift to the proposed Integrated Express Terminal at both the airports when ready.
“The MoU with the GMR Group will enable us to establish modern express cargo hubs in Hyderabad and Delhi which together with our central hub at Nagpur will function as a distribution model facilitating effective consolidation and dispatch to destination in the metros and the interiors,” the release quoted Capt G.R. Gopinath, Founder and Chairman, Deccan Express Logistics.
He added that the setting up of infrastructure at these strategic locations will enable Deccan Express Logistics to establish an extensive multi-modal (surface and air) storage, transportation and delivery network.

Expressindia.com: 'Logistics has huge job opportunities'

Ashok Kumar Posted online: Saturday , August 09, 2008 at 17:36 hrs

All India Management Association (AIMA), in association with JK Business School organised a global summit on Supply Chain & Logistics Management in New Delhi. Ashok Kumar of Expressindia.com speaks to prominent speakers at the event.
Dr. Nallan C Suresh, professor & chairman (Dept. of Operations Management and Strategy) from the School of Management, State University of New York, Buffalo called logistics as the most important segment of the Industry.
Terming logistics as ‘underrated’ in India, Dr Suresh said in western countries this trade enjoys the industry status.
Emphasising on the potential of the more than one billion strong population of India he said, “If we remove all kinds of hurdles that comes across logistics, we can drive costs down to our advantage.”
“If the logistics prices come down we can minimise the exploitation of both the producers as well as the consumers to a great extent as it will reduce the margins of the middlemen”, Dr. Suresh added.
Dr Reena Ramachandran Director General of JK Business School said, earlier, logistics management was just a support function. Most of the innovations happened in the past in this field were at the level of a company.
Since education and the industry are linked with each other it is prudent to teach strategic solutions to the students and give them hands on experience of the challenges that lie ahead, Ramchandran elaborated.
Outlining the importance of teaching logistics as a discipline Dr. Reena said, “Being a part of the system, we cannot escape reality. We need to work the logistics to manage the industry effectively.”
Another prominent speaker, SL Ganapathi, CEO, Logistics Plus India Ltd, said Logistics was always in the industry and was commonly known as the transport department. Now it has an integrated look. Calling it the backbone of supply Ganapathi said, “No industry could afford to run without efficient management of logistics.”
Explaining about the high costs of logistics in developing countries he said it is around 13% of the cost of the product paid by the consumers, which is significantly higher compared to the logistic expenditure of around 8% in the western economies.
Talking about the prospects of logistics management as a discipline Ganpathi maintained that Logistics has a huge potential for job opportunities. Not only that, “With better transport and infrastructure we can bring down the cost of logistics,” he added.
Colonel Faiz-ur-Rahman, chairman of the Sri Lanka based DHL Global Forwarding, commenting on the historic value of logistics said, “Genesis of Logistics could be found in the Bible also. It’s a synergy of various functions like packaging, transport etc. It’s a challenge for the modern industry to cut down the logistics’ expenditure and if we are able to do that, it will be a win-win situation for both the producers and the consumers.” Rahman stressed

Business Line : Andhra Pradesh drive to boost sea-borne trade

by K.V. Kurmanath

Andhra Pradesh is set to emerge as a major hub for sea-borne trade, within the next four-five years, thanks to the initiative of the State Government to develop facilities along the State’s 978-km long coast line.
The initiatives, as Mr K.V. Brahmananda Reddy, Special Secretary, Infrastructure & Investments (Ports), Government of Andhra Pradesh, explained to Business Line, would include development of non-major ports on public-private partnership (PPP) model and modernisation and upgradation of existing facilities.
A beginning had already been made with the first phase commissioning of four berths of the Rs 1,200-crore Krishnapatnam Port in July and the launching of trial operation of Gangavaram Port, a deep water port, a few days ago, he said.
The traffic throughput of the ports in Andhra Pradesh (excluding Visakhapatnam port), it is estimated, will reach the level of 145 million tonnes (mt) by 2011-12, the final year of the Eleventh Plan, as against 21 mt in 2007-08. The commissioning of the Krishnapatnam and Gangavaram ports is to double the throughput to 42 mt in the current financial year itself and further to 65 mt in 2009-10 and 95 mt in 2010-11 as more and more berths will be added to these ports. In fact, more than one-third of the projected 145 mt of traffic by 2011-12 is to be handled by Gangavaram and Krishnapatnam ports — Gangavaram port 35 mt and Krishnapatnam port 27 mt.
These ports, as Mr Brahmananda Reddy pointed out, would trigger industrial activity around them as well as in the hinterland. A case in point was the upcoming large capacity power plants around Krishnapatnam Port. A special economic zone too would come up to cash in on the facilities to be offered by the port, he said.
But, then, building capacity is one thing and utilisation is another. The pertinent question that arises is: will there be enough business for these ports? Or will they indulge in unfair practices to cut into one another’s business?‘Business for all’
According to Mr C. Sasidhar, Director (Administration) of Krishnapatnam Port, there will be business for all. The existing ports suffer from capacity constraints, leading to very high turnaround times for vessels, causing losses to the exporters and importers, he said, emphasising the need for additional port facilities.
A senior executive of Gangavaram Port said the growth prospects in the region being bright, there must be enough port facilities to meet the growing demand of importers and exporters. He cited the example of Visakhapatnam port, where pre-berthing delays varied from seven to 14 days.
On the other hand, Gangavaram port, the country’s deepest port, has installed a 800-mt conveyor to carry imported raw material directly from the port to the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant. “It will become much cheaper for exporters and importers operating out of our ports,” he said.
Andhra Pradesh, with one major port and 14 non-major ports, ranked number two in cargo handling in the last three years, with cargo handling capacity having increased substantially between 1998 and 2008. The State Government has initiated steps to help several non-major ports come up in the State under private initiative and these include Gangavaram, Krishnapatnam, Machilipatnam, Vodarevu, Nizampatnam, Meghavaram (Srikakulam district) and Kakinada (deep water port), the last two being captive ports.
While the Meghavaram port would be captive port of East Coast Energy and Power Systems, Kaninada port would be captive port for the Kakinada SEZ.
Machilipatnam port is to be developed by a consortium comprising Maytas Infra and Nagarjuna Construction Company. The concession agreement for the Rs 1,580-crore project was signed in April 2008. Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, the Chief Minister, laid the foundation stone for the project in the same month.
In March 2008, the State Government signed an agreement with Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) for developing two ports at Vodarevu (Prakasam district) and Nizapatnam and an industrial corridor connecting the two. A special purpose vehicle with Matrix Enport as a joint venture partner was signed.The shipyard proposal
Meanwhile, the Union Government wants to have a shipyard of international standard come up at Vodarevu, on the east coast.
Responding to the proposal mooted by the Union Minister for Shipping, Road and Highways, Mr T.R. Baalu, in April this year, the Chief Minister offered to make available 2,000 acres of land within six months for the proposed shipyard which, when ready, is to give a major boost to the proposed port corridor.
“The total private investments in various port projects will be about Rs 21,710 crore, including Rs 16,800 crore for the Nizampatnam and Vodarevu ports and the corridor,” Mr Brahmananda Reddy said, adding that “the port development programme of Andhra Pradesh fits well into the revised National Maritime Development Programme, which aims to develop total port capacity of 1,500 mt in the country by 2011-12.”

