E-freight is being touted as the greatest thing since sliced bread in terms of finally coming close to fulfilling the dream of paperless cargo transportation. And now we are there! The efforts to have e freight adopted and, more importantly, legally approved after being ratified by governments, stemmed originally from the desire to bring cargo processing into the modern day and enable the use of prevalent technology available worldwide.
     As always, there is a wrinkle: cargo security. In the push for early shipment information to customs authorities, again, the initial driver was to keep air freight moving fast by having shipments pre-cleared by customs prior to an aircraft landing at a destination airport. We have all read the rehashed report about cargo dwelling on the ground so much longer than in the air, so this was another measure toward attaining that distant goal while also satisfying the increasingly intrusive government need for information about anything and everything in order to “protect the citizen” – grand!
     It is undeniable that having air waybill data in the hands of the customs authorities positions them – in theory – to be proactive in their screening procedures… except in the most recent printer cartridge improvised explosive device, when it didn’t! There is always a rule and the exception to the rule; case in point, the majority of cargo comes from commercial shippers, through freight forwarders and logistics companies. Forwarders consolidate freight in order to secure more advantageous rates, and it works both ways; in addition to good rates, it also provides airlines with a degree of confidence that the highly perishable cargo space on aircraft will be filled.
     The electronic preclearance process requires forwarders to provide house waybill level data to the airlines, which are held responsible for transmitting this data to customs. This is an interesting aspect of the regulatory regime – forwarders generate house waybill data, yet the government agencies hold the airlines responsible for providing it! Be that as it may, using the air waybill number as the key, the automated customs systems matches the air waybill data the airlines send on the manifest with the corresponding house waybill data from the forwarders. Why? Because a typical consolidation may show the shipper and consignee as “ACME Forwarding” in country X and the consignee as “ACME Forwarding” in country Y, which doesn’t reveal to customs the identity of the actual shipper and consignee(s) of the goods. This information will be contained on the forwarder house waybill.
     In the case of the individual, non-commercial shipper, however, (and let’s use the printer cartridge shipper one more time) there was no house waybill and all relevant data had to be derived from the airline air waybill or the express carrier air waybill.
     The terminology can be confusing; for example, FedEx has three categories: package/envelopes, freight, and expedited. Then there are: “international packages of 150 pounds or less,” “air expedite international” for freight, “FedEx international next flight” for packages up to 2,200 pounds and maximum dimensions as subsets.
UPS talks about “Critical Freight” and “Air Freight” with the respective “Express Critical” for door-to-door services, regardless of mode of transportation and a bevy of ‘guaranteed’ 1-3 to 3-5 business day deliveries and “express freight,” “air freight direct” and “air freight consolidated,” but there is also “heavy freight.”
     So the first order for graduating from the next terrorist class of 2011 is to make sure you know the terminology so you can decide whether to ‘express-bomb’ or ‘expedite-bomb,’ or use just standard combination carrier air cargo—from regular (there is no decaf folks, sorry) to sundry priorities with urgent sounding names. Just to review a few and marvel at the amazing array of global marketing genius that must have been corralled to offer maximum differentiation: “premium,” followed by various precious metal definitions (including “gold” or “platinum”) to denote value and class, to a natural phenomenon (such as “flash”), and other self-explanatory ones including “equation,” “cohesion” or “variation,” then “positive” (you don’t want to consider the opposite).
     The all-cargo variety I found was refreshingly familiar and I could even figure out what it stood for: “general cargo,” “perishables,” “temperature sensitive goods,” “live animals,” “offsize and heavy” and so forth.
     E-freight makes use of state-of-the-art communication technology, which is to say that, in the end, it is internet centric in one way or another. The days when the “internet was down” have faded into the distant past.      You would have a hard time convincing a 20-something year old that the internet is not a human right, that it can be fickle and beset by its own vulnerabilities. In a world where cyber-attacks have enabled governments as well as individuals to wage war without shooting a single bullet, when everything nowadays tends to be solely electronically-based, we better figure out a sure fire way to avoid something as simple as a prolonged power blackout. Debating reliable, economical and sustainable energy is for another day. In the meantime, let’s hope the manifest and the house waybill are relatively safe from hackers who have more stimulating targets in mind.
     By the way, how many airline cargo departments still train staff in manual weight and balance?
Ted Braun

Hardy Guy Goodbye

     Brussels Airlines’ head of Cargo Sales, Guy Hardy, (above right) is retiring at the end of December after 40 years in the aviation industry, mainly the air freight biz. A true veteran of the aviation industry is saying farewell.
     Herman Hoornaert (above left) will succeed him as Cargo Sales Manager as of January 1, 2011. Air Cargo News FlyingTypers was given the opportunity to conduct a final interview with Hardy.

