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Voice of Indian Air Cargo Industry Vol 8 - Issue 2 | APRIL - JUNE 2017 www.acaainews.com CIAL AIMS TO BE NEW CARGO HUB Paul J Kocheril Cochin International Airport Page 10 INDIA TO SURPASS CHINA IN CARGO VOLUMES Tadesse Tilahun Ethiopian Airlines Page 8 Logistics industry set for a smooth lift post GST

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Voice of Indian Air Cargo Industry

Vol 8 - Issue 2 | APRIL - JUNE 2017

ww

wa

caai

new

sco

m

CIAL AIms to be new CArgo hubPaul J Kocheril Cochin International Airport

Page 10

IndIA to surPAss ChInA In CArgo voLumesTadesse Tilahun Ethiopian AirlinesPage 8

Logistics industry set for a

smooth lift post GST

August 10 2017 Bengaluru

wwwitlninhtls2017

Organised byFor participation and sponsorship contactVikas Khadtale 104859910485991048599104859910485991048599104859910485991048599104859910485991048599104859910485991048599104859910485991048599104859910485991048599 10485991048599104859910485991048599104859910485991048599104859910485991048599

LIMITED SEATS

THE DIGITAL BLUE PRINT TO YOUR HIGH-TECH SUPPLY CHAIN

REGISTER NOW

Cover StoryAir cArgo industry set for A smooth lift post gstWhile the entire dynamics of transportation and logistics will undergo a sea change once GST is introduced it will lead to a leaner and fitter logistics industry which in turn will lead to greater efficiencies

reviewphArmA Accounts for lArgest pie of indiAn exports

THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OFAIr CArgo Agents AssoCIAtIon oF IndIA

(ACAAI)

ACAAI OFFICE BEARERS

PRESIDENTHemant Bhatia

VICE PRESIDENTT A Varghese

SECRETARy gENERAlSunil Arora

TREASURERM Afzal Malbarwala

EDITORReji John

editoracaainewscom

ASSISTANT EDITORSSurya Kannoth

suryaacaainewscom

Rashmi Pradhan rashmiacaainewscom

CORRESPONDENTSTwinkle Sahita

twinkleacaainewscom

Shreya Bhattacharya shreyaacaainewscom

MARKETINgVikas Khadtale

vikasacaainewscom Mobile +91 9820397514

SENIOR gRAPHIC DESIgNERPrasad Mohite

gRAPHIC DESIgNERRajesh Mhapralkar

DISCLAIMERViews expressed in the magazine

are not of ACAAI

Editorial amp Admin office710 Vindhya Commercial Complex

Sector 11 CBD Belapur Navi Mumbai - 400 614 INDIA

Email editorial acaainewscom editoracaainewscom

wwwacaainewscomPrinted by lingam Fine Arts

C-221 ghatkopar Industrial Estate Behind R City Mall ghatkopar (West)

Mumbai ndash 400086 ndash INDIA Published by Priyo Patra

on behalf of STAT MEDIA gROUP from 710 Vindya Commercial Complex

Sector ndash 11 CBD Belapur Navi Mumbai ndash 400614 ndash India

Ph No 022 27578891 022 27570550

Editor REJI JOHN

a STAT MEDIA GROUP venture

ContentsVOL 8 - ISSUE 2 bull APRIL - JUNE 2017

interviewindiA to surpAss chinA in cArgo volumesWith the implementation of Vision 2025 Ethiopian Airlines is aiming to be the leading carrier in the region Tadesse Tilahun Regional Director India Sub-Continent for Ethiopian Airlines speaks of optimism in Indian market and the carrierrsquos strategy for India

A round up of the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit organised by Indian Transport and Logistics News (ITLN) held in Mumbai in February this year The event gathered logistics managers of Indiarsquos top pharma companies and logistics services providers from both India and outside

14

18the perfect tAke offHerersquos the story of a boy who was fascinated by aeroplanes in his childhood in a remote Kenyan village and pursued his dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer Geoffrey Nyaga made his first plane journey of his life to Abu Dhabi as one of the five finalists of the IATA Air Cargo Innovation Awards He returned home with $20000 prize money and assurances of a promising future in the aviation industry

Profile 12

Bigger Better strongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global aviation industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

rePort

23 civil AviAtion minister inAugurAtes first integrAted heliport in delhi

26 Brussels Airlines Adds mumBAi to its internAtionAl network

28 emirAtes skycArgo lAunches skyfresh for perishABles

newS

ciAl the new cArgo huBCochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) Indiarsquos first green-field airport built under the public-private partnership registered 156 percent growth in cargo volume handled in 2016 Paul J Kocheril CIALrsquos Deputy General Manager for Cargo speaks about the phenomenal growth in cargo volume over the years and the plans CIAL has for making it a new cargo hub

interview

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom2

From the Presidents desk

We have entered the new financial

year with a difference from the

past years For the first time since

independence the presentation

of the Union Budget in Parliament

was advanced to the first day of February in 2017 as

compared to the earlier practice of presenting this

budget at the end of February each year As a result the

due process of approvals by the concerned authorities

could be completed by the end of March 2017 for

implementation of the budget provisions from April

1 2017 This is yet another instance of the numerous

reforms that the Union Government has been unveiling

since it assumed office almost three years ago with

the objective of doing away with legacy laws and

procedures which may have outlived their utility and

are therefore inadequate to meet the requirements of

the 21st century for a growing economy

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) legislation is making

rapid progress and it is expected to become law by July

1 2017 This path-breaking legislation will be a game

changer as it will unify the entire country into a single

market GST will subsume the various Indirect Taxes

which are levied by the Central and State Governments

such as Excise duty Service Tax Value Added Tax (VAT)

etc As in the case of any new legislation there are

bound to be teething problems which will be resolved

as and when the need arises The Union Government

has constituted a number of working groups for various

sectors and industries including the logistics and freight

forwarding industries to address their concerns about

GST The relevant issues have been jointly taken up by

ACAAI and several other associations with JM Kennedy

Hemant Bhatia President

Air Cargo Agents Association of India

(ACAAI)

who is in charge of the Working Group for GST for

Transport and Logistics

The dwell time of export and import cargo at airports in

India is amongst the highest in the world In the recent

past ACAAI has submitted its inputs to the concerned

authorities for streamlining the rules regulations and

procedures pertaining to the clearance of import and

export goods with the objective of reducing the dwell

time to global standards

In December 2016 Ministry of Civil Aviation issued

an order whereby the free period for import cargo

was reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours with effect

from April 1 2017 The order stated that the time of

reckoning of the free period would commence from

the segregation time which is reflected in ICEGATE

ACAAI submitted its representation to the Ministry

about the changes that are required in ICEGATE for the

efficient implementation of this Order As a result the

Ministry has issued a new order dated March 31 2017

whereby the segregation date and time indicated in

the segregation report should be jointly signed by the

airport operators airlines and customs These details

are to be reflected in the respective Airport Community

Systems for the purpose of the calculation of the

reduced free period of 48 hours This procedure will

continue until customs modify the ICEGATE system to

reflect the segregation date and time

In the recent past a few airlines have desired that

forwarders should furnish bank guarantees for utilising

their services ACAAI has taken up this issue with the

concerned airlines and expressed the inability of the

trade to provide such guarantees due to valid and

justifiable reasons Bank guarantees will substantially

increase the cost of business of the trade and many

agents will find it difficult to sustain their existing

business We are optimistic that the airlines will

understand the perspective and concerns of the trade

and that they will explore viable alternate solutions to

cover their business exposure

The planning for ACAAIrsquos Annual Convention for 2017

has commenced The dates and venue of this event

will be announced in due course

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 3

GST thegamechanger

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom4

Logistics industry set for a

smooth lift post GST

While the entire dynamics of transportation and logistics will undergo a sea change once GST is introduced it will lead to a leaner and fitter logistics industry which in turn will lead to greater efficiencies

Cover story | GST

SuryA KAnnotH amp rejI joHn

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 5

Goods amp Services

Tax (GST) for sure

remains one of

the two bold-play

initiatives taken by the reigning

government so far After years

of being entangled in political

knots debating a transparent

and efficient unified tax system

India is soon on its way to

become a clutter-free tax

highway

It (GST) looks on track

Subject to Parliament approval

it looks like the possible date of

implementation of GST is July

1 Finance Minister Arun Jaitley

said after the 11th GST Council

meet concluded

The three enabling GST bills

ndash Central GST Integrated GST

and Compensation to states

top the governmentrsquos agenda

during the second part of the

Budget session of Parliament

which will conclude on April 12

Indiarsquos logistics performance

at its key international

gateways has scaled up

significantly in the last two

years and that was evident

in the World Bankrsquos biennial

measure of international supply

chain efficiency report namely

the Logistics Performance

Index where Indiarsquos ranking

catapulted from 54 in 2014 to

35 in 2016

The introduction of GST

will further give impetus to the

transport and logistics industry

in India While the entire

dynamics of transportation

and logistics will undergo

a sea change once GST is

implemented it will lead to

a leaner and fitter logistics

industry which in turn will

lead to greater efficiencies

Both transport as well as

manufacturing companies

will be able to take better

advantage of the economies

of scale

Lauding the governmentrsquos

move Pirojshaw Sarkari CEO

Mahindra Logistics said ldquoThe

announcement of GST Council

finalising its recommendations

on almost all issues and timely

preparation of IT system

needs to be welcomed In an

endeavour to create awareness

about the new GST led taxation

system we support the

governmentrsquos move to reach-

out to trade and industryrdquo

Budget 2017-18 PuSHeS for InfrAStruCtureReadying the stage for GST

Jaitleyrsquos Budget proposal for

2017-18 laid special focus on

road and infrastructure sector

The Budget allocation for

highways was increased from

Rs 57976 crore in FY2016-17

to Rs 64900 crore in FY2017-

18 while 2000 km of coastal

connectivity roads have been

identified for construction and

development This will ensure

better connectivity with ports

and remote villages The total

length of roads including those

under the Pradhan Mantri Gram

Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) built

from 2014-15 till the current

year is about 140000 km

which is significantly higher

than previous three years

With an eye on improved

logistics across the country

in the future the finance

minister said ldquoAn effective

multi-modal logistics and

transport sector will make our

economy more competitive

A specific programme for

development of multi-modal

logistics parks together

with multi-modal transport

facilities will be drawn up and

implementedrdquo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom6

AdvAntAge for 3PL ProvIderSImplementation of GST will

ensure that the nascent 3PL

further embeds itself in the

logistics space Market research

agency Novonous in its

recent report estimates that

3PL logistics market in India is

expected to be worth $30189

billion by 2020 By 2020 Indian

logistics market is expected to

grow at a CAGR of 1217 percent

primarily driven by the growth in

the manufacturing retail FMCG

and e-commerce sectors This

growth rate is also based on

the expectation of GST being

implemented and the logistics

companies can optimise their

operations to reduce cost and

increase their margins

Further it is the

implementation of the GST that

would increase productivity

and raise efficiency levels in

the logistics sector and the

economy as a whole According

to various industry estimates

freight times will come down

by 30-40 percent and logistics

costs are expected to reduce by

20-30 percent

Once GST is implemented

instead of maintaining smaller

warehouses in each and

every state the companies

will be setting up lesser and

bigger warehouses and can

follow hub and scope model

for freight movement from

warehouses to manufacturing

plants distributors and retailers

ldquoWith GST in place there

will be consolidation of

warehouses thus reducing the

time lost between transporting

from one warehouse to

another Shorter supply chain

cycles will entail lesser time

spent on unnecessary activities

like paperwork material

scrutiny at checkpoints

compliance with multiple

regulations etc This will make

it smoother for transport

companies as they will be

able to transport goods with

lesser stoppages and breaks in

Pho

to G

reyO

ran

ge

Model of Indian Logistics Industry post gSt India becomes one big market there will be fewer

and larger warehouses

GST will result in larger trucks on road while the overall number of vehicles will go down The new tax will result in greater adoption of a hub-and-spoke model in segments such as warehousing cold chain container freight stations and inland container depots