Business Line: ‘Rakhi’ bonds courier cos with consumers

by Shubhra Tandon on 09 Aug 2008

When physical distances keep loved ones apart, festivals become occasions to express emotions. And courier companies are doing their bit, designing innovative gift packs to bridge distances and to be part of the festive season.
Celebrations get underway, starting with Rakshabandhan next week, and Blue Dart with its ‘Rakhi Express’, Gati’s ‘Rishton ki Dor’ and XPS’ ‘Anmol Rakhi’, look to make the festival special for siblings separated by distances.
These gift packs contain sandalwood or designer rakhis, and ornate boxes of ‘roli and chawal’. In fact, there are even special envelopes to beat any weather condition and keep your rakhi safe!
Depending on whether you are sending your gift to domestic or international locations, the gift packs are priced between Rs 100 and Rs 3,000.
Though courier companies say that these special offerings during festivals cannot be viewed as an outright business opportunity, they do enable companies to create brand awareness and target new customers.
Speaking to Business Line, Mr Ketan Kulkarni, Blue Dart’s Head of Marketing, Communications and Sustainability says, “Products like our ‘Rakhi Express’ become innovation platforms for us to reach the young future consumers. It gives customers a chance to experience the brand and enables us to tap newer segments.”
Echoing his thoughts is Mr Anil Atri, Gati’s Chief of Sales and Marketing. “Festivals become special occasions to bond with the customers. One can establish the brand value by creating linkages between consumers and the company,” he said.
Gati has seen an annual growth of 10 to 15 per cent in its Rakhi product, and Blue Dart’s ‘Rakhi Express’ expects to grow by 40 per cent every year.
In the past too, companies have distributed cakes on Christmas and Haleem during Ramzan, says Mr Atri.
Blue Dart’s Mr Kulkarni adds, these products have an emotional side to them and go beyond “pure commercial gains”.

The Sentinel: Customs Secure Crores in aircraft duty case

The Sentinel, Aug 6, 2008

In one of the biggest crackdown on duty evasion in aircraft purchases, the customs department has collected nearly Rs 1000 crore in bonds from India Inc and individuals who shopped for planes for charter purposes and used them for personal needs.Since early July, the customs department had started seizing aircraft imported under “Non-Schedule Operator Permit” but were being used for personal purposes.“In all, nine aircraft and four helicopters were seized. Six aircraft and two helicopters have been released provisionally on execution of Bonds, totally valued at Rs 863 crore and Bank Guarantee valued at Rs 196 crore,” a spokesperson of the Central Board of Excise and Customs said.Explaining that the bonds cannot be regarded as revenue accrued to the government, the official said, “Bond is an undertaking given by a taxpayer that in case of any duty liability, in that event, the same will be paid by him. Bank guarantee is merely for security for the same purpose.”Earlier, tightening the noose, the government had seized aircraft of leading corporate houses like Reliance Industries, Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, GMR, Oberoi and IndiaBulls among others, bringing under scanner over 250 such planes acquired since 2007 to detect duty evasion.Anybody found guilty of acquiring aircraft with duty exemption under NSOP Scheme is liable to pay a penalty of up to five times the duty evasion, a Finance Ministry official said.Customs official said some business houses had taken ‘advantage’ of the duty exemption announced last year on import of aircraft meant for chartered flights. But it has been found that many of these were later being used for personal purposes. The aircraft imported for private purposes attract 28 per cent duty as against zero duty for scheduled and non- scheduled operators. According to sources in the department, many are now eager to pay up to save their aircraft from being seized by the Air Intelligence wing of the Customs Department. (PTI)

The Economic Times: Air India to cut flights on international routes

The Economic Times, 05 Aug 2008

In a move to curtail mounting losses, national carrier Air India plans to withdraw some flights on international sectors. A decision to this effect was taken in a board meeting of the company held in Mumbai on Sunday. The company has already reduced capacity in the domestic market by nearly 15%. Air India has also reduced air fare on international routes ranging from 5% to 20% to improve its load. “We are planning to cut some flights on international routes to contain losses. The final decision on the number of sectors where we would withdraw operation would be taken shortly,” an Air India official said. According to industry sources, Air India would soon withdraw its services on Delhi-Los Angeles sector. Some of the flights on India-Africa sector would also be pulled out. The Delhi-Los Angeles service was launched in June 2004. Air India operates three flights a week to Los Angeles. The Union civil aviation minister, Praful Patel, recently said Air India would save about Rs 1,000 crore in the next 12 months by undertaking an exercise of rationalising routes. Currently, the airline is running up a loss of Rs 13 crore per day on account of high jet fuel price and significantly low load factor — which is below industry average of about 60%. It’s estimated that the public carrier lost upwards of Rs 2,000 crore in the calendar year of 2007-08.

Singapore Airlines To Launch Second Daily Service Between Singapore And Delhi From 1 September 2008

05 August 2008
Singapore Airlines will increase its frequency on the Singapore-Delhi route to double daily (14 times weekly), up from the current nine flights a week, with effect from 1 September 2008.The increase in frequency offers greater choice and more connection options for Singapore Airlines customers travelling on its global network. The new schedule will provide for a daily early morning arrival into Delhi, in addition to the existing late evening arrival. On the return from Delhi, the new schedule provides a morning departure that arrives into Singapore in the late afternoon.The increase in frequency reflects the strong interest and demand for flights to and from Delhi, and the importance of the Indian market to Singapore Airlines.To introduce the new second daily flight, Singapore Airlines is offering a special Economy Class online fare from Singapore, on the SQ406 flight to Delhi. Return tickets are priced at S$798, inclusive of all taxes and surcharges (subject to currency fluctuations) and are for a minimum of two people travelling together. The offer is valid for outbound travel till 31 October 2008 and bookings can be made up till 8 August. For more details, full terms and conditions which apply to this fare, and other promotional deals, please visit singaporeair.com.Singapore Airlines has begun operating one of its daily flights between Singapore and Delhi (SQ407 and SQ408) using the new Boeing 777-300ER aircraft. This aircraft is fitted with the Airline’s new-generation award-winning cabin products, including the biggest Business Class seat in the world and the most advanced inflight entertainment system ever developed, featuring over 1,000 entertainment options and a suite of office applications.

IATA : Freight Traffic sees its first decline since 2005

IATA 04 Aug 2008
International freight traffic declined -0.8% in June. This is the first decline seen since May 2005 and follows several months of falling manufacturing sector confidence indicators.
Asia Pacific airlines led the contraction with a -4.8% year-on-year decline for June traffic.
Latin American airlines recorded the largest contraction (12.7%) as the region’s cargo sector continues to re-structure its capacity.
European carriers saw freight demand growth fall to 0.7% in June from 1.4% in May.
North American carriers also saw freight demand growth slow to 4.0% in June from 4.6% in May.
Middle Eastern carriers delivered the strongest performance with 12.1% growth (up slightly from the 10.7% recorded in May).
African airlines recorded a -1.9% year-on-year decline in June.
“The airline sector is in trouble. Losses this year could reach US$6.1 billion, more than wiping out the US$5.6 billion that airlines made in 2007. Falling demand and rising costs are re-shaping the industry,” said Bisignani. “To survive the crisis, urgent action is needed. Airports and air navigation service providers must come to the table with efficiencies that deliver cost savings. Labour must understand that efficiency is the only path to job security. And governments must stop crazy taxation and give airlines the freedom to merge and consolidate where it makes business sense.”