FT:   What was the most memorable occurrence you experienced in your entire career?
GH:   I became Head of Cargo at Brussels Airlines right after the creation of this new airline, replacing Sabena, in early 2002.
     The three most memorable occurrences that I experienced were:
          •   Genocide in Rwanda between April and July 1994
          •   The grounding of Sabena’s major stakeholder Swissair in October 2001 because of unpaid fuel bills
          •   The resulting bankruptcy of Sabena in November 2001
FT:   Speaking of Sabena’s vanishing: How did you personally perceive the last weeks and days of your former employer?
GH:   In 2001 I was based in Shanghai where I got the news about the end of Sabena. I was able to follow the final days of Swissair and its subsidiary Sabena very closely on Belgian and Swiss cable TV in Shanghai.
     No need to stress that this was a very sad period of my life after having spent many years with the Belgian carrier. The grounding dragged me down; I was crying for two days. To my understanding, the Belgian government did not do enough to save Sabena. What a shame!
FT:   What key lessons did Brussels Airlines learn from the failure of its predecessor?
GH:   The main difference in strategy between Sabena and Brussels Airlines is that almost all activities, except for sales, are outsourced now, while at Sabena, all activities were kept in house.
     Of course, the fact that Brussels Airlines is now a member of the LH group and Star Alliance is certainly a sign of a healthy airline.
FT:   So far your cargo division is doing an extremely successful job, especially in sub-Sahara Africa. Recently, however, Qatar Airways, Emirates, Etihad, and some others are increasing their activities there dramatically. What is your response to these newly emerging competitors?
GH:   It is true that QR, EY, and EK have discovered Africa, but since 95 percent of our inbound cargo is of time sensitive nature (perishables), we don't believe that this traffic will be diverted via their hubs in the Gulf area. With regard to southbound sales to Africa, we closely monitor their strategy & behavior.
FT:   SN Cargo has become part of the Lufthansa Cargo group. What benefits and perhaps problems result from this process for SN’s air freight division?
GH:   Together with Jade International, Swiss WorldCargo, Austrian, AeroLogic, BMI Cargo, and LH Cargo Charter, Brussels Airlines Cargo is now a full-fledged member of the LH Cargo Group. Several working groups have been set up to evaluate potential synergies and cost saving measures, be it multilateral or bilateral. For Brussels Airlines Cargo, the benefits are obvious in the following fields: handling, trucking, interlining, marketing, ULD provision, networking, business & market information exchange etc.
     The LH Cargo Group Executive Committee considers Brussels Airlines Cargo the 'African Pillar' with a separate sales organization and business model.
FT:   With your upcoming retirement, the cargo industry is losing one of its true veterans. Asking you very personally – would you enter the air freight arena again if you were a youngster today, or rather seek your fortune in other industries?
GH:   Since I did both, I don't want to make a distinction between passenger and cargo business. I have never considered any other industry because, quite simply, the airline virus creeps through my veins at a never-ending pace.
FT:   What key message would you like to deliver here and now to the fellow members of this great industry?
GH:   The years ahead will not be easy for the air cargo industry, which faces two major challenges, namely E-freight and security issues. However, I am sure that with all the creative minds around, proper solutions will be found in due time.
FT:   Finally, what are your major plans for your time after January 1, 2011?
GH:   During the first three months, I will clear my head and spoil my wife, who supported me throughout my career, which was not always easy, considering the African circumstances.
     Traveling across Europe (by car) is also on my agenda, together with polishing my golf handicap. Perhaps emigrating to Thailand, my wife's country of birth…
FT:   ACNFT wishes you and your family happiness, success and all the best for 2011 and the coming years.
Thank you for giving us this final interview while still being on duty at Brussels Airlines.
Heiner Siegmund/Flossie