GST will also bring in scale to logistics companies as there will be a lot of savings stoppage of wastage and lower delays

These above changes will lead to greater economies of scale for transport operators and lead to more companies outsourcing their logistics operations

journey Consequently it will

reduce the need for extensive

documentation in inter-state

sales making it a lot easier

to transport goods than it is

currentlyrdquo Allcargo Logistics

posted on its blog

Therefore there lies a bigger

opportunity for the 3PL service

providers who can manage

these bigger routes and deliver

accurately and efficiently

The Indian logistics industry

constitutes around 14 percent

of the GDP which is greater

than the other developing

nations The 3PL logistics firms

are evolving from traditional

service delivery systems

to highly integrated and

technically equipped service

providers striving to meet the

service demands GST provides

them with ample opportunity

to invest and expand the 3PL

base in India

According to a report

by CARE Ratings post GST

Cover story | GST

implementation the 3PLs would

have to restructure its assets

and realign its operations in line

with changes in the operations

of its customers in the new

scenario Currently 3PLs have

warehouses located near major

distribution centers of its key

clients (different industries)

irrespective of its geographic

disadvantage mainly to avoid

interstate taxes However

post GST implementation

3PLs are expected to build

integrated warehouses at

logistic suitable locations

So accordingly their assets

would need to be restructured

to accommodate the long

distance consignments which

will occur with this scenario of

free movement of goods across

the country The consumer

durables sector is expected to

witness maximum drop in the

logistics costs as percentage of

total sales as their warehouses

are built at different states to

avoid interstate tax

The central taxes which will

be subsumed into the GST are

Central Excise duty Additional

Excise duty Service tax

Countervailing duty and Special

Additional duty of Customs

Also the state taxes which will

be subsumed by GST are Sales

tax Entertainment tax Central

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 7

Salex tax Octroi and Entry tax

Purchase tax Luxury tax and

Taxes on lottery betting and

gambling GST will be collected

at every stage of sale or

purchase of goods or services

based on input tax credit

method This simplification of

the taxation system would make

the inter-state transportation of

goods more efficient

IMPACt on SuPPLy CHAIn MAnAgeMentThe structure of the supply

chain is influenced by

differential taxes based on

geographical location By

eliminating multiple state taxes

the logistics companies are

encouraged to consolidate

their warehouses instead of

maintaining one in each state

to avoid central tax

This in effect brings the

overall cost of the product

down as the inventory cost

and inventory carrying cost is

down This directly affects the

final cost of the product bring

the selling price down The

cost saved by the companies

as a result of GST can be used

to invest further to improve

serviceability

One important highlight

that GSTrsquos implementation

will do is to reduce the time

taken at various check posts

while transporting goods

This in turn will reduce costs

for customers and logistics

companies making the latter

more efficient and profitable

Presently trucks are idle for

about 40 per cent of the total

travel time due to Central Sales

TaxOctroi payment

GST has the potential to

accelerate growth in the logistics

industry While industry pundits

still feel that many contentious

issues remain such as the clear

definition of supply supply

chain management through

warehouse engineering credit

allowance during the transition

phase etc there is general

consensus to welcome this new

tax regime

With GSTrsquos imminent

implementation the logistics

industry should start exploring

different supply chain models

with their clients and at the same

time develop a completely

synchronised ERP accounting

system to support inventory

supply management as required

under the GST regime

Nevertheless GST is still the

change the logistics industry is

eagerly awaiting as overall the

positive impact of GST far

outweighs the disadvantages for

this industry

Benefits for logistics industry post gSt implementation

Pre gSt PoSt gSt

Interstate tax burden

Currently each of Indiarsquos 29 states taxes goods that move across their borders at different rates apart from that Corporate state tax of 2 is levied for inter-state goods transfer

Not applicable Uniform taxation and no varying tax structures would be allowed across states

Nature of the industry

Current interstate taxation has resulted in a large number of unorganized players in this industry Resulting in fragmented industry

With the introduction of GST there is likely to be major consoli-dation in the industry It could see the emergence of major large players who can span the entire logistics chain

Logistic time Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Cost The existing interstate taxation system has forced the companies to create and maintain warehouses in each state Currently there are around 20-30 warehouses per company one in every state in addition to this 20-30 Carry amp Forwarding agents per state making the supply chain longer and inef-ficient

GST tax will be levied on transportation of goods and full credit will be available on interstate transactions Logistic costs are expected to be decreased by 15-200 of sales on account of optimization of warehouses leading to lower inventory costs which are set up across states to avoid paying 2 corporate sales tax and phasing out of interstate sales tax There is immense scope for optimization of costs

Sou

rce

Car

e Ra

ting

s

Critical business implications post gSt implementationSupply Chain reengineeringMany service providers have to revamp their supply chains realign their warehouses and logistics networks This gives tremendous opportunity to 3PL and 4PL logistics providers

transportationRe-organised manufacturing plants and warehouses would reduce the primary freight charges as they are located close to each other irrespective of which state they are in However secondary freight may increase because of the fewer warehouses

Consolidation and outsourcingWith the increase in the availability of organized and efficient players there is a possibility of consolidation Also this leads to the outsourcing of their logistics operations to logistics service providers

Skill set upgradation and service levelsThe need for optimally skilled and technically qualified workforce is likely to become a challenge Hence to cater to this need supply of skillful workforce should improve which in turn improves the service level of the company in its operations and meet the customer demands

AutomationBecause of the fewer warehouses the warehouses can be ramped up and equipped with state of the art technology to facilitate long term benefits Latest warehouse management systems (WMS) and modern robotics can be used for the effective and efficient warehouse management

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

India to surpass China incargo volumesWith the implementation of Vision 2025 Ethiopian Airlines is aiming to be the leading aviation company in the region It has also added a feather to its cap by completing 45 years of service to Indiarsquos business capital Mumbai The milestone was celebrated by adding the fifth cargo destination - Ahmedabad to its cargo network tadesse tilahun Regional Director India Sub Continent Ethiopian Airlines expressed optimism about Indian market On a tecircte-agrave-tecircte with rashmi Pradhan he vividly painted the strategy for India

interview | TadeSSe Tilahun

elaborate on the vision 2025 of

ethiopian Airlines

According to Ethiopiarsquos 15-year strategic

plan named Vision 2025 we aim to

become a leading and competitive

aviation group in Africa with seven

business centers Ethiopian Domestic and

Regional Airline Ethiopian International

Passenger Airline Ethiopian Cargo

Ethiopian MRO Ethiopian Aviation

Academy Ethiopian In-flight Catering

Services and Ethiopian Ground Service

Ethiopian is a multi-award winning airline

registering an average growth of 25

percent in the past seven years In fact

we have achieved most of the targets set

in Vision 2025 much in advance

tell us about the journey so far

between India and ethiopia

India is a growing aviation market and

very strategic for an airline like Ethiopian

Airlines The carrier started operations

from Delhi way back in 1960s However

we decided to terminate that service

and later in 1971 Ethiopian Airlines made

its debut flight to Mumbai one of its

oldest destinations in Asia Since then

we increased our airlift to 28 scheduled

weekly flights to both Mumbai and

New Delhi The 45 years of uninterrupted

service to Mumbai was a successful

journey but not a smooth ride There

were many challenges (like operational

cost political unrest in Africa etc) From

Mumbai we started with three flights a

day and then increased the frequency

to five flights Earlier it was a turnaround

flight at Bangkok As we witnessed

increase in passenger flow we started a

dedicated flight to Mumbai

How was the performance of

ethiopian Airlines last year

In the past three years we have made a

significant expansion in India Now we

have double daily flights from Mumbai and

New Delhi In terms of passenger traffic

we have registered double digit growth

We witnessed 15 percent year-on-year

growth from Mumbai and 10 percent

growth from New Delhi We have plans

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

EXCELLENCE IN MUMBAI

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 9

to expand our operations in India both in

passenger and cargo We are looking at

starting passenger service to a South India

destination (probably Chennai) this year

What prompted the company to

add the fifth cargo destination from

India

Ethiopian Airlines is the largest cargo

operator in Africa We already have

dedicated cargo operations from four

Indian cities namely Mumbai Delhi

Chennai and Bengaluru On March 28 we

added the fifth cargo gateway to India

Ahmedabad to our global cargo network

Ahmedabad Indiarsquos second oldest

stock exchange and largest producer of

cotton is a fast emerging industrial hub

Right now a good volume of shipment

is trucked from Ahmedabad to Mumbai

and then lifted through Mumbai airport

One more advantage we see is not many

carriers have dedicated freight service

from Ahmedabad

While operating in the major trade

lanes between Africa Europe Middle East

and Asia our cargo network is efficiently

linking the Indian sub-continent and

Africa farther with China and Hong

Kong providing the Indian market with

minimum weekly import capacity of

240 tonnes I believe our new services

to Ahmedabad will further strengthen

the existing trade and commercial ties

between the two fastest growing regions

of the world

Quantify the growth of cargo

volumes from India

Although the exports from India to Africa

have declined we have witnessed seven

percent year-on-year growth from India

in terms of cargo volumes Ethiopian

lifted an average of 1500 tonnes a

month from Mumbai Delhi was around

300 tonnes a month Chennai was 200-

250 tonnes a month whereas Bengaluru

was 100-150 tonnes a month We have

a dedicated freighter four times a week

from Mumbai twice a week each from

Chennai and Delhi and once a week from

Ahmedabad and Bengaluru

We are looking at increasing capacity

from Mumbai and upgrade from B787 to

B777 which will increase the capacity by 50

seats a day Also we plan to upgrade B767

to B787 that will further add 50 seats a day

As far Delhi is concerned we will upgrade

B737 to B767 which will give additional 160

seats per day

What is the target set for India

We would be looking at increasing the

number of destinations by adding more

Indian cities to our network Furthermore

we are looking at increasing the operational

frequency to all the existing airports

viz Chennai Mumbai New Delhi and

Bengaluru The wide range of experience in

operating in Africa Ethiopian would like to

capitalise on the same and widen our area

by more focus on lifting pharmaceuticals

and perishables

A state of the art warehouse is being built

at Addis Ababa airport with a capacity of

600 million tonnes per year in phase I and

will be ramped up to 600 million tonnes

in second phase Of the total capacity

40 percent will be dedicated to

perishables That means after the

completion of the said cargo

hub the capacity will touch

12 million tonnes We are

also looking at deploying

wide body aircraft in place of

narrow body wherever we

see an increase in demand

going forward what is

the expectation of Indian

cargo market

India is a major market for

Ethiopian network It is one of

the top five markets being US

at the top followed by China and

then India and UAE India is a

key market for us and

we have witnessed

continuous

passenger and

cargo growth

from India

Of the Brazil Russia India and China (BRIC)

nations India is the fastest growing country

Most of the African countries are importing

either from India or China It will not be

too far when India will overtake China in

capacity We expect the increase in export

volumes from India

Ethiopian is a Star Alliance member like

the national carrier of India Air India This

gives an advantage to both the airlines and

helps to exchange good volumes of

business We have a codeshare agreement

with Air India and this helps Air India to

reach out to more destinations in Africa

and Ethiopian to reach out to number of

destinations in India

interview | Paul J Kocheril

The first green-field airport in India built under the public-private partnership Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) registered a 178 percent growth in passenger traffic and 156 percent in cargo volumes in 2016 As the volume handled by the airport was on the rise recently a new international terminal was put into operations Over the last two decades Cochin Airport has become the hub of Middle East traffic (both passenger and cargo)