The Economic Times: Tuscan Ventures picks up 12.45pc stake in LCL Logistix

4 Aug, 2008, 1535 hrs IST, PTI (The Economic Times)

Tuscan Ventures on Monday said it has picked up 12.45 per cent stake in Mumbai-based freight forwarder firm, LCL Logistics, for an undisclosed sum. "This investment will fund LCL Logistix's rapid expansion plans and further poise them to provide as well as command outstanding value to and from all its stakeholders," Tuscan's Managing Director Vishal Sharma said in a release here. Tuscan Ventures specialises in value creation through operational excellence in supply chain, logistics and transportation infrastructure. LCL Logistix's core product and service offering includes tailored containerised logistics solutions to all major destinations globally. It operates warehouses in Mumbai, Nagpur, Haldia and New Delhi, the release said.

Times of India: Courier cos raise tariffs

Reeba Zachariah TNN (Published in TOI on 05 Aug 2008)

India's largest logistics company Blue Dart has revised prices in its retail air and ground express services by 15% and air freight services by 10%, effective this month, owing to rising operational costs. Elbee Express too has hiked tariffs by 20-25%. Fuel prices coupled with the double-digit growth rate of inflation has compelled companies to hike rates, making courier services costlier. Says Nikhil Shah, executive director of Elbee Express, ‘‘We were not in a position to absorb the kind of increase in aviation turbine fuel and diesel prices and so decided to step up prices.'' He added that this is the first price revision this year in a business driven by banking, insurance and financial services sectors followed by e-commerce. Last Thursday, public sector companies raised aviation turbine fuel by around 3%. Increase in jet fuel rates has also resulted in carriers upping their fares to boost yields and chop losses. Sonjoy Roy, GM, AFL-Wiz, said, ‘‘The price increase to the customer is partial. The single largest cost component in our business comes from the air and surface line haul--both of which had major impact due to increase in fuel cost. We continuously work on our route optimization, productivity mapping and hence are able to minimize the cost.'' He said the cost of sending a 500gm shipment from Mumbai to Delhi has now increased by approximately 10-12%.

PTI : NACIL turns passenger aircraft into cargo carriers

Press Trust Of India / New Delhi August 04, 2008, 5:32 IST
The National Aviation Company of India (NACIL) , the entity formed after the merger of Indian Airlines and Air India, is converting a number of its passenger aircraft into freight carriers as part of its plans to make cargo operations a strategic business unit.

Out of the nine airplanes that would be readied to fly under the Air India Cargo banner by first week of next month, five have been already converted into freight carriers.
“Consulting firm Accenture had suggested that making the cargo division as a strategic business unit (SBU) as part of giving NACIL a new avatar which has been accepted by the company. Hence, there is also a new focus on the business stream,” a NACIL spokesperson said.
While two Airbus A310s have already been converted, another two would be done by the end of this month.
Similarly, four Boeing 737-200s have been converted into freight carriers and another one would be completed by the beginning of next month, the spokesperson said.

SpiceJet Cargo takes off

Announcement / Corporate July 30, 2008, 21:13 IST (Business Standard)
Domestic Cargo Operations of SpiceJet, India's "best low cost airline"*, is now successfully running in nine cities. This includes the major metros like New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore and Hyderabad. Among the secondary cities are Ahmedabad, Pune and Coimbatore.
SpiceJet is aggressively looking at the cargo business and has already put in place the necessary infrastructure requirements manned by trained personnel who ensure a high level of service.
Commenting on the market enthusiasm, Samyukth Sridharan, Chief Commercial Officer, SpiceJet said, "The response from the market has been very positive and encouraging. In the month of June alone we have uplifted in excess of 1320 tonnes that has generated revenue of over Rs 3.5 crores. We see a huge demand for our specialized services across industries with special emphasis on auto and garment. There is a huge demand for perishables like food and flowers."
"The domestic cargo industry is estimated to grow in excess of 15% annually. We see a tremendous potential in this business and for us we are confident of touching a magic figure of 100 crores annually within the first three year of cargo operations. "he further added.
SpiceJet will soon start its cargo operations from Guwahati and Bagdogra.
With the new generation Boeing 737 – 800/ 900ER fleet, SpiceJet can carry between 2 tons to 3.5 tons of cargo on each of its flight. SpiceJet operates 94 flights every day to 16 destinations and can offer a capacity of over 300 tons per day.
In the ancillary services space, SpiceJet is already present in onboard advertising, home delivery of tickets, in-flight contests and travel insurance.
About SpiceJetSpiceJet is India's 'best low cost airline' *, delivering the lowest air fares with the highest consumer value. We operate 94 flights daily to 16 cities viz. Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Bagdogra, Chennai, Coimbatore, Delhi, Guwahati, Goa, Hyderabad, Jammu, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, Srinagar, Varanasi and Vizag. Our on-time performance is amongst the best in India, at 82%, coupled with a Technical Dispatch Reliability of 99.6% making us an airline with least cancellations. SpiceJet's new generation fleet of 15 Boeing 737-800 / 737-900ER aircraft are backed by cutting edge technology and infrastructure to ensure the highest standards in safety and operating efficiency.
*SpiceJet was recognized as Best Low Cost Airline for 2007 by TAFI (Travel Agents Federation of India)-Abacus, awarded at Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia.
SpiceJet voted the Best Low Cost Airline by a reader's survey conducted nationally by India's leading travel magazine Outlook Traveller. (Feb 2008)

Air cargo plans to take off despite slowdown

28 Jul, 2008, 0205 hrs IST, ET Bureau

Indian companies are going ahead with their cargo plans amidst slowdown and lower projected demand for the cargo planes. The Boeing Company, the US-based aircraft manufacturer, in its 2008 Current Market Outlook (CMO) for India, has said the country will need only 24 dedicated freighters for the 2008-2027. The aircraft maker has not increased the forecast for cargo planes from last year (2007-2026). This is when the company has revised the projections for passenger plans to 977 (2008-2027) from last year's projection (2007-2016) of 887. Boeing's 20-year forecast takes into account the industry's near-term challenges, including slowdown in world economy, surging fuel prices, slowing traffic growth and concerted action by airlines to balance costs and revenues.

