Tie Me Up Tie Me Down

AmSafe is a Phoenix, Arizona (USA) based company with several divisions that make seat belts and cargo nets and other products for the global transportation marketplace.
   Here some of that company’s cargo nets are created in Sri Lanka.
   The picture intrigued us because somehow you don’t imagine these types of nets requiring much handwork.
   But AmSafe is a big company that seems to know what it is doing, with all sorts of products that benefit air cargo.
   Dnata, the Dubai-based cargo handling company, was launch customer for a thermal pallet cover the company invented.
   Designed and manufactured by AmSafe Bridport in the UK, the thermal pallet cover protects perishable cargo moving about the sometimes broiling Dubai hardstand.
   By stabilizing the temperature of the cargo and by shielding it from extreme weather and temperature fluctuation, the eggs get cooked at destination rather than in transit.
   Recently AmSafe Bridport, was awarded a $30 million contract by Airbus to design one of the world’s largest 9g barrier nets for use on the Airbus Military A400M airlifter.
   Wonder if the same nice looking ladies in Sri Lanka will do up the lacings?
www.amsafe.com.

Moomin The World!
  The legendary fairytale figures, the Moomins are flying between Finland and Japan during the summer months inside and outside two Finnair Boeing MD-11 aircraft.
  The endearing Nordic Moomin trolls are very popular both in Northern Europe and Japan as well.
  Created by Finnish author Tove Jansson passengers flying along get “Moomined”, as aircraft interiors also include the figures.
  Call it “Moomin Boomin”, but as you drain that glass of Finlandia, guess what smiles back at you from an AY cocktail napkin through the bottom of the glass from May to August?
  Having Moomins on board makes the going great, and puts back a sense of magic and excitement to air travel, we say.

NEW SERVICE

  Etihad Crystal Cargo added Abu Dhabi-Casablanca from June 2 with service into Mohammed V Airport four times every week.
  The new route is operated with an A330-200 every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, offering a cargo capacity of 14 tons per flight.
  “Strong demand and a high yield for this route – with a major part of the cargo consisting of personal effects is the watchword here,” said Ingo Roessler, Vice President Cargo, Etihad Airways.
  At CAS, Mr. Abderrahim Kassid, Cargo Sales Manager Morocco, handles cargo sales and services in the territory of Morocco.
  Morocco is the third destination in Africa for Etihad Airways with Cairo and Khartoum.
  Currently Khartoum gets Etihad Cargo freighters three times a week, offering a cargo capacity of up to 44 tons via an Airbus A300-600RF.
  Next month on July 5, 2006, Etihad Airways launches three times-a-week services to the Sudanese capital, operated by an Airbus A330-200.
  The new service between Abu Dhabi and Khartoum will offer an additional cargo capacity of 14 tons aboard each flight.

Tales Of South Pacific

Looking for a faraway place with a strange sounding name?
  The last country in the Pacific, Tonga ruled by a monarch, Princess Regent HRH Pilolevu, celebrated its National Day yesterday (June 4).
  The country is closed today because the holiday fell on a weekend.
  The Kingdom of Tonga or Tonga that once was known as the Friendly Islands moved to independence from Great Britain in 1970, remaining a member of the Commonwealth of Nations.
  The archipelagos of "The Friendly Islands" were united into a Polynesian kingdom in 1845.
     Located two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand, Tonga is about four times the size of Washington, DC
  To get there Air New Zealand flies the 1,200 miles from Auckland via an Airbus A320 with a flight time of just under three hours.
 

   Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport welcomes CargoItalia to Atlanta this month, as that company becomes the 17th air carrier to join the Airport’s roster of all cargo carriers.
   CargoItalia will operate a MD-11 freighter aircraft from the world’s busiest airport and offer nonstop operations from Atlanta to Milan commencing in late June.
   “CargoItalia is now a part of our solid network of service providers within the air cargo industry,” said Aviation Development Manager Warren Jones.
   “CargoItalia’s strong business commitment in terms of adequate capacity, customer service, efficiency and flexibility will ensure a seamless transition for clients taking advantage of this new service.”
   CargoItalia is the second cargo carrier to announce operations over Atlanta skies this year.
   In February, Alitalia Cargo began service between Atlanta and Milan, Italy.
   “Access equals opportunity,” said Bob Pertierra, vice president of logistics for the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce.
   “This international air cargo flight creates yet another opportunity for Georgia companies to expand global trade and create jobs.
   “This is yet another example of our successful partnership with Hartsfield-Jackson.
   “Hartsfield-Jackson is a very attractive alternative for cargo carriers seeking to increase or start-up operations in the Southeast region.”
   The landing rate schedule at 46 cents per thousand pounds is the lowest of any major airport in the nation.
   More than 200 million people or 80 percent of U.S. consumers are within a two-hour flight time from Hartsfield-Jackson, or one day's trucking by highway.
   Since 1995, aviation officials have continued to invest aggressively in the Airport’s infrastructure by constructing more than 1 million square-feet of cargo ramp space and adding 375,000 square feet of modern air cargo handling space.
   The airport averages 2.5 million pounds of perishable products each month and accommodates 195 all-cargo flights per week.
   For more information on Hartsfield-Jackson’s cargo operations, visit www.atlanta-airport.com, double click “Airport Information” and then click “Air Cargo.”

   Fresh scrubbed smiling faces as Emirates SkyCargo greets its new service launch to Nagoya last week.
   Yasuhisa Ishizuka, Cargo Officer, Yukiko Fukutomi, Cargo Supervisor, Hironari Takeda - Cargo Assistant are ripe and ready to go out and make some more history as the hard-charging airline of Dubai forges an essential air link to the industrial heartland of Japan.
   Initially, cargo services to and from Nagoya are being carried as belly-hold freight on the Boeing 777-200 aircraft, switching to the A340 500 on October 29th.
   Service goes from four times weekly to daily next month.
   “Nagoya and the surrounding region is a leader for Japan's industrial and manufacturing sectors. Vast quantities of air cargo move through, and are produced in the area. The city's central location and the recent opening of its Central Japan International Airport provide strong growth opportunities for us,” Peter Sedgley, Vice President, Emirates Cargo Commercial Operations said.
   In case you are counting, Emirates' passenger fleet, now numbers 93 aircraft, including nine dedicated freighters.
Emirates' freighter fleet serves cargo-only destinations such as Lilongwe (Malawi), Gothenburg, Amsterdam, Bangalore, and Taipei. Other routes served by its freighters include Zurich, Rome, Vienna, Entebbe, New York, Milan, Frankfurt, Düsseldorf, Johannesburg, Nairobi, Khartoum, Istanbul, Islamabad, Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Lahore, Dhaka, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Dubai.
   Elsewhere at EK, well-known cargo executive David Pierce (manager of cargo marketing and business development) has retired from SkyCargo and returns home to the U.S.
   David says that he will remain close to air cargo as he and wife Sue care for his Dad.
   He plans to be at TIACA Calgary come September as part of a contingent from the Cool Chain Association (CCA) that he helped found and build during the past years.
   David Pierce, a thoroughly decent albeit brilliant industry advocate and thinker, who among other things used to write the annual Boeing Air Cargo Forecast during an illustrious career at the airplane builder, can be reached. davidfpierce@hotmail.com.

   In New Orleans the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas reopened to the public for the first time since Hurricane Katrina.
   Nineteen African black footed penguins and two sea otters that were rescued and had been living at the Monterey Bay (California) Aquarium since September, were flown from Oakland International Airport aboard a FedEx freighter. FedEx donated the flight plus $100,000USD to help the Aquarium.
   At Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport the creatures were welcomed on a purple carpet by a brass band, before returning to the aquarium.
   All of this caused Late Night television host Conan O’Brien to quip:
   “Good news from New Orleans—it's about time for them..
   “The New Orleans Aquarium reopened to the public.
   “New Orleans residents say they can't wait to go to the aquarium and finally see some water.”
   Elsewhere are signs that life in this devastated city is slowly returning to normal.
   NFL football comes in September as the Superdome, scene of the absolute horror of confusion and government mishandling during and after Katrina, is featured on national television.
   At MSY, the old cargo pro Larry Johnson said services are building in and out of the gateway every week, even as most everybody cast a wary eye at the calendar last week as the hurricane season began once again.
(Geoffrey)