A civil engineer by profession Paul j Kocheril he was one of the first recruits at CIAL in 1994 Kocheril was instrumental in the construction of CIAL For the past 16 years he has been associated with the air cargo complex As the Deputy General Manager - Cargo Cochin International Airport Kocheril speaks to rashmi Pradhan on the growth of traffic and performance of CIAL

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom10

CIALThe new cargo hub

What are the key features of Cochin International

Airport

This is the first airport in the country built under

public-private partnership model and perhaps the first

airport in the world fully operated on solar power

Since its nception in 1999 CIAL has been trying to

integrate local and international technologies to

enhance effective operations We donrsquot compromise

on standards and always adhere to the inclusive

business model which encompass habitat around

when implementing infrastructure expansion

CIAL cargo facility has nearly 200000

square feet area (office and warehouse)

Of which nearly 132000 is dedicated for

warehouse To offer superior cargo services

to airlines forwarding agents shippers and

consignees we stick to the concept of fine

tuning our procedures to meet the ever-

changing demands and challenges of the

constantly evolving air cargo industry

elaborate on the performance of CIAL

in 2016

The total passenger traffic through the

airport in 2016 stood at 8736061 Of which

3764640 were domestic and 4971421

were international passengers In the cargo

front last year was a good year for CIAL

The cargo movement grew in double digit

registering a growth of 156 percent The

volume grew to 8533910 tonnes in 2016 as

against 7384920 tonnes in 2015 Of the total

cargo moved through the airport perishable

cargo share was 58261 tonnes

CIAL can easily accommodate long-haul

direct and non-stop internationaldomestic

crafts The biggest advantage CIAL has is

that it is well connected by road and rail

and rail network The NH 47 is connected

to CIAL by a four-kilometre four-lane road

The railway line cuts across the CIAL land

What is in the pipeline on the cargo

front

There is a full-fledged expansion plan in

place for cargo infrastructure expansion

As part of our vision we are in the process

of setting up a separate fully automated

new import and export section This facility

will have all the modern material handling

equipment and facilities The new import

warehouse will have a separate area for

courier baggage and commercial cargo In

addition to this the administrative offices

for customs and other related agencies also

will be integrated into the new premises

give details of the upcoming cargo

village concept

50 Acres has been earmarked for the cargo

village Once completed the cargo village

will offer separate sections for marine

products couriers express cargo valuables

and vulnerable cargo The logistic centre

along with the multi-modular operation of

the sea to air and air to sea transhipment

will be another attraction focusing on the

movements in Vallarpadam International

Container Terminal at Cochin Port

Also there are separate areas dedicated

to the storage and handling of domestic

(inbound outbound cargo including

courier) and international cargo including

the transhipment cargo

The entire International air cargo centre is

designated as a Customs Bonded area

It is equipped with the state of the art

automation tools and computers that

control the cargo terminals

We are also planning a separate import

warehouse which will be having separate

facilities for handling courier passenger

baggage and commercial cargo It will

also include administrative offices for

government agencies like customs PQ

PHO and other agencies associated with

cargo clearance

How do you ensure the smooth

functioning of cargo movement at

the airport

CIAL is the sole cargo handling agency

for all carrier operating from Cochin

International Airport Right from the

acceptance of cargo to the warehouse

to customs examination security

clearance stuffing documentation

including manifestation are all handled

by CIAL Since we are following a single

shop concept in cargo handling there

is practically very less interference and

coordination issues

What according to you makes Cochin

Airport the first choice of cargo

carriers

The addition of airline services to Cochin

Airport every year has led to increase in

passenger and cargo capacity Since it

started its operations CIAL has grown as the

hub of Middle East cargo traffic in South

India The accessibility the flying time etc

are the factors that determine the cargo

growth (especially fruits and vegetables to

the Middle East) of CIAL As over 80 percent

of export cargo at CIAL are perishables The

facilities like the centre for perishable cargo

a temperature controlled warehouse

exclusively for handling perishable has

fuelled the growth The airport adheres to

low-cost model with no compromise on the

quality of infrastructure and service

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 11

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom12

Take offThe perfect

Heres a story of a boy who was fascinated by aeroplanes in his childhood in a remote Kenyan village and pursued his dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer Last month Geoffrey Nyaga made his first plane journey of his life to Abu Dhabi as one of the five finalists of the IATA Air Cargo Innovation Awards He returned home with $20000 prize money and assurances of a promising future in the aviation industry

Geoffrey Nyaga is 25 years old He

is from Likii a small village on

the slopes of Mount Kenya near

Nanyuki town which is about

200km from Nairobi the capital city He

lives with his parents and his younger sister

His father owns a small retail shop while his

mother assists in running the shop He says

it was ldquojust enough to provide for our daily

basic needsrdquo

ldquoFrom as early as I can remember I have

always been fascinated by technology

specifically aeroplanesrdquo Geoffrey tells me

as he gets himself wired for the first ever

media interview of his life inside the majestic

National Exhibition Centre in Abu Dhabi

ldquoI grew up watching military aircrafts fly

above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and

small aircrafts taking off and landing from

Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody

from my extended family attend college or

anyone in our village working in aviation

I was always determined to pursue my

dreamsrdquo he adds

It is the fascination for technology

combined with his determination that led

him to pursue his dream of completing his

studies in Aeronautical Engineering from

the Technical University of Kenya With a

first class honour Geoffrey graduated in

December 2016 and immediately after he

began his first job at Astral Aerial Solutions

(AES) a subsidiary of Astral Aviation a

dedicated cargo airline with a strong African

footprint His first project was to build a UTM

(UAV Traffic Management) concept that

will safely manage UAS (Unmanned Aerial

System) traffic and to operate Flyox the

indigenously made cargo drone

Flyox has a payload capability of up to

2000kg 1200 km range and flight time of up

to 26 hours It can land in unpaved airstrips

and on water It is designed to enable safe

civilian UAV operations by providing pilots

with information on altitude separation

restricted airspace and weather conditions

The project will lay the foundation for safe

secure and effective UAS operations and

integrate into existing airspace to ultimately

allow the expansion of air cargo in Africa It

can be deployed for aid and relief medical

supplies mining oil and gas agriculture and

e-commerce products

It is this project that made Geoffrey

win the top award at the IATA Air Cargo

Innovation Award for 2017

He received the award at the 11th World

Cargo Symposium (WCS) in Abu Dhabi

ldquoWe hope to be able to develop a

Geoffrey NyaGaAstrAl AeriAl solutions

I grew up watching military aircrafts fly above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and small aircrafts taking off and landing from Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody from my extended family attend college or anyone in our village working in aviation I was always determined to pursue my dreams

rejI joHn

Profile

Sanjeev Gadhia Astral Aviation

Drone technology has strong potential to boost the continentrsquos air connectivity and deliver goods and services to remote regions and more critical lifesaving products to those in need

pathway that will encourage regulators

operators and manufacturers to come

together and pave the way forward

for safe and efficient UAS use in the

continentrdquo says Geoffrey

Sanjeev Gadhia the founder and

CEO of Astral Aviation who presented

the project on behalf of Geoffrey was

delighted to have been recognized

for the project ldquoDrone technology has

strong potential to boost the continentrsquos

air connectivity and deliver goods and

services to remote regions and more

critical lifesaving products to those in

needrdquo says Gadhia

Astral Aerialrsquos project seeks to lay the

It is great to see a developing nation company helping to drive the innovation that is needed throughout the global air cargo industry

Glyn Hughes iAtA

foundation for safe secure and effective

UAS operations and integration into

existing airspace to ultimately allow the

expansion of air cargo in Africa

ldquoIt is great to see a developing nation

company helping to drive the innovation

that is needed throughout the global air

cargo industryrdquo says Glyn Hughes IATArsquos

Global Head of Cargo

Geoffrey is still overwhelmed by the

warm reception he received from IATA

delegates and the acceptance of his

project ldquoI was also impressed with the

industry-wide drive to use new

technologies and innovation to improve

customer experience This united voice

by the industry towards adopting

innovation gave me hope that the cargo

industry would be attractive to young

talent wanting to join the aviation

industryrdquo he adds

UTM CONCEPT

LEVEL 1 1500ft

LEVEL 2 4000 ft

LEVEL 3 8000 ft

LEVEL 4 15000 ft

Medical Supplies Precison Agriculture and crop spraying

Mining

Wind Turbine inspections

Geofence

Power lines and Telecommunications

Emmergency Response

oil and gas

Pipeline inspections Wildlife

Sport and recreational

Surveillance Mapping Security

CARGO DRONESLarge Payload Long Range

General Aviation

Commercial Jets and Airliners

Flyox cargo drone developed by Astral Aerial Solutions

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 13

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14 APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14

rePort | air carGo africa

Bigger betterstrongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

teAM StAt trAde tIMeS

With massive

participation

from industry

stakeholders and

leaders at the fourth edition of

Air Cargo Africa the three-day

conference-cum-exhibition

was a resounding success To

unearth the growth potential of

the African continent the global

air cargo community converged

at the Air Cargo Africa 2017 at

the Emperors Palace in City of

Ekurhuleni Johannesburg from

February 21-23

The event under the theme

ldquoAir freight in Africa Building

tomorrowrsquos market todayrdquo was

inaugurated by the guest of

honour Dr Ismail Vadi Gauteng

Member of Executive Council

for Roads and Transport and Dr

N Xhakaza Member of Mayoral

Committee Finance and

Economic Development City

if Ekurhuleni along with Tleli

Makhetha General Manager

South African Airways and RK

Patra Group Editor-in Chief

STAT Media Group

Welcoming the delegates

to the fourth edition of Air

Cargo Africa RK Patra Group

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15

Editor-in Chief STAT Media

Group spoke about the

revolutionary changes that

the aviation industry is going

through where drones and

unmanned aerial vehicles are

being employed to deliver

cargo and Hyperloop is a

proposed new way to move

people and freight at airline

speeds for the price of a bus

ticket Emphasizing on the

importance of cooperation

he said ldquoAt Air Cargo Africa

through the deliberations in the

next three days we intend to

become a facilitator for greater

cooperation and collaborations

to enhance trade across

bordersrdquo and thus set the ball

rolling for the proceedings over

the next three days

Making his inaugural

address Dr Ismail Vadi pointed

out that significant innovations

are compelling people to

ldquorethink the way they live

interact transport domestically

and internationallyrdquo They are

influencing people to rethink

about all the ldquowell established

norms and practicesrdquo

Musa Zwane CEO (Acting)

South African Airways in his

keynote address said ldquoFor

South African Airways the

air cargo is an important and

significant part of businessrdquo

He goes on to add ldquoWe are

singularly proud that our

country is playing host to this

event which seeks to highlight

and enhance the development

of the air cargo and the

opportunities in the African

region We are also excited

that for the first time this year

shippers and forwarders are

participating fully in the event

to both exhibit and deliberaterdquo

IMPortAnt tALKIng PoIntSPanel discussions over the

three days touched upon

topics ranging from unlocking

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

to dealing with overcapacity

and declining yields in a volatile

market to understanding trade

agreements in the African

context and bringing to the fore

innovations in cargo delivery

The first panel of the day

saw the likes of Glyn Hughes

Global Head of Cargo IATA

Graham Perkins Vice President

Sales and Marketing (EMEIA)