Loading and unloading of cargo in Kolkata airport automated

Press Trust Of India, Kolkata, July 23, 2008

In a bid to automate and speed up loading and unloading of cargo planes, two sophisticated machines have been installed at the N S C Bose International Airport by the AAI.
The Automated Storage Retrieval System (ASRS) imported from Malaysia would be used for loading cargo planes and the Elevated Traffic Vehicle System (ETVS) from Germany for unloading them, Senior Manager (Cargo) N S C Bose International Airport K J Raju told PTI.
The machines, the first of their kind to be installed by the Airports Authority of India (AAI), each costing Rs 10 crore would reduce the time for loading and unloading by at least ten hours, Raju said.
The ASRS designed by Malaysian company Metronic has a capacity of unloading 2,000 tons of cargo per day, while the volume currently was 80 tons per day.
"So long we had to do everything manually which is very tedious and took a fair amount of time," Raju said.
"We have imported this machine keeping in view the increasing volume of work in the next 25 years" he said.
The ASRS would unload cargo and store it after checking and numbering it in a matter of five hours, which now took 15 hours, Raju said.
The ETVS has a capacity of 280 tons which would help in loading materials directly from trucks to cargo aircraft.
"At present the volume of export at the airport is around 68 tons per day. We have imported this machine keeping in mind the increased demand of export particularly leather, garments and auto parts to countries like Bangladesh, Hong Kong, Japan, UAE and the European countries," Raju said.
Both machines are now at the cargo building in the International terminal, but they would be shifted to a new building which is under construction.

Captain Gopi: Determine To Fly Higher And Higher

22 Jul, 2008, 0001 hrs IST,Juhi Shrivastava, ET Bureau

His vision was not restricted to having the biggest airline or the biggest company, it was a goal which was attainable and yet not quantifiable. Captain Gorur R Iyengar Gopinath, also called as Captain Gopi by his acquaintance, left army after 8 years of work to seek newer vistas. After achieving success as a Seri culturist, he made his foray in the aviation sector and launched ‘Deccan Aviation’ – a Heli-charter company. One wonders where the inspiration for all this comes from and pat comes the answer. “The most important inspiration comes from one’s vision – the dream to make a difference, an impact which benefits people, society and the country regardless of one’s field. The challenge before me was to build an airline that can effectively cater to the top and the bottom-line of the consumer pyramid and deliver as an efficient business model,” Captain Gopi states. As the Chairman and Managing Director of Deccan it’s been a roller coaster ride for him. “I don’t believe in management theories and have always chosen to follow on my instinct and do my own research,” he declares. The biggest hurdle in front of Captain Gopi in achieving this dream was of funding. “It took me four years just to get a single helicopter on lease,” he reveals. Bureaucratic challenges would be a close second. “I had to deal with the red carpet and the red tapism, bouquets and brickbats all simultaneously,” he adds. Being a die hard optimist he absolutely refused to give up on anything. With every fresh challenge he strains himself to innovate and do things differently, and overcome the hurdle. Captain Gopi recalls, “When we launched Deccan, our first flight had caught fire and we were written off. Then there were strict government controls and predatory pricing from the competition to deal with.” In spite of all this he decided to continue to surge ahead against all odds, by developing cost efficiency, the fastest aircraft turn around time in the industry alongside wide connectivity and ticketing access. The man is geared up again to launch his another venture – Deccan Cargo – an integrated air and ground delivery system which will offer a seamless transportation network. “This venture will offer logistics solutions for manufacturing industries which will have a huge cost impact by eliminating the need for warehousing and transportation infrastructure,” he declares. His success is not governed by any formula or strategy. “There is no recipe for success; an entrepreneur has to pursue his or her passion with single minded determination and be aware that we cannot let the fear of stumbling make us give up moving ahead,” he affirms. He accepts that an entrepreneur has to grapple with many difficulties and setbacks and the only way forward is by keeping a resolute focus on the objective. “It is important to consistently remind oneself why one has ventured out in the first place. Most importantly, learn to assimilate failure. No failure or disappointment is a closed chapter. It is an invaluable opportunity to rectify errors and move forward,” he advocates. “The dream to empower every Indian to fly may not be entirely accomplished in my life time but it does get realised everyday as more and more Indians take to the skies,” he proudly accepts. On concluding note, he visions to expand his company and cater to wider domestic and global operations.

Maya’s airport crashlands in politcal mess

Zeenat Nazir (posted online on Indian Express on July 19, 2008)
Proposal for Greater Noida airport lying with law ministry for more than four months
New Delhi, July 18: With changing political dynamics at the Centre, Bahujan Samajwati Party chief Mayawati’s pet airport project at Greater Noida in Uttar Pradesh seems to have gone into deep freeze.

Sources in the civil aviation ministry said that the Rs 5,000 crore greenfield Taj International Aviation Hub (TIAH) in Jewar — first conceptualised in 2001 by the then Mayawati government — was now unlikely to be pushed ahead anytime soon. “The proposal for the airport is lying with the law ministry for
more than four months now. It is unlikely that it would be approved now, given the current political situation,” sources in the civil aviation ministry said.
The law ministry has been examining the Greater Noida airport proposal ever since a Group of Ministers (GoM) was constituted in February. The GoM was to look into implicit and explicit agreements signed with the operators of the Delhi’s IGI airport, located just 70 km away, and assess if the proposed new airport would violate any contractual obligations.
To that end, the two ministries were to jointly submit a studied view on technical and legal aspects. While the civil aviation ministry had forwarded a favourable assessment to the Law Ministry well over four months ago, the latter is yet to come back with a view. “We have reminded the law ministry to submit their paper, but there does not seem to be a sense of urgency now,” the source said.
The proposed Greater Noida airport was expected to handle around 3.9 million passengers annually by 2011-12, or roughly one-fifth of the current traffic at the New Delhi airport, according to estimates by the state government. It would also seek to derive a significant share of revenues through shopping malls, hotels, a cargo hub, an aviation academy and residential complexes as part of the airport project.
“The important thing to be considered is that there should be a level playing field between the proposed Noida and existing Delhi airport. For instance, in Delhi airport there is scope to commercially utilise only five per cent of the land. If around 10-20 per cent of land is available for commercial exploitation at Greater Noida, it is foreseeable that it may offer facilities at lesser cost and gain an upper hand,” a senior civil aviation official told The Indian Express earlier.
• According to AAI, the estimated traffic at the IGI Airport will be 108 million per year by 2015-16, leading to severe congestion and a need for more capacity.
• The aviation ministry said that the Greater Noida airport could solve this problem

Cargo movement intact

M. Soundariya Preetha (published in The Hindu on 14 July 2008)

For an industrialised district as Coimbatore that has a basket of products exported to various destinations, international connectivity is essential.
Garments, components and castings are some of the products that get air lifted from the district regularly. The air cargo complex here handled nearly 3,000 tonnes of cargo in 2006-2007.
It was 3,476 tonnes in 2007-2008. This year, during the first three months, it was about 300 tonnes. The manufacturers here use airlines for cargo movement mainly to meet delivery schedules and to send samples, says an official at the air cargo complex.
Manohar D. Menon of Peirce Leslie India points out that Coimbatore has Air Arabia, Silk Air and Sri Lankan Airlines with three to four services a week from each.
Each flight has 3 tonnes to 5 tonnes of cargo loading capacity. Though the cargo charges have not gone up, the fuel surcharge has been increased. It is Rs. 54 a kg now as against Rs. 38 a kg about two months ago.
The Airports Authority of India has also increased the Terminal Storage and Processing charges.
The volume is not increasing here substantially and the costs are one of the reasons, he says.
Facilities also should be improved. For instance, Coimbatore should have facilities for plant quarantine certification to encourage vegetable cargo movement. These items now go to other airports, he says.
A garment industry representative in Tirupur says when garments are sent by air, the charges are seven to eight times more than regular shipment.
Hence, exporters resort to it mainly to send samples and when they are under pressure to meet delivery schedule

Deccan to be Nagpur hub’s first cargo operator

Vivek Deshpande (Posted online on Indian Express on July 11, 2008)

NAGPUR:: The Multimodal International Hub Airport at Nagpur (MIHAN) project got its first major shot in the arm with the Deccan Cargo Pvt Ltd (DCPL) signing an agreement with the Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC), the special purpose vehicle implementing MIHAN, to set up its air cargo hub in the MIHAN’s SEZ.

