Aviapartner said it will implement a new structure in its Handling Services Business Line. This new structure is a logical step forward in the context of the process which the company has already started a while ago to reorganise its structure around its two core business lines cargo services (warehousing, trucking, etc.) and handling services (passenger services and ramp handling), instead of focussing on its traditional organisation in countries.

Aviapartner is now implementing a true regional business unit structure for its handling services business unit. Three regions, Northern Europe, Southern Europe and Central Europe, have been created and with this organisation Aviapartner wants to further optimise its handling network well beyond the country boundaries.

Aviapartner, whose origins date back to 1949, is a leading independent ground handler in Continental Europe, with headquarters in Brussels. Its main shareholder is 3i, a world leader in private equity and venture capital.

The Aviapartner group is articulated into three business units: cargo handling, ground handling, and catering/ technics. On a yearly basis, Aviapartner handles 28 million passengers, 229,000 aircraft and 1,392,000 tons of cargo. In 2006, Aviapartner generated a consolidated turnover of €280.5 million. The group currently has more than 5,700 employees.

In a separate development, Aviapartner has announced the signature of several important ground handling contracts in Lyon, Marseille, Nice and Toulouse with several carriers among them, British Airways. The contracts make provision for full handling activities including freight transfer.