Click To Read
35th Anniversary Issue

      As winter deepens across Germany, holding the promise of harsher days ahead (at least in the near term), a new Frankfurt-based leisure airline, Sun Express Deutschland GmbH, will soon take to the skies.
      Last Thursday the supervisory board of Sun Express, a 50/50 joint venture of Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines, gave the green light to set up the carrier. According to plans, the newcomer intends to take off on its maiden flight in the summer of 2011. It’s a highly ambitious schedule; the application for obtaining the air operator’s certificate (AOC) from Luftfahrt-Bundesamt (LBA), the national aviation authority was filed just recently. The regulator needs about a year on average, or even longer, for issuing an AOC license due to the many formal requirements and economic and technical checks.
      In the beginning, the fleet will consist of three passenger B737-800s, which will be deployed on high frequency routes between Germany and Turkey, such as Frankfurt-Antalya at the Turkish Riviera or Berlin-Istanbul. During next year’s winter season, the fleet will be upped to six B737-800s and new routes will be offered between major German cities and the Red Sea as well as Egypt.
      The livery displayed on the fuselage of the newcomer’s future fleet will be identical to Sun Express, its Antalya-based parent. Sales and marketing will be concentrated in the airlines’ future headquarters in Frankfurt.
      Because Lufthansa Cargo is managing the air freight business of Sun Express, it is very likely that the offspring will also be marketed by the cargo crane since the newcomer will offer additional frequencies and lower deck capacity on some attractive routes. “Currently, we are still evaluating and checking the opportunities, but speaking from a more general point of view, the chances are good that we will run their cargo business,” exclaimed Lufthansa Cargo’s head of communication, Nils Haupt, when asked by ACNFT on Thursday.
      Established in 1989, Sun Express expects to carry more than 6.5 million passengers this year and to turn over 500 million euros, a gain of roughly 900,000 travelers compared to 2009. The current fleet consists of 25 B737-800s and 3 B757-200s. The Lufthansa - Turkish Airlines JV is headquartered in Antalya.
Heiner Siegmund/Flossie Arend

Contact! Talk To Geoffrey

Geoffrey:

     This was sent to me from a friend at DHL and with all the changing regulations for Customs, Security, etc. around the world . . . I thought this was hilarious and certainly hits us close to home!
     The writing certainly makes a point of how much red tape we all deal with now, and how ludicrous it sometimes seems to have become!
      I hope you and your family and all FlyingTypers readers have a wonderful holiday, whichever one you celebrate, and a very prosperous New Year in 2011.

Your friend,
Lisa Schoppa
Manager, QUICKPAK Product Development

Subject: Santa's visit put on hold this year!
     Well, we just wanted to let you all know that Santa will not be coming in this year.
     Because of incorrect Incoterms and incomplete documentation, the gifts for all the world will have to be returned to the North Pole (at his own expense).
     He decided to ship everything DDP and even though we handled the forwarding on all the gifts, we were unable to determine who the correct broker was.
     We also wanted to clear, but FEDEX, UPS and DHL were fighting over the Customs Power of Attorney.
     Determining importer of record turned out to be a nightmare, since EVERYONE in the world wants a visit from Santa, but no one was willing to be the importer of record.
     New laws and regulations regarding entry of exotic animals also had the Fish and_Wildlife department forcing Rudolph and his crew back out before they could even land.
     All the electronics needed FCC and, since the North Pole is nearest to Canada, Santa was trying to claim NAFTA. Obviously, Customs refused to clear any of it without detailed product literature.
     Then we got tons of census warnings because the dimensions and weight were too unreal to calculate and because Santa could not prove where the materials to make the toys came from (the North Pole is not on the approved country of origin list).
     He incessantly tried to prove that he makes all of his own gifts, but since there are not defined tariff classifications on "Santa-made" materials, they rejected his entry.
     We thought that maybe if we could get his shipment clear, we could at least dispatch some of the stuff through a Warehouse entry, but, like we said, clearance through Customs was impossible.
     Seriously, we can see the little kids filling out their own Post Entry forms for misclassification.
     Other problems encountered:
           Since Santa's Sleigh has no SCAC Code or International Carrier Bond, it cannot be certified for AMS.
           Immigration would not allow entry because Santa's passport expired on December 24, 1603. _
           The FAA will not approve the sleigh for U.S. Airspace as Rudolph's nose does not meet aircraft lighting requirements.
           The sleigh does not meet EPA standards due to excessive emissions of reindeer gases & droppings.
           The TSA says that Santa is an unknown shipper and would require a site verification. _
           Food and Drug says no Prior Notice was done on some of the gifts that were fresh or frozen and they put gifts on FDA hold.
           Santa did not have a “walk through” letter to Customs so no immediate release.

     Anyway, plan to provide your Christmas cheer another way since Jolly Old Saint Nick will not be sliding down your chimney this year.
     Merry Christmas Everyone!

If You Missed Any Of The Previous 3 Issues Of FlyingTypers
Click On Image Below To Access

FT121310

FT122010