New Carry On Baggage Proposal Will Hurt Cargo

     Anyone following security lately should wake up to the following.
     This is what happens when the industry does not take a leadership position.
     The carry on rule proposal here will hurt cargo as aircraft bellies will be fuller with bags, and crews will be loading bags within the short ground times instead of cargo.
     Next week the EU will announce new security restrictions for carry-on baggage across Europe November 6 so get ready for passenger confusion and airport disruptions as aviation authorities, airports and airlines get only three weeks' notice before the changeover date.
     New EU rules say all carry-on liquids and containers must fit in a clear plastic bag of no more than one liter.
     The limits are in line with U.S. restrictions on liquids.
     EU security rules also mandate that all laptops and large electronic items be removed from bags for screening.
     This is done already at some airports, but the rules will standardize the practice throughout Europe.
     Also a standard maximum size for carry-on bags will be introduced for the first time, although this requirement will be delayed six months beyond November 6.
     Point is that while various nations are placing all manner of passenger-driven security rules and regulations that will impact air cargo, what is the industry doing about it?
     Maybe air cargo prefers to wait until knee jerk political hacks decide that “the great unknown, all that cargo lurking below deck is the real danger to security?”
     Your move …
     In USA a red-hot competition is underway to provide Joint Cargo Aircraft (JCA) to U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force.
     Idea is that by 2010, both the Army and the Air Force may be flying the same aircraft to provide airlift to front lines inside places like Afghanistan and Iraq.
     U.S. Secretary of Defense has given approval for the Army and the Air Force to work together to purchase the aircraft.
     U.S. Army has been calling it a "Future Cargo Aircraft," while the Air Force calls it a "Light Cargo Aircraft."
     But increasingly those names are melting into a new one, “Joint Cargo Aircraft."
     The Joint Cargo Aircraft will be smaller than the Air Force's C-130 Hercules, but larger than the Army's C-23 Sherpa Finalists for this “off the shelf” type of aircraft of course trace back to Airbus and Boeing.
     The Team Joint Cargo Aircraft (JCA) partnership of Raytheon and EADS CASA North America has submitted two aircraft based on EADS CASA’s military transport aircraft—the C-295 and CN-235.
     Another aircraft called C-27J has been submitted by L-3 Communications Integrated Systems Group, Alenia North America, Boeing Integrated Defense Systems and Global Military Aircraft Systems.
     Total initial order for both services is put at about 150 aircraft.



Hong Kong and Mainland China are looking at development of cross-boundary infrastructure projects, Hong Kong Chief Executive Donald Tsang said in his annual policy address.
Tsang said Hong Kong will expand its air cargo terminal facilities and increase the number of cargo freighter parking stands boosting air cargo handling capacity of Hong Kong International Airport.