Maharashtra chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, who is also MADC chairman, and DCPL chief Captain Gopinath signed an agreement here on Thursday. “We are likely to actually start the cargo operations by January or February next year,” said Gopinath. “We will have a fleet of ten aircraft to begin with.”
Gopinath said, with the Deccan hub at Nagpur, the stage is set for the city to become the logistical capital of India, and in 30-odd years of the whole world. Around 50 acres of land has been given for the Deccan project and more could be given if needed.

Rise in airport fee, ATF may hit cargo tonnage growth

Anirban Chowdhury / New Delhi July 06, 2008, 0:04 IST(Business Standard)

A rise in aviation turbine fuel (ATF) and spiralling airport charges have played havoc with cargo airline companies. According to industry forecasts, cargo tonnage growth, which stood at 10.5 per cent last year, might slow down to below 10 per cent this year.

For cargo carrier Blue Dart, for instance, land lease rentals, the amount paid for facilities such as warehouses and dockets, have increased from anywhere between 7.5 per cent to as much as 450 per cent during the last one year. Blue Dart operates to seven airports - New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad.
These places account for about 90 per cent of the cargo carried in India.Besides, limited infrastructure for cargo at various airports is the main problem for airlines.
A Blue Dart executive said that while in its tonnage carried has increased by almost five times in the last 10 years, the space allocated to them at several airports like Delhi have remained the same due to limited infrastructure at the airports.
Indian airports fall far behind in terms of cargo facilities. While the Frankfurt Airport in Germany handles, 5,200 metric tonnes of cargo a day, much more than an Indian airport handles in one month.
"Cargo is a neglected sector because there are very few dedicated domestic cargo carriers in India. Almost 80 per cent of cargo carried in India is carried in the belly-hold space of passenger aircraft," said an industry expert.
An Air India Cargo executive said, "We have less problem of space since our capacity (freighter as well as passenger) is increasing at a greater than our tonnage. While most of our freighter aircraft are chartered, majority of the cargo carried by us is still transported in the belly-hold space of our passenger aircraft."
Air India's cargo operations still accounts for merely 7-8 per cent of its total revenue.
Also, like passenger carriers, freighter airlines are also severely affected by rising jet fuel prices. For Air India cargo, ATF costs as a percentage of total costs has gone up from 25 to 50 per cent during the last seven to eight months.
According to company sources, the carrier has recently introduced a fuel surcharge of Rs 5,000/tonne or its domestic operations.
Air freighter charges for Blue Dart have also shot up by around 20 per cent.
"Freighter aircraft are usually less fuel efficient than passenger aircraft as they are passenger aircraft turned in to freighters," said a cargo airline executive.

Dragonair flight to Hong Kong

The Statesman July 3, 2008

Dragonair, a sister concern of Cathay Pacific, today launched its direct flight from Bangalore to Hong Kong, covering the distance in five hours. Its maiden flight arrived in the city from Hong Kong in the wee hours of the morning. In the process, it also became the only airline to operate a non-stop service between the two cities. The round trip fare for now is pegged at Rs 22,000. Together with Cathay Pacific Airways, Dragonair will now operate 35 flights from India. It recently added 20 new flights a week including additional services from Chennai, making a total of 28 flights a week from India to Hong Kong from different locations. According to Mr Algernon Yao, general manager, ground services and international affairs, Dragonair, along with Cathay Pacific, seized the opportunity to tap the available potential in India subsequent to the bilateral agreement that was announced earlier this year. He told newsmen here that the airline had commenced operations from the city following the huge potential that was waiting to be tapped. Despite the soaring prices of aviation fuel coupled with the high inflation in the country, the airline was confident of doing well. This optimism followed the absence of capacity till now. Dragonair also hopes to exploit the growing demand for business and leisure travel among Indians. The number of such travellers is expected to jump substantially. Already, the tourism promotion authorities in the island are gearing up to launch a major campaign to attract more Indian tourists, leveraging the advantage of a direct flight. Mr Tom Wright, general manager, India, middle east Africa and Pakistan, for Cathay Pacific, on his part, added that cargo remained a major part of the airlines' strategy as it accounted for almost 30 per cent of its revenues.

FDI limit in aviation cargo may go up

As published in Business Line (The Hindu) on June 29, 2008

Minister proposes to increase limit from 49% to 74%

The civil aviation sector, which is already getting attractive for foreign investors, would have another sector opened up. This time, the Minister for Civil Aviation, Mr Praful Patel, is proposing to increase the FDI limit in cargo from 49 per cent to 74 per cent.
However, the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) and the Ministry of Commerce are examining the issue, said Mr Patel, at the flagging off ceremony of Air India’s first freighter aircraft.
The state-owned carrier had earlier said that it plans to convert two of its Airbus 310 passenger aircraft to operate as freighters. The first aircraft has been deployed on the Europe route flying from Mumbai and Bangalore via Damam to Frankfurt. The aircraft with a capacity of 34 tonnes each have been converted at a cost of $7.95 million per aircraft. Market share
Air India’s current market share in the export segment is in the range of 9 to 11 per cent and between 5 and 7 per cent in the import segment.
Second converted aircraft will be operational in July. While currently, cargo operations will tap the growing European market, plans are to look at countries such as China, Japan and even the US with the induction of more capacity in the long run, said Mr V. Thulasidas, Chairman and Managing Director of Air India.
He also said, “One of the main business components of the merged airline will be cargo.” Mr Thulasidas added that with Indian Airlines also converting its Boeing 737-200 into cargo carriers, the company is looking at the emergence of a cargo airline in the future.
The Minister, Mr Patel further said, “There should be at least 500 cargo planes in India in the next 10 years,” and that the operations remain “high on Government’s agenda”.

