“Cargo Essence is a productive sales resource for LAN Cargo.
     “They have been our GSA in Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado, Kansas, and Louisiana, and as such they have in-depth knowledge of our network, operations, and products.
     “Essence has an excellent record of service delivery, and we are very pleased with this expansion of their sales coverage on behalf of LAN Cargo,” said Fernando Garreton, Regional Director, GSAs North America for LAN Cargo. Cargo Essence, Inc. was named LAN’s new General Sales Agent (GSA) for the sales territories of Washington, Oregon, Utah, Nevada, and Arizona effective January 1, 2013.
     The old cargo pro Claudio A. Silva, best known as Vice President of Sales and Marketing for LAN Cargo and an architect of building air cargo for more than 30 years is now the owner and president of Cargo Essence.
     “I am extremely proud of our association and expansion of responsibilities for LAN Cargo,” said ‘Claudio The Great.’
     “Our staff has been key to our success with the airline, bringing a high level of expertise with the network, and the heart to be responsive to customer needs.
     “We begin this new phase confident that our expanded role will ensure LAN Cargo’s presence, and service delivery beyond compare.
     “Cargo Essence will have a dedicated sales representative based in Seattle, WA.
     “In every case, from my contact to all of our people, we are here 24/7 to handle any development.”
     Cargo Essence’s customer service representatives may be reached toll-free at 800-627-2885, or by email at cargobookhou@lancargo.com.
     For sales in WA, OR, and UT contact Juan Brothers at 832-480-0527.
     For sales in NV and AZ contact Alex Vargas at 310-874-9507.
Geoffrey

     Once again we visit on video with my good friend and colleague for thirty some years, the great Ronald Edward George (REG) Davies. Here, Ron talks about some of the memorable characters he met during his lengthy and distinguished career in aviation.
     Ron, who sat in the Lindbergh Chair as Curator of Air Transport at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. at NASM for 30 years, died in Shaftesbury, England on July 30, 2011. He was 90 years old.
     The last opportunity we had to talk was inside his apartment in McLean, Virginia. His good friend Chris Sterling and my wife Sabiha were also there.
     Come to think of it, all through that day from our luncheon right through the cocktail hour that included some crisps and couple of cans of British lager from the Davies fridge, both Chris & Sabiha were at times sidelined whilst Ron and I rattled on.

     Ron was packing his boxes to return to UK to take care of his ailing wife Marjorie.
     I had the feeling that leaving NASM was the last thing he wanted to do, as he was still quite robust and totally engaged in putting the finishing touches on his 25th book for Smithsonian.
     But his love and devotion for his bride of 60 years held sway.
     “Marjorie is my love throughout every experience of my life.
     “It’s time to get home and look after her,” he said quietly.
     It was during that conversation that he gave me an entire personal collection of his most favorite books, some 450 in all.
     Ron’s last words to me were naturally about what he thought was going to happen in future commercial transport.
     “The wide-body ‘jumbo’ jets were twice as big as the Boeing 707 and Douglas DC-8.
     “The same general principal still applies, even though the 500-seat A380 is only half as big again as the Boeing 747.
     “Five airlines are currently operating more than 40 A380s, and this will rise to close to 100 by the end of 2012.
     “By any criterion, this is the beginning of a new generation.
     “The Boeing 787 will be a good replacement for the Boeing 767 or the Airbus A330, and good for domestic routes, but it will not be a major element globally.
     “Statistics show that 75 percent of the world’s international traffic is served by only 25 major airports.
     “This is the market for the next generation.
     “The A380 will meet the traffic demand for this 75 percent, and it has no competitor in the same class.
     “The 787 Dreamliner will be left to cope with the remaining 25 percent.
     “Today, airliners remain in service for 30 years or more.
     “The half-life of the A380 will be at around the year 2020.
     “Already, a French airline has ordered two 820-seat all-economy A380s.
     “There is talk of a stretched A380,” Ron Davies said.
     Just before he went home forever Ron spoke to Air & Space Magazine about his career:
     “I have been able to visit all seven continents, including Antarctica, fly around the world, and cross the Seven Seas many times.
     “Through airline contacts I interviewed pioneers and leaders of the airline industry worldwide.
     “I sank many a beer with chairmen of the U.S. local service industry, sipped cappuccinos with the great Ruben Berta in Brazil, and–possibly my most treasured memory – was invited to take tea with India’s legendary J.R.D. Tata in his suite at the Ashoka Hotel in Delhi in the early 1970s.”
     REG Davies was educated at Shaftesbury Grammar School. He started work in London in 1938 and was in the British Army as a territorial volunteer from 1939 to 1946.
     He spent a year in Iceland, training for mountain and Arctic warfare, and drove his machine-gun carrier on to the beaches of Normandy in 1944.
     After WW II, Ron worked for the Ministry of Civil Aviation, British European Airways, the Bristol Aeroplane Company and de Havilland before moving to the United States in 1968 to lead market research for Douglas Aircraft.
     As mentioned earlier he joined the National Air and Space Museum as the Charles A. Lindbergh Chair in Aerospace History in 1981 and from that platform he changed aviation history forever.
     Davies was a member of three British Royal Societies, the Explorers Club, and others in France and Brazil.
     He also delivered the Wings Club Thirty Seventh “Sight Lecture” (Hindsight, Insight, Foresight) in 2000.
     Worth noting is that past Sight Lectures have been presented by Igor Sikorsky, Werner Von Braun, Grover Loening, CR Smith, Juan Trippe, Richard Jackson, Neil Armstrong,Al Ueltschi, Sanford McDonnell—the list goes on.
     Ron Davies’ last book Airlines of the Jet Age (for the Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press) was published (July 2011).
     Ron Davies was the greatest and most prolific aviation historian that ever lived.
     His work is impeccable, full of thorough research and beautiful presentation.
     His writings are colorful and rich in detail and humor.
     You can compare his books and years of service in terms of content to the way Joe DiMaggio played baseball, Winston Churchill gave a speech or Elvis sang a song.
     Ron’s 1964 book A History of the World’s Airlines is simply the best on the subject; in importance and as a touchstone for the industry, it mirrors the likes of Darwin’s On the Origin of Species.
     It is a cornerstone of any aviation library and such a work of art that it gives me the chills just to think about it.

     For those of our readers who missed these the first time around, here again are Part I and II of a video interview we conducted in McLean the last time I saw Ron.
     The series continues, so stay tuned.
     And keep ‘em flying, my dear Ron.
Geoffrey

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