Atlas Air Inc Barry D Nassberg

Group Chief Operating Officer

Worldwide Flight Services

Rudolf Steiner Senior Vice

President Cargo Global

Accounts amp Commercial

Swissport International

Rainer Mueller Vice President

Commercial Saudia Cargo and

Jan de Vegt Chief Operating

Officer Kenya Airways discuss

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Mueller highlighted that

even though the infrastructure

is somewhat in place when it

comes to handling the import

shipments or the export

shipments at the African

airports there is need to

improve the ground transport

ldquoWhat I would be hoping is

we as an industry manage for

setting up an effective ground

transport product in addition

to what we are having as an air

cargo productrdquo

Steiner however said that

investments are being made to

improve the current scenario

ldquoWe invested in brand new

facilities in Africa We have

opted for facilities in Dar es

Salaam and Kenya It is an

absolute must to invest in Good

Distribution Practices (GDP) and

core facilities we have done

that Are we yet there Most

probably not but compared to

two years ago we took a big

step We have to work closer to

the producer in order to further

improve in the logistics chainrdquo

he said

According to Barry D

Nassberg a lot more can be

done and that airports need to

be a willing partner in looking at

how it would develop a policy

where it allows a necessary

investment to happen

Graham Perkins pointed

out that with regards to

the readiness supporting

e-commerce African people

are ready to take this on but

the question is whether Africa

is ready to take it on He said

that custom infrastructure is

a major issue as it does not

support e-commerce ldquoIn many

cases a lot of countries have

customs rules and regulations

that dates back decades

and they are being used

unfortunatelyrdquo he said

Another significant topic

was the Yamoussoukro

Declaration that is most likely to

be implemented by December

2017 It was adopted out of the

recognition that the restrictive

and protectionist intra-African

regulatory regime hampers the

expansion and improvement of

air transport on the continent

Commenting on Africarsquos

Yamoussoukro Declaration and

the debate on opening skies

Jan de Vegt said Africa needs

to take cautious steps and not

rush to open skies outside Africa

ldquoWe have to come to a situation

where Africa has an open sky

within Africa firstrdquo he said

The panel moderated by

Glyn Hughes concluded that

for all countries across Africa

harmonisation is critical

particularly as the continent has

got a growing population and

a young labour force which

would be able to become a

young workforce and then a

young consumer market

In the session on trade

agreements the moderator

Tom Crabtree Regional

Director Airline Market

Analysis Marketing amp Business

Development Boeing

Commercial Airplanes put forth

three important questions

before the panel Are trade

agreements drafted with any

particular mode in mind Can

trade agreements liberalise

market access by themselves

What can we as industry

stakeholders do to make our

voices heard

Crabtree was joined on the

panel by Glyn Hughes global

head of cargo IATA Tleli

Makhetha general manager

South African Airways and

Vladimir Zubkov secretary

general TIACA

Hughes responded to

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

August 10 2017 Bengaluru

wwwitlninhtls2017

Organised byFor participation and sponsorship contactVikas Khadtale 104859910485991048599104859910485991048599104859910485991048599104859910485991048599104859910485991048599104859910485991048599104859910485991048599 10485991048599104859910485991048599104859910485991048599104859910485991048599

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Cover StoryAir cArgo industry set for A smooth lift post gstWhile the entire dynamics of transportation and logistics will undergo a sea change once GST is introduced it will lead to a leaner and fitter logistics industry which in turn will lead to greater efficiencies

reviewphArmA Accounts for lArgest pie of indiAn exports

THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OFAIr CArgo Agents AssoCIAtIon oF IndIA

(ACAAI)

ACAAI OFFICE BEARERS

PRESIDENTHemant Bhatia

VICE PRESIDENTT A Varghese

SECRETARy gENERAlSunil Arora

TREASURERM Afzal Malbarwala

EDITORReji John

editoracaainewscom

ASSISTANT EDITORSSurya Kannoth

suryaacaainewscom

Rashmi Pradhan rashmiacaainewscom

CORRESPONDENTSTwinkle Sahita

twinkleacaainewscom

Shreya Bhattacharya shreyaacaainewscom

MARKETINgVikas Khadtale

vikasacaainewscom Mobile +91 9820397514

SENIOR gRAPHIC DESIgNERPrasad Mohite

gRAPHIC DESIgNERRajesh Mhapralkar

DISCLAIMERViews expressed in the magazine

are not of ACAAI

Editorial amp Admin office710 Vindhya Commercial Complex

Sector 11 CBD Belapur Navi Mumbai - 400 614 INDIA

Email editorial acaainewscom editoracaainewscom

wwwacaainewscomPrinted by lingam Fine Arts

C-221 ghatkopar Industrial Estate Behind R City Mall ghatkopar (West)

Mumbai ndash 400086 ndash INDIA Published by Priyo Patra

on behalf of STAT MEDIA gROUP from 710 Vindya Commercial Complex

Sector ndash 11 CBD Belapur Navi Mumbai ndash 400614 ndash India

Ph No 022 27578891 022 27570550

Editor REJI JOHN

a STAT MEDIA GROUP venture

ContentsVOL 8 - ISSUE 2 bull APRIL - JUNE 2017

interviewindiA to surpAss chinA in cArgo volumesWith the implementation of Vision 2025 Ethiopian Airlines is aiming to be the leading carrier in the region Tadesse Tilahun Regional Director India Sub-Continent for Ethiopian Airlines speaks of optimism in Indian market and the carrierrsquos strategy for India

A round up of the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit organised by Indian Transport and Logistics News (ITLN) held in Mumbai in February this year The event gathered logistics managers of Indiarsquos top pharma companies and logistics services providers from both India and outside

14

18the perfect tAke offHerersquos the story of a boy who was fascinated by aeroplanes in his childhood in a remote Kenyan village and pursued his dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer Geoffrey Nyaga made his first plane journey of his life to Abu Dhabi as one of the five finalists of the IATA Air Cargo Innovation Awards He returned home with $20000 prize money and assurances of a promising future in the aviation industry

Profile 12

Bigger Better strongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global aviation industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

rePort

23 civil AviAtion minister inAugurAtes first integrAted heliport in delhi

26 Brussels Airlines Adds mumBAi to its internAtionAl network

28 emirAtes skycArgo lAunches skyfresh for perishABles

newS

ciAl the new cArgo huBCochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) Indiarsquos first green-field airport built under the public-private partnership registered 156 percent growth in cargo volume handled in 2016 Paul J Kocheril CIALrsquos Deputy General Manager for Cargo speaks about the phenomenal growth in cargo volume over the years and the plans CIAL has for making it a new cargo hub

interview

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom2

From the Presidents desk

We have entered the new financial

year with a difference from the

past years For the first time since

independence the presentation

of the Union Budget in Parliament

was advanced to the first day of February in 2017 as

compared to the earlier practice of presenting this

budget at the end of February each year As a result the

due process of approvals by the concerned authorities

could be completed by the end of March 2017 for

implementation of the budget provisions from April

1 2017 This is yet another instance of the numerous

reforms that the Union Government has been unveiling

since it assumed office almost three years ago with

the objective of doing away with legacy laws and

procedures which may have outlived their utility and

are therefore inadequate to meet the requirements of

the 21st century for a growing economy

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) legislation is making

rapid progress and it is expected to become law by July

1 2017 This path-breaking legislation will be a game

changer as it will unify the entire country into a single

market GST will subsume the various Indirect Taxes

which are levied by the Central and State Governments

such as Excise duty Service Tax Value Added Tax (VAT)

etc As in the case of any new legislation there are

bound to be teething problems which will be resolved

as and when the need arises The Union Government

has constituted a number of working groups for various

sectors and industries including the logistics and freight

forwarding industries to address their concerns about

GST The relevant issues have been jointly taken up by

ACAAI and several other associations with JM Kennedy

Hemant Bhatia President

Air Cargo Agents Association of India

(ACAAI)

who is in charge of the Working Group for GST for

Transport and Logistics

The dwell time of export and import cargo at airports in

India is amongst the highest in the world In the recent

past ACAAI has submitted its inputs to the concerned

authorities for streamlining the rules regulations and

procedures pertaining to the clearance of import and

export goods with the objective of reducing the dwell

time to global standards

In December 2016 Ministry of Civil Aviation issued

an order whereby the free period for import cargo

was reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours with effect

from April 1 2017 The order stated that the time of

reckoning of the free period would commence from

the segregation time which is reflected in ICEGATE

ACAAI submitted its representation to the Ministry

about the changes that are required in ICEGATE for the

efficient implementation of this Order As a result the

Ministry has issued a new order dated March 31 2017

whereby the segregation date and time indicated in

the segregation report should be jointly signed by the

airport operators airlines and customs These details

are to be reflected in the respective Airport Community

Systems for the purpose of the calculation of the

reduced free period of 48 hours This procedure will

continue until customs modify the ICEGATE system to

reflect the segregation date and time

In the recent past a few airlines have desired that

forwarders should furnish bank guarantees for utilising

their services ACAAI has taken up this issue with the

concerned airlines and expressed the inability of the

trade to provide such guarantees due to valid and

justifiable reasons Bank guarantees will substantially

increase the cost of business of the trade and many

agents will find it difficult to sustain their existing

business We are optimistic that the airlines will

understand the perspective and concerns of the trade

and that they will explore viable alternate solutions to

cover their business exposure

The planning for ACAAIrsquos Annual Convention for 2017

has commenced The dates and venue of this event

will be announced in due course

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 3

GST thegamechanger

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom4

Logistics industry set for a

smooth lift post GST

While the entire dynamics of transportation and logistics will undergo a sea change once GST is introduced it will lead to a leaner and fitter logistics industry which in turn will lead to greater efficiencies

Cover story | GST

SuryA KAnnotH amp rejI joHn

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 5

Goods amp Services

Tax (GST) for sure

remains one of

the two bold-play

initiatives taken by the reigning

government so far After years

of being entangled in political

knots debating a transparent

and efficient unified tax system

India is soon on its way to

become a clutter-free tax

highway

It (GST) looks on track

Subject to Parliament approval

it looks like the possible date of

implementation of GST is July

1 Finance Minister Arun Jaitley

said after the 11th GST Council

meet concluded

The three enabling GST bills

ndash Central GST Integrated GST

and Compensation to states

top the governmentrsquos agenda

during the second part of the

Budget session of Parliament

which will conclude on April 12

Indiarsquos logistics performance

at its key international

gateways has scaled up

significantly in the last two

years and that was evident

in the World Bankrsquos biennial

measure of international supply

chain efficiency report namely

the Logistics Performance

Index where Indiarsquos ranking

catapulted from 54 in 2014 to

35 in 2016

The introduction of GST

will further give impetus to the

transport and logistics industry

in India While the entire

dynamics of transportation

and logistics will undergo

a sea change once GST is

implemented it will lead to

a leaner and fitter logistics

industry which in turn will

lead to greater efficiencies

Both transport as well as

manufacturing companies

will be able to take better

advantage of the economies

of scale

Lauding the governmentrsquos

move Pirojshaw Sarkari CEO

Mahindra Logistics said ldquoThe

announcement of GST Council

finalising its recommendations

on almost all issues and timely

preparation of IT system

needs to be welcomed In an

endeavour to create awareness

about the new GST led taxation

system we support the

governmentrsquos move to reach-

out to trade and industryrdquo

Budget 2017-18 PuSHeS for InfrAStruCtureReadying the stage for GST

Jaitleyrsquos Budget proposal for

2017-18 laid special focus on

road and infrastructure sector

The Budget allocation for

highways was increased from

Rs 57976 crore in FY2016-17

to Rs 64900 crore in FY2017-

18 while 2000 km of coastal

connectivity roads have been

identified for construction and

development This will ensure

better connectivity with ports

and remote villages The total

length of roads including those

under the Pradhan Mantri Gram

Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) built

from 2014-15 till the current

year is about 140000 km

which is significantly higher

than previous three years

With an eye on improved

logistics across the country

in the future the finance

minister said ldquoAn effective

multi-modal logistics and

transport sector will make our

economy more competitive

A specific programme for

development of multi-modal

logistics parks together

with multi-modal transport

facilities will be drawn up and

implementedrdquo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom6

AdvAntAge for 3PL ProvIderSImplementation of GST will

ensure that the nascent 3PL

further embeds itself in the

logistics space Market research

agency Novonous in its

recent report estimates that

3PL logistics market in India is

expected to be worth $30189

billion by 2020 By 2020 Indian

logistics market is expected to

grow at a CAGR of 1217 percent

primarily driven by the growth in

the manufacturing retail FMCG

and e-commerce sectors This

growth rate is also based on

the expectation of GST being

implemented and the logistics

companies can optimise their

operations to reduce cost and

increase their margins

Further it is the

implementation of the GST that

would increase productivity

and raise efficiency levels in

the logistics sector and the

economy as a whole According

to various industry estimates

freight times will come down

by 30-40 percent and logistics

costs are expected to reduce by

20-30 percent

Once GST is implemented

instead of maintaining smaller

warehouses in each and

every state the companies

will be setting up lesser and

bigger warehouses and can

follow hub and scope model

for freight movement from

warehouses to manufacturing

plants distributors and retailers

ldquoWith GST in place there

will be consolidation of

warehouses thus reducing the

time lost between transporting

from one warehouse to

another Shorter supply chain

cycles will entail lesser time

spent on unnecessary activities

like paperwork material

scrutiny at checkpoints

compliance with multiple

regulations etc This will make

it smoother for transport

companies as they will be

able to transport goods with

lesser stoppages and breaks in

Pho

to G

reyO

ran

ge

Model of Indian Logistics Industry post gSt India becomes one big market there will be fewer