Chennai airport must spruce up cargo infrastructure

As published in Business Line (The Hindu) on June 23, 2008

Chennai airport risks losing its cargo business to Bangalore if infrastructure at the air cargo complex does not improve, feel members of the cargo trade.
Chennai airport’s monthly cargo import is touching around 12,000 tonnes, compared with the average 4,000 tonnes per month five years ago. Except for adding two sheds, there has been no improvement in infrastructure in the air cargo complex in the last five years, says Mr J. Krishnan, Vice-President, Air Cargo Agents Association of India, and Chairman, Logistics Committee, Madras Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
The Chennai air cargo complex is handling cargo beyond its capacity. It handled 2.34 lakh tonnes in 2007-08, against the capacity of 2.22 lakh tonnes. For the Airport Authority of India (AAI), Chennai, out of the total revenues of Rs 430 crore in 2007-08, cargo contributed the maximum of Rs 140 crore. This does not include the aircraft parking and handling charges, he says.
According to Mr Krishnan, the Chennai air cargo complex is not geared to handle large-sized parcels. Five years ago, cargo used to arrive in small pallets and in low-weight cartons. Today, however, Nokia’s pallet weighs 800 kg, and most parcel sizes are over 100 kg.
Last year, the free period to keep cargo at the air cargo complex was reduced to three days from five. The scene today is such that Chennai needs almost three days for the AAI to make cargo ready for clearance. The free days are all used by the AAI for its own internal working. The shortage of manpower and machinery adds to the problem, says Mr Vijaya Kumar, Vice-President, Chennai Custom House Agents’ Association.
The AAI consumes five times the transit time of air-lifted cargo from origin to destination. Consequently, the very purpose of routing imports by air to meet critical requirements is defeated due to the ‘mishandling’ of cargo by AAI, he says. The Minister of State for Finance, Mr S. S. Palanimanickam, in his inaugural address at the Golden Jubilee Celebrations of the CCHAA recently, said: “If you look out of the aircraft’s window you see cargo everywhere in the airport.” He was referring to the way cargo is scattered around the air-cargo complex. “Cargo should be readily made available to customers and the only time cargo is not available should be when it is carried by an aircraft.”
Agents handling consignments for some of the multinational companies say that companies in Sriperumbudur, a hub for electronic manufacturing two hours away from Chennai, working on just-in-time, will divert cargo to Bangalore if infrastructure does not improve at Chennai.
“If there are delays in Chennai, we will explore the option of moving to Bangalore in future,” Mr Sachin Saxena, Director, Operations and Logistics, Nokia India, told Business Line during a recent visit to the company’s plant in Sriperumbudur. “We need to work out the overall savings in the logistics cost by such a diversion.”
It takes 36-38 hours to move the cargo from the aircraft ‘belly’ to the ground, compared to three-four hours in developed countries. Another six-eight hours is added for binning — which is data entry in the airport authority system for storage of cargo in the earmarked location, according to Mr N. Siva Subramaniam, Chairman, Air Cargo Agents Association of India-Southern Region (ACAAI-SR).
Multinationals may be willing to spend more on road transport if their cargo is available on time. It takes nearly 50 hours in Chennai for clearance of import cargo. By moving to Bangalore, if the cargo is cleared in 12 hours and another four hours is lost in road transport, companies can still save more than half the time, says Mr Asad Caasim, Committee Member, ACAAI-SR.
“There is no concerted effort from AAI to overcome the problems at the air cargo complex,” he says. The proposal to move cargo to an off-location Air Freight Station has also been ‘scuttled’ by AAI. The AFS will ease the pressure on AAI and create space at the air cargo complex, he says. Mr Dinesh Kumar, Chennai Airport Director, says the infrastructure-related problem was there two years ago. But the new sheds provide a lot more coverage now. The situation looks better now than two years ago. “We will keep expanding the facilities,” he says.
Mr Subramaniam of ACAAI-SR says the roofs of the sheds leaked during the unseasonal rains that lashed the city recently. With the onset of the monsoon just a couple of months away, the AAI should take immediate steps to ensure that cargo is not kept in the open and that the sheds are well protected. “We should not have a situation like two years ago when tonnes of cargo were exposed to the heavy rains. Companies such as Nokia lost heavily then,” he says.

Air India cargo service

The Telegraph, June 17, 2008

Air India is set to launch its cargo service this month-end and long-distance non-stop flight to the US from August 1. Air India will launch its cargo service on the Frankfurt and Paris routes with Airbus A-310s, two of which have been converted into cargo freighters, Air India chairman V. Thulasidas said, adding that “the non-stop US flight to New York will start on August 1 with the new Boeing 777-200 er to be delivered sometime in July”.

Enormous growth in cargo movement

K.R. Wadhwaney, The Tribune, June 15, 2008

The steep rise in fuel prices has left all airlines, government and private, bleeding profusely. The fares have risen and airlines losses have increased.
The minister of state for civil aviation Praful Patel knocked at the doors of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and finance minister P. Chidambaram. Sadly, he did not get any assurance from them.
"This downgrade scenario is likely to affect growth of airport infrastructure development programmes throughout the country", fears the minister. The situation has turned murkier than it was until recently.
As there is no possibility of arresting overhead expenses, quite a few scheduled and no-frills carriers have decided to reduce their operations.
Some are even facing the possibility of closure. As the current situation exists, there is a scope for only the fittest three or four carriers to survive.
While dark clouds are hovering around Indian skies, the minister is trying to secure relaxation in rules so that more private airlines are able to fly on international routes.
This will be possible only if the government relaxes the rule of the minimum five years of operations.
While passenger traffic has hit turbulent weather, there is an enormous growth in cargo movement on both national and international sectors.
The airline bigwigs are convinced that what they lose on passenger traffic can be offset through cargo uplift.
The National Aviation Company's rating has risen from ninth position in September 2007 to number one in March-April 2008.
The director of commercial (cargo) Anita Khurana is optimistic that airline's operation from new hub of freighter in Nagpur will be immensely successful.
This has been her theme song even when she was heading cargo section of the merged identity, Indian Airlines.
Equally optimistic in this regard is Blue Dart's managing director Tulsi Mirchandaney. "Time is money" and majority of corporates are now concentrating on sending their goods through air instead of depending upon road, rail or steamer. "The quick turnover of the money is the key to success", say cargo handlers.
The congestion at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) will continue to worry operators and passengers as new runway, 3rd, will not be ready until end of this year. It was scheduled to be ready by March 2008 and then by June 2008.
Now much work remains to be done and the authorities fear it will not be operational until middle of 2009.
The civil work like construction of road on the runway remains far behind. Until this work is completed, the gadgets cannot be installed.
"We are besieged with several other unforeseen problems and the operations will be delayed for a considerable period", said one official.
The authorities connected with civil aviation have, in the meantime, issued certain 'tips' to the commanders how to save fuel and cut costs. Some commanders, however, do not subscribe to the views of the authorities.

