Anchorage airport is suffering along with the air cargo carriers as plummeting volumes have left a glut of over-capacity leading to parked planes and cancelled routes. The number of cargo planes touching down to refuel and swap freight in Anchorage on their way between Asia and the rest of North America has slumped significantly. Between last July and this March, the Anchorage airport dropped from its No. 3 ranking among the world’s airports for cargo landings (by weight) to No. … [Read more...] about AMERICAS: Anchorage suffers as capacity pulled

Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner will finally take to the skies later this quarter following its move out of the hangar and onto the flight line last month. Fuel testing – the first in the next phase of extensive checks the airplane must undergo – will begin in the next few days, according to Boeing. “We are making great progress, and moving ever-closer to first flight,” said Scott Fancher, vice president and general manager of the 787 Dreamliner program. … [Read more...] about AMERICAS: Dreamliner moves to flight line for testing

The American Association of Exporters and Importers (AAEI) has expressed concern to US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) that the costs of complying with the Interim Final Rule on Importer Security Filing (ISF), also known as ‘10+2’, were unclear and will likely be much higher than currently anticipated. The 10+2 rule requires cargo information, for security purposes, to be transmitted to CBP agents at least 24 hours before goods are shipped to the US. “In the first … [Read more...] about AMERICAS: US importers/exporters concerned over 10+2

Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings Inc (AAWW) has announced that for the three months ended 31 March, it achieved a record first quarter net profit of US$23.4 million on revenues of $244.5 million. The results for the quarter contrasted with a net loss of $5.3 million on revenues of $373 million for the same period a year earlier. The group said that reported firstquarter 2009 revenues reflect the deconsolidation of Polar Air Cargo Worldwide from AAWW for reporting purposes that occurred in … [Read more...] about AMERICAS: Atlas Air group posts record Q1 profit

Virgin Group Chairman Richard Branson has said that the US Dept. of Transportation’s granting American Airlines (AA), British Airways (BA) and other oneworld carriers antitrust immunity on transatlantic services “would create a monster monopoly on key routes between London Heathrow and the US.” In a speech in Washington, he said BA/AA would control “nearly half of all takeoff and landing slots at London Heathrow” and that antitrust immunity would prove … [Read more...] about AMERICAS: Virgin points to oneworld “monster monopoly”