and larger warehouses

GST will result in larger trucks on road while the overall number of vehicles will go down The new tax will result in greater adoption of a hub-and-spoke model in segments such as warehousing cold chain container freight stations and inland container depots

GST will also bring in scale to logistics companies as there will be a lot of savings stoppage of wastage and lower delays

These above changes will lead to greater economies of scale for transport operators and lead to more companies outsourcing their logistics operations

journey Consequently it will

reduce the need for extensive

documentation in inter-state

sales making it a lot easier

to transport goods than it is

currentlyrdquo Allcargo Logistics

posted on its blog

Therefore there lies a bigger

opportunity for the 3PL service

providers who can manage

these bigger routes and deliver

accurately and efficiently

The Indian logistics industry

constitutes around 14 percent

of the GDP which is greater

than the other developing

nations The 3PL logistics firms

are evolving from traditional

service delivery systems

to highly integrated and

technically equipped service

providers striving to meet the

service demands GST provides

them with ample opportunity

to invest and expand the 3PL

base in India

According to a report

by CARE Ratings post GST

Cover story | GST

implementation the 3PLs would

have to restructure its assets

and realign its operations in line

with changes in the operations

of its customers in the new

scenario Currently 3PLs have

warehouses located near major

distribution centers of its key

clients (different industries)

irrespective of its geographic

disadvantage mainly to avoid

interstate taxes However

post GST implementation

3PLs are expected to build

integrated warehouses at

logistic suitable locations

So accordingly their assets

would need to be restructured

to accommodate the long

distance consignments which

will occur with this scenario of

free movement of goods across

the country The consumer

durables sector is expected to

witness maximum drop in the

logistics costs as percentage of

total sales as their warehouses

are built at different states to

avoid interstate tax

The central taxes which will

be subsumed into the GST are

Central Excise duty Additional

Excise duty Service tax

Countervailing duty and Special

Additional duty of Customs

Also the state taxes which will

be subsumed by GST are Sales

tax Entertainment tax Central

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 7

Salex tax Octroi and Entry tax

Purchase tax Luxury tax and

Taxes on lottery betting and

gambling GST will be collected

at every stage of sale or

purchase of goods or services

based on input tax credit

method This simplification of

the taxation system would make

the inter-state transportation of

goods more efficient

IMPACt on SuPPLy CHAIn MAnAgeMentThe structure of the supply

chain is influenced by

differential taxes based on

geographical location By

eliminating multiple state taxes

the logistics companies are

encouraged to consolidate

their warehouses instead of

maintaining one in each state

to avoid central tax

This in effect brings the

overall cost of the product

down as the inventory cost

and inventory carrying cost is

down This directly affects the

final cost of the product bring

the selling price down The

cost saved by the companies

as a result of GST can be used

to invest further to improve

serviceability

One important highlight

that GSTrsquos implementation

will do is to reduce the time

taken at various check posts

while transporting goods

This in turn will reduce costs

for customers and logistics

companies making the latter

more efficient and profitable

Presently trucks are idle for

about 40 per cent of the total

travel time due to Central Sales

TaxOctroi payment

GST has the potential to

accelerate growth in the logistics

industry While industry pundits

still feel that many contentious

issues remain such as the clear

definition of supply supply

chain management through

warehouse engineering credit

allowance during the transition

phase etc there is general

consensus to welcome this new

tax regime

With GSTrsquos imminent

implementation the logistics

industry should start exploring

different supply chain models

with their clients and at the same

time develop a completely

synchronised ERP accounting

system to support inventory

supply management as required

under the GST regime

Nevertheless GST is still the

change the logistics industry is

eagerly awaiting as overall the

positive impact of GST far

outweighs the disadvantages for

this industry

Benefits for logistics industry post gSt implementation

Pre gSt PoSt gSt

Interstate tax burden

Currently each of Indiarsquos 29 states taxes goods that move across their borders at different rates apart from that Corporate state tax of 2 is levied for inter-state goods transfer

Not applicable Uniform taxation and no varying tax structures would be allowed across states

Nature of the industry

Current interstate taxation has resulted in a large number of unorganized players in this industry Resulting in fragmented industry

With the introduction of GST there is likely to be major consoli-dation in the industry It could see the emergence of major large players who can span the entire logistics chain

Logistic time Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Cost The existing interstate taxation system has forced the companies to create and maintain warehouses in each state Currently there are around 20-30 warehouses per company one in every state in addition to this 20-30 Carry amp Forwarding agents per state making the supply chain longer and inef-ficient

GST tax will be levied on transportation of goods and full credit will be available on interstate transactions Logistic costs are expected to be decreased by 15-200 of sales on account of optimization of warehouses leading to lower inventory costs which are set up across states to avoid paying 2 corporate sales tax and phasing out of interstate sales tax There is immense scope for optimization of costs

Sou

rce

Car

e Ra

ting

s

Critical business implications post gSt implementationSupply Chain reengineeringMany service providers have to revamp their supply chains realign their warehouses and logistics networks This gives tremendous opportunity to 3PL and 4PL logistics providers

transportationRe-organised manufacturing plants and warehouses would reduce the primary freight charges as they are located close to each other irrespective of which state they are in However secondary freight may increase because of the fewer warehouses

Consolidation and outsourcingWith the increase in the availability of organized and efficient players there is a possibility of consolidation Also this leads to the outsourcing of their logistics operations to logistics service providers

Skill set upgradation and service levelsThe need for optimally skilled and technically qualified workforce is likely to become a challenge Hence to cater to this need supply of skillful workforce should improve which in turn improves the service level of the company in its operations and meet the customer demands

AutomationBecause of the fewer warehouses the warehouses can be ramped up and equipped with state of the art technology to facilitate long term benefits Latest warehouse management systems (WMS) and modern robotics can be used for the effective and efficient warehouse management

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

India to surpass China incargo volumesWith the implementation of Vision 2025 Ethiopian Airlines is aiming to be the leading aviation company in the region It has also added a feather to its cap by completing 45 years of service to Indiarsquos business capital Mumbai The milestone was celebrated by adding the fifth cargo destination - Ahmedabad to its cargo network tadesse tilahun Regional Director India Sub Continent Ethiopian Airlines expressed optimism about Indian market On a tecircte-agrave-tecircte with rashmi Pradhan he vividly painted the strategy for India

interview | TadeSSe Tilahun

elaborate on the vision 2025 of

ethiopian Airlines

According to Ethiopiarsquos 15-year strategic

plan named Vision 2025 we aim to

become a leading and competitive

aviation group in Africa with seven

business centers Ethiopian Domestic and

Regional Airline Ethiopian International

Passenger Airline Ethiopian Cargo

Ethiopian MRO Ethiopian Aviation

Academy Ethiopian In-flight Catering

Services and Ethiopian Ground Service

Ethiopian is a multi-award winning airline

registering an average growth of 25

percent in the past seven years In fact

we have achieved most of the targets set

in Vision 2025 much in advance

tell us about the journey so far

between India and ethiopia

India is a growing aviation market and

very strategic for an airline like Ethiopian

Airlines The carrier started operations

from Delhi way back in 1960s However

we decided to terminate that service

and later in 1971 Ethiopian Airlines made

its debut flight to Mumbai one of its

oldest destinations in Asia Since then

we increased our airlift to 28 scheduled

weekly flights to both Mumbai and

New Delhi The 45 years of uninterrupted

service to Mumbai was a successful

journey but not a smooth ride There

were many challenges (like operational

cost political unrest in Africa etc) From

Mumbai we started with three flights a

day and then increased the frequency

to five flights Earlier it was a turnaround

flight at Bangkok As we witnessed

increase in passenger flow we started a

dedicated flight to Mumbai

How was the performance of

ethiopian Airlines last year

In the past three years we have made a

significant expansion in India Now we

have double daily flights from Mumbai and

New Delhi In terms of passenger traffic

we have registered double digit growth

We witnessed 15 percent year-on-year

growth from Mumbai and 10 percent

growth from New Delhi We have plans

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

EXCELLENCE IN MUMBAI

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 9

to expand our operations in India both in

passenger and cargo We are looking at

starting passenger service to a South India

destination (probably Chennai) this year

What prompted the company to

add the fifth cargo destination from

India

Ethiopian Airlines is the largest cargo

operator in Africa We already have

dedicated cargo operations from four

Indian cities namely Mumbai Delhi

Chennai and Bengaluru On March 28 we

added the fifth cargo gateway to India

Ahmedabad to our global cargo network

Ahmedabad Indiarsquos second oldest

stock exchange and largest producer of

cotton is a fast emerging industrial hub

Right now a good volume of shipment

is trucked from Ahmedabad to Mumbai

and then lifted through Mumbai airport

One more advantage we see is not many

carriers have dedicated freight service

from Ahmedabad

While operating in the major trade

lanes between Africa Europe Middle East

and Asia our cargo network is efficiently

linking the Indian sub-continent and

Africa farther with China and Hong

Kong providing the Indian market with

minimum weekly import capacity of

240 tonnes I believe our new services

to Ahmedabad will further strengthen

the existing trade and commercial ties

between the two fastest growing regions

of the world

Quantify the growth of cargo

volumes from India

Although the exports from India to Africa

have declined we have witnessed seven

percent year-on-year growth from India

in terms of cargo volumes Ethiopian

lifted an average of 1500 tonnes a

month from Mumbai Delhi was around

300 tonnes a month Chennai was 200-

250 tonnes a month whereas Bengaluru

was 100-150 tonnes a month We have

a dedicated freighter four times a week

from Mumbai twice a week each from

Chennai and Delhi and once a week from

Ahmedabad and Bengaluru

We are looking at increasing capacity

from Mumbai and upgrade from B787 to

B777 which will increase the capacity by 50

seats a day Also we plan to upgrade B767

to B787 that will further add 50 seats a day

As far Delhi is concerned we will upgrade

B737 to B767 which will give additional 160

seats per day

What is the target set for India

We would be looking at increasing the

number of destinations by adding more

Indian cities to our network Furthermore

we are looking at increasing the operational

frequency to all the existing airports

viz Chennai Mumbai New Delhi and

Bengaluru The wide range of experience in

operating in Africa Ethiopian would like to

capitalise on the same and widen our area

by more focus on lifting pharmaceuticals

and perishables

A state of the art warehouse is being built

at Addis Ababa airport with a capacity of

600 million tonnes per year in phase I and

will be ramped up to 600 million tonnes

in second phase Of the total capacity

40 percent will be dedicated to

perishables That means after the

completion of the said cargo

hub the capacity will touch

12 million tonnes We are

also looking at deploying

wide body aircraft in place of

narrow body wherever we

see an increase in demand

going forward what is

the expectation of Indian

cargo market

India is a major market for

Ethiopian network It is one of

the top five markets being US

at the top followed by China and

then India and UAE India is a

key market for us and

we have witnessed

continuous

passenger and

cargo growth

from India

Of the Brazil Russia India and China (BRIC)

nations India is the fastest growing country

Most of the African countries are importing

either from India or China It will not be

too far when India will overtake China in

capacity We expect the increase in export

volumes from India

Ethiopian is a Star Alliance member like

the national carrier of India Air India This

gives an advantage to both the airlines and

helps to exchange good volumes of

business We have a codeshare agreement

with Air India and this helps Air India to

reach out to more destinations in Africa

and Ethiopian to reach out to number of

destinations in India

interview | Paul J Kocheril

The first green-field airport in India built under the public-private partnership Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) registered a 178 percent growth in passenger traffic and 156 percent in cargo volumes in 2016 As the volume handled by the airport was on the rise recently a new international terminal was put into operations Over the last two decades Cochin Airport has become the hub of Middle East traffic (both passenger and cargo)