Efficient air cargo system must for growing economy

15 May, 2008, 0225 hrs IST,Gunjan Pradhan Sinha & Nirbhay Kumar, TNN

Newly-commissioned greenfield and brownfield airports seem to be focussing on air passengers. Cargo facilities at these airports are yet to draw the full attention of airport developers. “In our country, cargo is still a neglected area even though it generates 30% revenue for the airport operator. After privatisation things have improved but only in the passenger side,”said an official of a leading air-cargo company. Given the lax attitude of private players in ensuring proper facilities at cargo terminals and involving freight forwarders at the concept and design stage, the government has made it mandatory for all new greenfield airports to provide separate cargo facilities — storage, ground handling and loading. Further, in a bid to bring Indian airports on a par with international hubs like Dubai and Singapore in handling air cargo, the government has also decided to float a separate air cargo policy, revamp the entire electronic data interchange (EDI) system and set up an Airport Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA). Cargo operators have also been facing flak over the state of delivery of cargo. Indian airports have some of the worst turnaround time for freight. “We are still far behind in handling air cargo and there are many reasons for it. Infrastructure alone is not to be blamed for it. Documentation process is also too complex. As compared to airports in Singapore, Hong Kong and Dubai where air cargo is cleared within two hours, the physical check-up of cargo alone takes about 12 hours on an average in India. In some cases clearance time ranges between 24 hours and 36 hours. In countries like Thailand and Singapore, agents have custom-bonded warehouses. This provides less waiting time for the consignment at the airport. Unlike at major airports in India, 95% cargo comes in built-up condition at Hong Kong airport. This enables the airport handle 36 lakh tonnes cargo. Indian airports are not handling even 10% of that,” said the official. “The documentation process for cargo at all the airports in the country is too complex and requires too much formalities. While one invoice can serve the purpose, airport authorities and other government agencies ask for 10 different documents,” said Delhi Exporters Association president S P Agarwal. “Dwell time for import and export cargo at Indian airports is three and seven days, respectively despite many steps taken by the airport operators,” the official added. While dwell time for imported cargo in Singapore is 12 hours, at Delhi airport it takes 165 hours. At Sharjah airport, the dwell time for export cargo is just four hours. On the recommendation of an inter-ministerial group, chaired by civil aviation secretary, airport operators across the country, including GMR Group-backed Delhi International Airport (DIAL) and GVK Group-led Mumbai International Airport (MIAL), have reduced free time for cargo at airports. While for import cargo the free time has been reduced to 72 hours from five days earlier, for export cargo it has been retained at 24 hours.

No Space for Cargo Agents

DH News Service ,Bangalore :(as published in the Deccan Herald)

The commercial operations at the Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) might have commenced last week providing air commuters finally an opportunity to fly in and out of the much delayed airport.
But, for the Cargo fraternity it is still a long way before they get to use the cargo facilities at the airport. “The Cargo fraternity is unhappy as there is no office space and warehouse for cargo agents. It’s very challenging for our trade as our staff have to travel almost almost 80 kms up and down, spending half a day travelling, which could have been avoided if they had provided office space,” Bangalore Air Cargo Club president Nirmal Singh Sandhu told Deccan Herald.The Cargo fraternity which is presently operating from their old offices at the HAL Airport say that they have to shell out Rs 250 to 300 to each of staff for their travelling and other expenses. Besides, most of them also end up paying overtime wages, said representatives from the Cargo Industry.The Cargo fraternity said they were assured of space at the airport by the BIAL during the time of the airport opening date. However, it has been postponed till June.Monopoly promoted:They were also annoyed with BIAL’s decision to provide office space only to one MNC Company, which they said, was unfair. “The whole trade is struggling to get a little space to operate day-to-day business. We don't know on what criteria BIAL has decided to provide this space to just one company. There were no bidding of any sort while awarding the space to the MNC’s,” said Sandhu. The representatives say that the things will further complicate and that the air cargo operators would meet this week to take a final decision on the next course of action.

Tokyo airport cargo terminal opts for IBS product

As published in Business Line (The Hindu) on May 29, 2008

The Tokyo International Air Cargo Terminal Ltd (TIACT) has become the latest air cargo terminal operator to integrate the new version of ‘iCargo’, the new-generation cargo management system from the IBS Group.
The IBS Group is a leading global provider of new-generation IT solutions to the travel, transportation and logistics industries. iCargo’s operations module will manage the new cargo terminal at Tokyo International Airport, also known as Haneda Airport.
The airport is currently undergoing expansion in terms of both capacity and technology and is scheduled to be fully functional by October 2010.
iCargo will provide Haneda with an integrated system that will optimise operations, enhance profitability and provide the scalability to manage increasing volumes of cargo. It is designed to manage ground handling and warehousing of all cargo processed through the airport. Growing acceptance
Speaking to newspersons here, Mr V.K. Mathews, Chairman and CEO, IBS Group, said that the deal with TIACT signified growing acceptance of IBS’ new-generation cargo solutions in Japan, one of the principal markets for global air cargo businesses. Nippon Cargo Airlines and All Nippon Airways, two of Japan’s leading carriers, have already deployed iCargo for managing their cargo businesses.
According to Mr Terutake Kato, President and CEO, TIACT, the Haneda Airport has great potential to become the main portal to Japan in the near future.
“We chose IBS due to its extensive experience and know-how in the airline cargo industry. We foresee IBS facilitating efficient processes and handling the complex nature of cargo terminal operations. We look forward to developing this into a long-term engagement,” he said. Web-enabled features
The iCargo’s module will provide Haneda airport a wide range of Web-enabled features from reserving airway bills, taking shipment on export, and receiving cargo as import, to final delivery of the shipment to the consignee.
The system provides for guidance and control of trucks, critical to managing influx of transport, and supports radio communications through hand-held terminals.
The air cargo facilities provided by the new terminal will give operators easy access to central Tokyo.

Jet wins the `Best Cargo Airline of Central Asia` award

Announcement / Corporate May 27, 2008, 20:10 IST (Business Standard)
Jet Airways, India's premier international airline, has won the ‘Best Cargo Airline of Central Asia' at the prestigious Cargo Airline of the Year Awards, held at the Royal Lancaster Hotel, London.

This Award is widely acknowledged in the air cargo industry. The winner is determined on the basis of votes cast by the readers of Air Cargo News, the world's best-read air cargo newspaper. These votes are then checked by a neutral body, BIFA (British International Freight Association) and winners in various categories determined.
Mr. Duncan Gambrill, General Manager – UK & Ireland, Jet Airways and Mr. Steve Stewart, Regional Manager Cargo - UK & Ireland , Jet Airways received the award on behalf of the company in the presence of an impressive industry gathering of six hundred distinguished guests who flew in from different corners of the globe to support and acknowledge the achievements of their peers.
Commenting on the honour, Mr. Jay Shelat, Vice President-Cargo, Jet Airways, said, "We are delighted to receive this honour, which is a reflection of the high standards of Jet Airways' cargo services. Accolades such as these spur us on to greater heights as we further expand our services around the world, including the launch of our maiden flight on the Mumbai-Shanghai-San Francisco sector on June 14, 2008. We would like to take this opportunity to thank our customers, front line staff and airport services who helped us achieve this award."
The Cargo Airline of the Year Awards celebrated its Silver Jubilee this year, having recognized for 25 years the very best achievements and highest standards of quality and service provided by airlines around the world.
About Jet Airways:
Jet Airways, with the acquisition of JetLite, today has a combined fleet strength of 106 aircraft and offers customers a schedule of over 525 flights daily.
Jet Airways:
Jet Airways currently operates a fleet of 82 aircraft, which includes 10 Boeing 777-300 ER aircraft, 8 Airbus A330-200 aircraft, 54 classic and next generation Boeing 737-400/700/800/900 aircraft and 10 modern ATR 72-500 turboprop aircraft. With an average fleet age of 4.39 years, the airline has one of the youngest aircraft fleets in the world. Jet Airways operates over 385 flights daily.
Flights to 60 destinations span the length and breadth of India and beyond, including New York (both JFK and Newark) Toronto, Brussels, London (Heathrow), Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Colombo, Bangkok, Kathmandu, Dhaka, Kuwait, Bahrain, Muscat, Doha and Abu Dhabi. The airline plans to extend its international operations to other cities in North America, Europe, Africa and Asia in phases with the introduction of additional wide-body aircraft into its fleet.
JetLite:
JetLite is a wholly owned subsidiary of Jet Airways India Ltd. and was acquired by Jet Airways in April 2007. Positioned as a value based Airline, JetLite promises to offer value for money fares. JetLite currently operates a fleet of 24 aircraft, which includes 17 Boeing 737 series and 7 Canadian Regional Jets 200 Series. JetLite operates 141 flights every day to 30 domestic destinations and 2 international destinations (Kathmandu and Colombo)

