PLA Editor

BAA cargo dives 21 per cent in Feb

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Britain’s largest airports group saw cargo traffic plunged more than 20 per cent in February. BAA, which operates seven UK airports, including Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Edinburgh and Glasgow, said that its total UK cargo volumes had fallen by 21.4 per cent during February compared with the same month a year ago to 119,984 tonnes. BAA said the steep declines were a result of the current economic environment with a spokesman also blaming “adverse weather conditions” … [Read more...] about BAA cargo dives 21 per cent in Feb

HK air cargo shows modest improvement

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Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminals Limited (Hactl) has released its throughput figures for May showing an 18.6 per cent decline in throughput year-on-year to 177,980 tonnes which represents a modest improvement over April’s 22.5 per cent year-on-year decline to 174,809 tonnes. Cumulative tonnage for the first five months of the year was 815,803 tonnes, down 23 per cent compared with the same period last year. Import volume for May registered a 16.4 per cent decline on a year-on-year … [Read more...] about HK air cargo shows modest improvement

Continental awards more cargo handling to WFS

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Continental Airlines has announced it is extending its business partnership with Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) in North America with the awarding of a new contract in Honolulu. The agreement, effective 17 July, will see WFS provide the airline with cargo warehousing, customer service, mail and ramp handling for 45 passenger flights a week linking Honolulu with Los Angles, Houston, Guam, and Newark. WFS will also be responsible for loading and unloading of Continental Airlines’ … [Read more...] about Continental awards more cargo handling to WFS

Lufthansa Cargo warms up to Siberia

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Forced to abandon Astana in Kazakhstan last June following a spat with Russian air authorities that threatened to develop into a full-blown diplomatic row, the German cargo carrier has now begun landing in Siberia’s Krasnoyarsk instead, for technical stops en route between Europe and Northeast Asia. Heiner Siegmund reports fromSiberia. “The MD-11F is a very good airliner,” stated Lufthansa’s CEO Wolfgang Mayrhuber at a recent press event in Leipzig/Halle. In … [Read more...] about Lufthansa Cargo warms up to Siberia

MALAYSIA: Asia-Pacific carriers could be first to recover

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Asia-Pacific carriers may be the first to recover from the dramatic industry downturn due to the lower household debt in Asia compared with the US andEurope, according to the International Air Transport Association’s chief economist. Asia-Pacific airlines may see recovery as early as 2010 – ahead of the rest of the industry – due to the lower household debt in the region compared to significantly higher household debt levels in the US and … [Read more...] about MALAYSIA: Asia-Pacific carriers could be first to recover

African-focused Avient tests Asian waters

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UK-based, Africa-focused Avient Aviation has operated what it calls a “market test flight” to Hong Kong with one of its DC-10 freighters in preparation for its commercial launch into the Asian market later this year. Speaking to Payload Asia on the sidelines of the recent Air Cargo Europe exhibition in Munich, Simon Clarke, the airline’s chief operating officer said the all-cargo airline is planning to operate a twice-weekly Hong Kong- Sharjah-Lagos service from August … [Read more...] about African-focused Avient tests Asian waters