A civil engineer by profession Paul j Kocheril he was one of the first recruits at CIAL in 1994 Kocheril was instrumental in the construction of CIAL For the past 16 years he has been associated with the air cargo complex As the Deputy General Manager - Cargo Cochin International Airport Kocheril speaks to rashmi Pradhan on the growth of traffic and performance of CIAL

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom10

CIALThe new cargo hub

What are the key features of Cochin International

Airport

This is the first airport in the country built under

public-private partnership model and perhaps the first

airport in the world fully operated on solar power

Since its nception in 1999 CIAL has been trying to

integrate local and international technologies to

enhance effective operations We donrsquot compromise

on standards and always adhere to the inclusive

business model which encompass habitat around

when implementing infrastructure expansion

CIAL cargo facility has nearly 200000

square feet area (office and warehouse)

Of which nearly 132000 is dedicated for

warehouse To offer superior cargo services

to airlines forwarding agents shippers and

consignees we stick to the concept of fine

tuning our procedures to meet the ever-

changing demands and challenges of the

constantly evolving air cargo industry

elaborate on the performance of CIAL

in 2016

The total passenger traffic through the

airport in 2016 stood at 8736061 Of which

3764640 were domestic and 4971421

were international passengers In the cargo

front last year was a good year for CIAL

The cargo movement grew in double digit

registering a growth of 156 percent The

volume grew to 8533910 tonnes in 2016 as

against 7384920 tonnes in 2015 Of the total

cargo moved through the airport perishable

cargo share was 58261 tonnes

CIAL can easily accommodate long-haul

direct and non-stop internationaldomestic

crafts The biggest advantage CIAL has is

that it is well connected by road and rail

and rail network The NH 47 is connected

to CIAL by a four-kilometre four-lane road

The railway line cuts across the CIAL land

What is in the pipeline on the cargo

front

There is a full-fledged expansion plan in

place for cargo infrastructure expansion

As part of our vision we are in the process

of setting up a separate fully automated

new import and export section This facility

will have all the modern material handling

equipment and facilities The new import

warehouse will have a separate area for

courier baggage and commercial cargo In

addition to this the administrative offices

for customs and other related agencies also

will be integrated into the new premises

give details of the upcoming cargo

village concept

50 Acres has been earmarked for the cargo

village Once completed the cargo village

will offer separate sections for marine

products couriers express cargo valuables

and vulnerable cargo The logistic centre

along with the multi-modular operation of

the sea to air and air to sea transhipment

will be another attraction focusing on the

movements in Vallarpadam International

Container Terminal at Cochin Port

Also there are separate areas dedicated

to the storage and handling of domestic

(inbound outbound cargo including

courier) and international cargo including

the transhipment cargo

The entire International air cargo centre is

designated as a Customs Bonded area

It is equipped with the state of the art

automation tools and computers that

control the cargo terminals

We are also planning a separate import

warehouse which will be having separate

facilities for handling courier passenger

baggage and commercial cargo It will

also include administrative offices for

government agencies like customs PQ

PHO and other agencies associated with

cargo clearance

How do you ensure the smooth

functioning of cargo movement at

the airport

CIAL is the sole cargo handling agency

for all carrier operating from Cochin

International Airport Right from the

acceptance of cargo to the warehouse

to customs examination security

clearance stuffing documentation

including manifestation are all handled

by CIAL Since we are following a single

shop concept in cargo handling there

is practically very less interference and

coordination issues

What according to you makes Cochin

Airport the first choice of cargo

carriers

The addition of airline services to Cochin

Airport every year has led to increase in

passenger and cargo capacity Since it

started its operations CIAL has grown as the

hub of Middle East cargo traffic in South

India The accessibility the flying time etc

are the factors that determine the cargo

growth (especially fruits and vegetables to

the Middle East) of CIAL As over 80 percent

of export cargo at CIAL are perishables The

facilities like the centre for perishable cargo

a temperature controlled warehouse

exclusively for handling perishable has

fuelled the growth The airport adheres to

low-cost model with no compromise on the

quality of infrastructure and service

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 11

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom12

Take offThe perfect

Heres a story of a boy who was fascinated by aeroplanes in his childhood in a remote Kenyan village and pursued his dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer Last month Geoffrey Nyaga made his first plane journey of his life to Abu Dhabi as one of the five finalists of the IATA Air Cargo Innovation Awards He returned home with $20000 prize money and assurances of a promising future in the aviation industry

Geoffrey Nyaga is 25 years old He

is from Likii a small village on

the slopes of Mount Kenya near

Nanyuki town which is about

200km from Nairobi the capital city He

lives with his parents and his younger sister

His father owns a small retail shop while his

mother assists in running the shop He says

it was ldquojust enough to provide for our daily

basic needsrdquo

ldquoFrom as early as I can remember I have

always been fascinated by technology

specifically aeroplanesrdquo Geoffrey tells me

as he gets himself wired for the first ever

media interview of his life inside the majestic

National Exhibition Centre in Abu Dhabi

ldquoI grew up watching military aircrafts fly

above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and

small aircrafts taking off and landing from

Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody

from my extended family attend college or

anyone in our village working in aviation

I was always determined to pursue my

dreamsrdquo he adds

It is the fascination for technology

combined with his determination that led

him to pursue his dream of completing his

studies in Aeronautical Engineering from

the Technical University of Kenya With a

first class honour Geoffrey graduated in

December 2016 and immediately after he

began his first job at Astral Aerial Solutions

(AES) a subsidiary of Astral Aviation a

dedicated cargo airline with a strong African

footprint His first project was to build a UTM

(UAV Traffic Management) concept that

will safely manage UAS (Unmanned Aerial

System) traffic and to operate Flyox the

indigenously made cargo drone

Flyox has a payload capability of up to

2000kg 1200 km range and flight time of up

to 26 hours It can land in unpaved airstrips

and on water It is designed to enable safe

civilian UAV operations by providing pilots

with information on altitude separation

restricted airspace and weather conditions

The project will lay the foundation for safe

secure and effective UAS operations and

integrate into existing airspace to ultimately

allow the expansion of air cargo in Africa It

can be deployed for aid and relief medical

supplies mining oil and gas agriculture and

e-commerce products

It is this project that made Geoffrey

win the top award at the IATA Air Cargo

Innovation Award for 2017

He received the award at the 11th World

Cargo Symposium (WCS) in Abu Dhabi

ldquoWe hope to be able to develop a

Geoffrey NyaGaAstrAl AeriAl solutions

I grew up watching military aircrafts fly above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and small aircrafts taking off and landing from Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody from my extended family attend college or anyone in our village working in aviation I was always determined to pursue my dreams

rejI joHn

Profile

Sanjeev Gadhia Astral Aviation

Drone technology has strong potential to boost the continentrsquos air connectivity and deliver goods and services to remote regions and more critical lifesaving products to those in need

pathway that will encourage regulators

operators and manufacturers to come

together and pave the way forward

for safe and efficient UAS use in the

continentrdquo says Geoffrey

Sanjeev Gadhia the founder and

CEO of Astral Aviation who presented

the project on behalf of Geoffrey was

delighted to have been recognized

for the project ldquoDrone technology has

strong potential to boost the continentrsquos

air connectivity and deliver goods and

services to remote regions and more

critical lifesaving products to those in

needrdquo says Gadhia

Astral Aerialrsquos project seeks to lay the

It is great to see a developing nation company helping to drive the innovation that is needed throughout the global air cargo industry

Glyn Hughes iAtA

foundation for safe secure and effective

UAS operations and integration into

existing airspace to ultimately allow the

expansion of air cargo in Africa

ldquoIt is great to see a developing nation

company helping to drive the innovation

that is needed throughout the global air

cargo industryrdquo says Glyn Hughes IATArsquos

Global Head of Cargo

Geoffrey is still overwhelmed by the

warm reception he received from IATA

delegates and the acceptance of his

project ldquoI was also impressed with the

industry-wide drive to use new

technologies and innovation to improve

customer experience This united voice

by the industry towards adopting

innovation gave me hope that the cargo

industry would be attractive to young

talent wanting to join the aviation

industryrdquo he adds

UTM CONCEPT

LEVEL 1 1500ft

LEVEL 2 4000 ft

LEVEL 3 8000 ft

LEVEL 4 15000 ft

Medical Supplies Precison Agriculture and crop spraying

Mining

Wind Turbine inspections

Geofence

Power lines and Telecommunications

Emmergency Response

oil and gas

Pipeline inspections Wildlife

Sport and recreational

Surveillance Mapping Security

CARGO DRONESLarge Payload Long Range

General Aviation

Commercial Jets and Airliners

Flyox cargo drone developed by Astral Aerial Solutions

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 13

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14 APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14

rePort | air carGo africa

Bigger betterstrongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

teAM StAt trAde tIMeS

With massive

participation

from industry

stakeholders and

leaders at the fourth edition of

Air Cargo Africa the three-day

conference-cum-exhibition

was a resounding success To

unearth the growth potential of

the African continent the global

air cargo community converged

at the Air Cargo Africa 2017 at

the Emperors Palace in City of

Ekurhuleni Johannesburg from

February 21-23

The event under the theme

ldquoAir freight in Africa Building

tomorrowrsquos market todayrdquo was

inaugurated by the guest of

honour Dr Ismail Vadi Gauteng

Member of Executive Council

for Roads and Transport and Dr

N Xhakaza Member of Mayoral

Committee Finance and

Economic Development City

if Ekurhuleni along with Tleli

Makhetha General Manager

South African Airways and RK

Patra Group Editor-in Chief

STAT Media Group

Welcoming the delegates

to the fourth edition of Air

Cargo Africa RK Patra Group

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15

Editor-in Chief STAT Media

Group spoke about the

revolutionary changes that

the aviation industry is going

through where drones and

unmanned aerial vehicles are

being employed to deliver

cargo and Hyperloop is a

proposed new way to move

people and freight at airline

speeds for the price of a bus

ticket Emphasizing on the

importance of cooperation

he said ldquoAt Air Cargo Africa

through the deliberations in the

next three days we intend to

become a facilitator for greater

cooperation and collaborations

to enhance trade across

bordersrdquo and thus set the ball

rolling for the proceedings over

the next three days

Making his inaugural

address Dr Ismail Vadi pointed

out that significant innovations

are compelling people to

ldquorethink the way they live

interact transport domestically

and internationallyrdquo They are

influencing people to rethink

about all the ldquowell established

norms and practicesrdquo

Musa Zwane CEO (Acting)