‘New ground-handling policy to hit quality’

Zeenat Nazir, Posted online on Indian Express Wednesday, May 21, 2008 at 2306 hrs

The Civil Aviation Ministry’s soon-to-be introduced ground handling policy has got a thumbs down from the country’s logistics service providers. Companies like Transport Corporation of India (TCI) and leading courier service provider Blue Dart have said that the new policy would erode their service quality by taking away their right to handle their own cargo, a core competency.

In the new policy, coming into effect from January, only three agencies will be permitted to take up ground handling services at the six major airports at Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore and Hyderabad. Chosen through competitive bidding, these companies would undertake two basic ground handling activities — passenger handling at the landside and ramp handling which includes loading and unloading of cargo from aircraft.
However, logistics companies say the new policy will reduce the efficiency of their operations. “Currently, airlines either outsource the ground handling work or undertake it on their own. Hence, we can communicate easily with these airlines at any point of time,” says TCI division XPS’s president and CEO K Prabhakar. “Once the new policy comes into play, the ground handler appointed would report directly to Airports Authority of India (AAI) or the airport operator and we can no longer have control on the situation.”
Prabhakar added that the experience at the new Hyderabad International Airport Ltd (HIAL), which has already appointed dedicated ground handlers, has not been good. XPS now has to pay the handler a service fee for undertaking the work, increasing operations costs. “Earlier, we could pay the airlines once every 15 days for the consignment. Now we have to pay them on a cash and carry basis which increases our cash requirements.” XPS expects escalating ground handling costs to contribute to a 10-15 per cent rise in total cost of transporting cargo by air over the next few years.
Blue Dart Express finance director and COO Yogesh Dhingra said, “In our business, timely delivery of the service is extremely essential. The new policy will increase the turnaround time of our aircraft. At present, our own trained team ensures that turnaround happens in 30 minutes flat but common ground handlers may take much more.”
A civil aviation senior ministry official said, “We have taken note and are seeing what we can do about it."

Lufthansa Cargo levies new import handling charges

As published in Business Line (The Hindu) on May 21, 2008

Lufthansa Cargo has implemented new handling charges from May 1 on cargo imported into India. However, the trade is against this and wants the carrier to withdraw the charges immediately.
The new charge will enhance the entire service chain immediately after touch down of aircraft for import handling services.
But the trade feels it is an “unfair trade practice” adopted by the carrier.

Major player
Since Lufthansa Cargo is a major player in the air cargo market with nearly 80 per cent market share, the carrier is taking advantage of this position to generate undue profits, according to the Federation of Indian Export Organisations.
As per the World Air Cargo Forecast-2006-2007, of the total 1.4 million tonnes of international cargo that flew in and out of the Indian sub-continent which include Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, India moved 8.82 lakh tonnes.
Lufthansa Cargo in a circular to its clients said the levy was to realign its services to the new improved level, and charged along with the delivery order fee.

Air Cargo Agents Association of India
The Air Cargo Agents Association of India said that the levy was an “unjustified additional revenue on your (Lufthansa Cargo) part.
In reality, you are required to give consignees all air cargo shipments by you ready for delivery at destination without recovering any further charges. You have already collected freight charges for transporting the shipment from origin to destination.”

SICCI
According to the Southern India Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Lufthansa Cargo being a dominant player in the air cargo export and import business to and from the country has seized upon this dominance to introduce an ‘unjustified and illegal’ additional levy.
Carriage of cargo under ‘Contract of Affreightment’ casts a responsibility on the carrier accepting the freight, at a foreign location to place the same at the disposal of the consignee on arrival in India.

Freight practice
The freight charges for carriage encompass this responsibility.
This is the practice adopted by all airlines, including Lufthansa Cargo carrying import cargo for Indian trade.
The levy seeks to subvert this contractual obligation and impose an additional charge on Indian importers, SICCI said.
With a transport volume of 1.81 million tonnes of freight and mail, Lufthansa Cargo ranks among the world’s biggest cargo carriers.
It operates a fleet of 19 of its own MD-11F aircraft and has several other freighters on charter to cover around 300 destinations, according to the company’s Web site.

AAI to develop Doon airport into international cargo hub

The Statesman, May 11, 2008

The Airport Authority of India (AAI) is to develop the Jolly Grant airport as an international cargo hub. The move is seen as being intended to relieve the Indira Gandhi International Airport at Delhi from some of its burden. A project of Rs 92.16 crores is being prepared for the upgradation of the Jolly Grant airport in Doon for converting it into an international airport, according to official sources. The Jolly Grant airport would be ready for international flights within five weeks, AAI experts who were here in the capital recently in this regard have said. During their visit the AAI experts met the chief secretary Mr SK Das officials discussed at length the progress of the works of development going on at the airport here. According to the AAI officials, the airport would be ready for night landing operations by October this year with runway lighting, taxiway lighting to be installed and a new terminal building with ATC constructed. Automatic elevators, a central AC convener system and fire station facilities are also to be installed. Once these facilities are in place, the Doon airport would be well equipped to handle flights from airports across the country. According to aviation officials, three more private companies are likely to start air taxi services to the Doon airport.

Cargo handling rates at Coimbatore airport hiked

As published in Business Line (The Hindu) on April 11, 2008

The export and import cargo handling charges at the Airport Authority of India (AAI)-run air-cargo complex at Coimbatore airport have been increased , making them on par with those collected at the airport in Chennai or elsewhere.
The revised terminal storage and processing (TSP) charges that came into effect from April 7, cover the rates for handling export/import of cargoes, special/valuable import cargoes and demurrages payable. The TSP charge for export consignments is now 70 paise a kg against 36 paise levied earlier with the minimum chargeable TSP being Rs 120 a consignment (against Rs 60 earlier).
The revised TSP for import consignment is Rs 4.72 a kg against Rs 2.23 levied earlier with the minimum chargeable TSP being Rs 130 a consignment (against Rs 60 earlier). According to a trade circular issued by the Coimbatore airport director, the TSP charge for special and valuable import cargo has been raised to Rs 9.42/kg from the earlier Rs 8.89 with the minimum chargeable rate being Rs 250 for a consignment against the earlier Rs 235.
The demurrage charge for export consignment too has been almost doubled to 72 paise/ kg from 37 paise with the minimum chargeable being Rs 120 for a consignment