South African Airways in his

keynote address said ldquoFor

South African Airways the

air cargo is an important and

significant part of businessrdquo

He goes on to add ldquoWe are

singularly proud that our

country is playing host to this

event which seeks to highlight

and enhance the development

of the air cargo and the

opportunities in the African

region We are also excited

that for the first time this year

shippers and forwarders are

participating fully in the event

to both exhibit and deliberaterdquo

IMPortAnt tALKIng PoIntSPanel discussions over the

three days touched upon

topics ranging from unlocking

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

to dealing with overcapacity

and declining yields in a volatile

market to understanding trade

agreements in the African

context and bringing to the fore

innovations in cargo delivery

The first panel of the day

saw the likes of Glyn Hughes

Global Head of Cargo IATA

Graham Perkins Vice President

Sales and Marketing (EMEIA)

Atlas Air Inc Barry D Nassberg

Group Chief Operating Officer

Worldwide Flight Services

Rudolf Steiner Senior Vice

President Cargo Global

Accounts amp Commercial

Swissport International

Rainer Mueller Vice President

Commercial Saudia Cargo and

Jan de Vegt Chief Operating

Officer Kenya Airways discuss

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Mueller highlighted that

even though the infrastructure

is somewhat in place when it

comes to handling the import

shipments or the export

shipments at the African

airports there is need to

improve the ground transport

ldquoWhat I would be hoping is

we as an industry manage for

setting up an effective ground

transport product in addition

to what we are having as an air

cargo productrdquo

Steiner however said that

investments are being made to

improve the current scenario

ldquoWe invested in brand new

facilities in Africa We have

opted for facilities in Dar es

Salaam and Kenya It is an

absolute must to invest in Good

Distribution Practices (GDP) and

core facilities we have done

that Are we yet there Most

probably not but compared to

two years ago we took a big

step We have to work closer to

the producer in order to further

improve in the logistics chainrdquo

he said

According to Barry D

Nassberg a lot more can be

done and that airports need to

be a willing partner in looking at

how it would develop a policy

where it allows a necessary

investment to happen

Graham Perkins pointed

out that with regards to

the readiness supporting

e-commerce African people

are ready to take this on but

the question is whether Africa

is ready to take it on He said

that custom infrastructure is

a major issue as it does not

support e-commerce ldquoIn many

cases a lot of countries have

customs rules and regulations

that dates back decades

and they are being used

unfortunatelyrdquo he said

Another significant topic

was the Yamoussoukro

Declaration that is most likely to

be implemented by December

2017 It was adopted out of the

recognition that the restrictive

and protectionist intra-African

regulatory regime hampers the

expansion and improvement of

air transport on the continent

Commenting on Africarsquos

Yamoussoukro Declaration and

the debate on opening skies

Jan de Vegt said Africa needs

to take cautious steps and not

rush to open skies outside Africa

ldquoWe have to come to a situation

where Africa has an open sky

within Africa firstrdquo he said

The panel moderated by

Glyn Hughes concluded that

for all countries across Africa

harmonisation is critical

particularly as the continent has

got a growing population and

a young labour force which

would be able to become a

young workforce and then a

young consumer market

In the session on trade

agreements the moderator

Tom Crabtree Regional

Director Airline Market

Analysis Marketing amp Business

Development Boeing

Commercial Airplanes put forth

three important questions

before the panel Are trade

agreements drafted with any

particular mode in mind Can

trade agreements liberalise

market access by themselves

What can we as industry

stakeholders do to make our

voices heard

Crabtree was joined on the

panel by Glyn Hughes global

head of cargo IATA Tleli

Makhetha general manager

South African Airways and

Vladimir Zubkov secretary

general TIACA

Hughes responded to

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

Cover StoryAir cArgo industry set for A smooth lift post gstWhile the entire dynamics of transportation and logistics will undergo a sea change once GST is introduced it will lead to a leaner and fitter logistics industry which in turn will lead to greater efficiencies

reviewphArmA Accounts for lArgest pie of indiAn exports

THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OFAIr CArgo Agents AssoCIAtIon oF IndIA

(ACAAI)

ACAAI OFFICE BEARERS

PRESIDENTHemant Bhatia

VICE PRESIDENTT A Varghese

SECRETARy gENERAlSunil Arora

TREASURERM Afzal Malbarwala

EDITORReji John

editoracaainewscom

ASSISTANT EDITORSSurya Kannoth

suryaacaainewscom

Rashmi Pradhan rashmiacaainewscom

CORRESPONDENTSTwinkle Sahita

twinkleacaainewscom

Shreya Bhattacharya shreyaacaainewscom

MARKETINgVikas Khadtale

vikasacaainewscom Mobile +91 9820397514

SENIOR gRAPHIC DESIgNERPrasad Mohite

gRAPHIC DESIgNERRajesh Mhapralkar

DISCLAIMERViews expressed in the magazine

are not of ACAAI

Editorial amp Admin office710 Vindhya Commercial Complex

Sector 11 CBD Belapur Navi Mumbai - 400 614 INDIA

Email editorial acaainewscom editoracaainewscom

wwwacaainewscomPrinted by lingam Fine Arts

C-221 ghatkopar Industrial Estate Behind R City Mall ghatkopar (West)

Mumbai ndash 400086 ndash INDIA Published by Priyo Patra

on behalf of STAT MEDIA gROUP from 710 Vindya Commercial Complex

Sector ndash 11 CBD Belapur Navi Mumbai ndash 400614 ndash India

Ph No 022 27578891 022 27570550

Editor REJI JOHN

a STAT MEDIA GROUP venture

ContentsVOL 8 - ISSUE 2 bull APRIL - JUNE 2017

interviewindiA to surpAss chinA in cArgo volumesWith the implementation of Vision 2025 Ethiopian Airlines is aiming to be the leading carrier in the region Tadesse Tilahun Regional Director India Sub-Continent for Ethiopian Airlines speaks of optimism in Indian market and the carrierrsquos strategy for India

A round up of the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit organised by Indian Transport and Logistics News (ITLN) held in Mumbai in February this year The event gathered logistics managers of Indiarsquos top pharma companies and logistics services providers from both India and outside

14

18the perfect tAke offHerersquos the story of a boy who was fascinated by aeroplanes in his childhood in a remote Kenyan village and pursued his dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer Geoffrey Nyaga made his first plane journey of his life to Abu Dhabi as one of the five finalists of the IATA Air Cargo Innovation Awards He returned home with $20000 prize money and assurances of a promising future in the aviation industry

Profile 12

Bigger Better strongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global aviation industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

rePort

23 civil AviAtion minister inAugurAtes first integrAted heliport in delhi

26 Brussels Airlines Adds mumBAi to its internAtionAl network

28 emirAtes skycArgo lAunches skyfresh for perishABles

newS

ciAl the new cArgo huBCochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) Indiarsquos first green-field airport built under the public-private partnership registered 156 percent growth in cargo volume handled in 2016 Paul J Kocheril CIALrsquos Deputy General Manager for Cargo speaks about the phenomenal growth in cargo volume over the years and the plans CIAL has for making it a new cargo hub

interview

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom2

From the Presidents desk

We have entered the new financial

year with a difference from the

past years For the first time since

independence the presentation

of the Union Budget in Parliament

was advanced to the first day of February in 2017 as

compared to the earlier practice of presenting this

budget at the end of February each year As a result the

due process of approvals by the concerned authorities

could be completed by the end of March 2017 for

implementation of the budget provisions from April

1 2017 This is yet another instance of the numerous

reforms that the Union Government has been unveiling

since it assumed office almost three years ago with

the objective of doing away with legacy laws and

procedures which may have outlived their utility and

are therefore inadequate to meet the requirements of

the 21st century for a growing economy

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) legislation is making

rapid progress and it is expected to become law by July

1 2017 This path-breaking legislation will be a game

changer as it will unify the entire country into a single

market GST will subsume the various Indirect Taxes

which are levied by the Central and State Governments

such as Excise duty Service Tax Value Added Tax (VAT)

etc As in the case of any new legislation there are

bound to be teething problems which will be resolved

as and when the need arises The Union Government

has constituted a number of working groups for various

sectors and industries including the logistics and freight

forwarding industries to address their concerns about

GST The relevant issues have been jointly taken up by

ACAAI and several other associations with JM Kennedy

Hemant Bhatia President

Air Cargo Agents Association of India

(ACAAI)

who is in charge of the Working Group for GST for

Transport and Logistics

The dwell time of export and import cargo at airports in

India is amongst the highest in the world In the recent

past ACAAI has submitted its inputs to the concerned

authorities for streamlining the rules regulations and

procedures pertaining to the clearance of import and

export goods with the objective of reducing the dwell

time to global standards

In December 2016 Ministry of Civil Aviation issued

an order whereby the free period for import cargo

was reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours with effect

from April 1 2017 The order stated that the time of

reckoning of the free period would commence from

the segregation time which is reflected in ICEGATE

ACAAI submitted its representation to the Ministry

about the changes that are required in ICEGATE for the

efficient implementation of this Order As a result the

Ministry has issued a new order dated March 31 2017

whereby the segregation date and time indicated in

the segregation report should be jointly signed by the

airport operators airlines and customs These details

are to be reflected in the respective Airport Community

Systems for the purpose of the calculation of the

reduced free period of 48 hours This procedure will

continue until customs modify the ICEGATE system to

reflect the segregation date and time

In the recent past a few airlines have desired that

forwarders should furnish bank guarantees for utilising

their services ACAAI has taken up this issue with the

concerned airlines and expressed the inability of the

trade to provide such guarantees due to valid and

justifiable reasons Bank guarantees will substantially

increase the cost of business of the trade and many

agents will find it difficult to sustain their existing

business We are optimistic that the airlines will

understand the perspective and concerns of the trade

and that they will explore viable alternate solutions to

cover their business exposure

The planning for ACAAIrsquos Annual Convention for 2017

has commenced The dates and venue of this event

will be announced in due course

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 3

GST thegamechanger

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom4

Logistics industry set for a

smooth lift post GST

While the entire dynamics of transportation and logistics will undergo a sea change once GST is introduced it will lead to a leaner and fitter logistics industry which in turn will lead to greater efficiencies

Cover story | GST

SuryA KAnnotH amp rejI joHn

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 5

Goods amp Services

Tax (GST) for sure

remains one of

the two bold-play

initiatives taken by the reigning

government so far After years

of being entangled in political

knots debating a transparent

and efficient unified tax system

India is soon on its way to

become a clutter-free tax

highway

It (GST) looks on track

Subject to Parliament approval

it looks like the possible date of

implementation of GST is July

1 Finance Minister Arun Jaitley

said after the 11th GST Council

meet concluded

The three enabling GST bills

ndash Central GST Integrated GST

and Compensation to states

top the governmentrsquos agenda

during the second part of the

Budget session of Parliament

which will conclude on April 12

Indiarsquos logistics performance

at its key international

gateways has scaled up

significantly in the last two

years and that was evident

in the World Bankrsquos biennial

measure of international supply

chain efficiency report namely

the Logistics Performance

Index where Indiarsquos ranking

catapulted from 54 in 2014 to

35 in 2016

The introduction of GST

will further give impetus to the

transport and logistics industry

in India While the entire

dynamics of transportation

and logistics will undergo

a sea change once GST is

implemented it will lead to

a leaner and fitter logistics

industry which in turn will

lead to greater efficiencies

Both transport as well as

manufacturing companies

will be able to take better

advantage of the economies

of scale

Lauding the governmentrsquos

move Pirojshaw Sarkari CEO

Mahindra Logistics said ldquoThe

announcement of GST Council

finalising its recommendations

on almost all issues and timely

preparation of IT system

needs to be welcomed In an

endeavour to create awareness

about the new GST led taxation

system we support the

governmentrsquos move to reach-

out to trade and industryrdquo

Budget 2017-18 PuSHeS for InfrAStruCtureReadying the stage for GST

Jaitleyrsquos Budget proposal for

2017-18 laid special focus on

road and infrastructure sector

The Budget allocation for

highways was increased from

Rs 57976 crore in FY2016-17

to Rs 64900 crore in FY2017-

18 while 2000 km of coastal

connectivity roads have been

identified for construction and

development This will ensure

better connectivity with ports

and remote villages The total

length of roads including those

under the Pradhan Mantri Gram

Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) built

from 2014-15 till the current

year is about 140000 km

which is significantly higher

than previous three years

With an eye on improved

logistics across the country

in the future the finance

minister said ldquoAn effective

multi-modal logistics and

transport sector will make our

economy more competitive

A specific programme for

development of multi-modal

logistics parks together

with multi-modal transport

facilities will be drawn up and

implementedrdquo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom6

AdvAntAge for 3PL ProvIderSImplementation of GST will

ensure that the nascent 3PL

further embeds itself in the

logistics space Market research

agency Novonous in its

recent report estimates that

3PL logistics market in India is

expected to be worth $30189

billion by 2020 By 2020 Indian

logistics market is expected to

grow at a CAGR of 1217 percent

primarily driven by the growth in

the manufacturing retail FMCG

and e-commerce sectors This

growth rate is also based on

the expectation of GST being

implemented and the logistics

companies can optimise their

operations to reduce cost and

increase their margins

Further it is the

implementation of the GST that

would increase productivity

and raise efficiency levels in

the logistics sector and the

economy as a whole According

to various industry estimates

freight times will come down

by 30-40 percent and logistics

costs are expected to reduce by

20-30 percent

Once GST is implemented

instead of maintaining smaller

warehouses in each and

every state the companies

will be setting up lesser and

bigger warehouses and can

follow hub and scope model

for freight movement from

warehouses to manufacturing

plants distributors and retailers

ldquoWith GST in place there

will be consolidation of

warehouses thus reducing the

time lost between transporting

from one warehouse to

another Shorter supply chain

cycles will entail lesser time

spent on unnecessary activities

like paperwork material

scrutiny at checkpoints

compliance with multiple

regulations etc This will make

it smoother for transport

companies as they will be

able to transport goods with

lesser stoppages and breaks in

Pho

to G

reyO

ran

ge

Model of Indian Logistics Industry post gSt India becomes one big market there will be fewer

and larger warehouses

GST will result in larger trucks on road while the overall number of vehicles will go down The new tax will result in greater adoption of a hub-and-spoke model in segments such as warehousing cold chain container freight stations and inland container depots

GST will also bring in scale to logistics companies as there will be a lot of savings stoppage of wastage and lower delays

These above changes will lead to greater economies of scale for transport operators and lead to more companies outsourcing their logistics operations

journey Consequently it will

reduce the need for extensive

documentation in inter-state

sales making it a lot easier

to transport goods than it is

currentlyrdquo Allcargo Logistics

posted on its blog

Therefore there lies a bigger

opportunity for the 3PL service

providers who can manage

these bigger routes and deliver

accurately and efficiently

The Indian logistics industry

constitutes around 14 percent

of the GDP which is greater

than the other developing

nations The 3PL logistics firms

are evolving from traditional

service delivery systems

to highly integrated and

technically equipped service

providers striving to meet the

service demands GST provides

them with ample opportunity

to invest and expand the 3PL

base in India

According to a report

by CARE Ratings post GST

Cover story | GST

implementation the 3PLs would

have to restructure its assets

and realign its operations in line

with changes in the operations

of its customers in the new

scenario Currently 3PLs have

warehouses located near major

distribution centers of its key

clients (different industries)

irrespective of its geographic

disadvantage mainly to avoid

interstate taxes However

post GST implementation

3PLs are expected to build

integrated warehouses at

logistic suitable locations

So accordingly their assets

would need to be restructured

to accommodate the long

distance consignments which

will occur with this scenario of

free movement of goods across

the country The consumer

durables sector is expected to

witness maximum drop in the

logistics costs as percentage of

total sales as their warehouses

are built at different states to

avoid interstate tax

The central taxes which will

be subsumed into the GST are

Central Excise duty Additional

Excise duty Service tax

Countervailing duty and Special

Additional duty of Customs

Also the state taxes which will

be subsumed by GST are Sales

tax Entertainment tax Central

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 7

Salex tax Octroi and Entry tax

Purchase tax Luxury tax and

Taxes on lottery betting and

gambling GST will be collected

at every stage of sale or

purchase of goods or services

based on input tax credit

method This simplification of

the taxation system would make

the inter-state transportation of

goods more efficient

IMPACt on SuPPLy CHAIn MAnAgeMentThe structure of the supply

chain is influenced by

differential taxes based on

geographical location By

eliminating multiple state taxes

the logistics companies are

encouraged to consolidate

their warehouses instead of

maintaining one in each state

to avoid central tax

This in effect brings the

overall cost of the product

down as the inventory cost

and inventory carrying cost is

down This directly affects the

final cost of the product bring

the selling price down The

cost saved by the companies

as a result of GST can be used

to invest further to improve

serviceability

One important highlight

that GSTrsquos implementation

will do is to reduce the time

taken at various check posts

while transporting goods

This in turn will reduce costs

for customers and logistics

companies making the latter

more efficient and profitable

Presently trucks are idle for

about 40 per cent of the total

travel time due to Central Sales

TaxOctroi payment

GST has the potential to

accelerate growth in the logistics

industry While industry pundits

still feel that many contentious

issues remain such as the clear

definition of supply supply

chain management through

warehouse engineering credit

allowance during the transition

phase etc there is general

consensus to welcome this new

tax regime

With GSTrsquos imminent

implementation the logistics

industry should start exploring

different supply chain models

with their clients and at the same

time develop a completely

synchronised ERP accounting

system to support inventory

supply management as required

under the GST regime

Nevertheless GST is still the

change the logistics industry is

eagerly awaiting as overall the

positive impact of GST far

outweighs the disadvantages for

this industry

Benefits for logistics industry post gSt implementation

Pre gSt PoSt gSt

Interstate tax burden

Currently each of Indiarsquos 29 states taxes goods that move across their borders at different rates apart from that Corporate state tax of 2 is levied for inter-state goods transfer

Not applicable Uniform taxation and no varying tax structures would be allowed across states

Nature of the industry

Current interstate taxation has resulted in a large number of unorganized players in this industry Resulting in fragmented industry

With the introduction of GST there is likely to be major consoli-dation in the industry It could see the emergence of major large players who can span the entire logistics chain

Logistic time Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Cost The existing interstate taxation system has forced the companies to create and maintain warehouses in each state Currently there are around 20-30 warehouses per company one in every state in addition to this 20-30 Carry amp Forwarding agents per state making the supply chain longer and inef-ficient

GST tax will be levied on transportation of goods and full credit will be available on interstate transactions Logistic costs are expected to be decreased by 15-200 of sales on account of optimization of warehouses leading to lower inventory costs which are set up across states to avoid paying 2 corporate sales tax and phasing out of interstate sales tax There is immense scope for optimization of costs

Sou

rce

Car

e Ra

ting

s

Critical business implications post gSt implementationSupply Chain reengineeringMany service providers have to revamp their supply chains realign their warehouses and logistics networks This gives tremendous opportunity to 3PL and 4PL logistics providers

transportationRe-organised manufacturing plants and warehouses would reduce the primary freight charges as they are located close to each other irrespective of which state they are in However secondary freight may increase because of the fewer warehouses

Consolidation and outsourcingWith the increase in the availability of organized and efficient players there is a possibility of consolidation Also this leads to the outsourcing of their logistics operations to logistics service providers

Skill set upgradation and service levelsThe need for optimally skilled and technically qualified workforce is likely to become a challenge Hence to cater to this need supply of skillful workforce should improve which in turn improves the service level of the company in its operations and meet the customer demands

AutomationBecause of the fewer warehouses the warehouses can be ramped up and equipped with state of the art technology to facilitate long term benefits Latest warehouse management systems (WMS) and modern robotics can be used for the effective and efficient warehouse management

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

India to surpass China incargo volumesWith the implementation of Vision 2025 Ethiopian Airlines is aiming to be the leading aviation company in the region It has also added a feather to its cap by completing 45 years of service to Indiarsquos business capital Mumbai The milestone was celebrated by adding the fifth cargo destination - Ahmedabad to its cargo network tadesse tilahun Regional Director India Sub Continent Ethiopian Airlines expressed optimism about Indian market On a tecircte-agrave-tecircte with rashmi Pradhan he vividly painted the strategy for India

interview | TadeSSe Tilahun

elaborate on the vision 2025 of

ethiopian Airlines

According to Ethiopiarsquos 15-year strategic

plan named Vision 2025 we aim to

become a leading and competitive

aviation group in Africa with seven

business centers Ethiopian Domestic and

Regional Airline Ethiopian International

Passenger Airline Ethiopian Cargo

Ethiopian MRO Ethiopian Aviation

Academy Ethiopian In-flight Catering

Services and Ethiopian Ground Service

Ethiopian is a multi-award winning airline

registering an average growth of 25

percent in the past seven years In fact

we have achieved most of the targets set

in Vision 2025 much in advance

tell us about the journey so far

between India and ethiopia

India is a growing aviation market and

very strategic for an airline like Ethiopian

Airlines The carrier started operations

from Delhi way back in 1960s However

we decided to terminate that service

and later in 1971 Ethiopian Airlines made

its debut flight to Mumbai one of its

oldest destinations in Asia Since then

we increased our airlift to 28 scheduled

weekly flights to both Mumbai and

New Delhi The 45 years of uninterrupted

service to Mumbai was a successful

journey but not a smooth ride There

were many challenges (like operational

cost political unrest in Africa etc) From

Mumbai we started with three flights a

day and then increased the frequency

to five flights Earlier it was a turnaround

flight at Bangkok As we witnessed

increase in passenger flow we started a

dedicated flight to Mumbai

How was the performance of

ethiopian Airlines last year

In the past three years we have made a

significant expansion in India Now we

have double daily flights from Mumbai and

New Delhi In terms of passenger traffic

we have registered double digit growth

We witnessed 15 percent year-on-year

growth from Mumbai and 10 percent

growth from New Delhi We have plans

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

EXCELLENCE IN MUMBAI

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 9

to expand our operations in India both in

passenger and cargo We are looking at

starting passenger service to a South India

destination (probably Chennai) this year

What prompted the company to

add the fifth cargo destination from

India

Ethiopian Airlines is the largest cargo

operator in Africa We already have

dedicated cargo operations from four

Indian cities namely Mumbai Delhi

Chennai and Bengaluru On March 28 we

added the fifth cargo gateway to India

Ahmedabad to our global cargo network

Ahmedabad Indiarsquos second oldest

stock exchange and largest producer of

cotton is a fast emerging industrial hub

Right now a good volume of shipment

is trucked from Ahmedabad to Mumbai

and then lifted through Mumbai airport

One more advantage we see is not many

carriers have dedicated freight service

from Ahmedabad

While operating in the major trade

lanes between Africa Europe Middle East

and Asia our cargo network is efficiently

linking the Indian sub-continent and

Africa farther with China and Hong

Kong providing the Indian market with

minimum weekly import capacity of

240 tonnes I believe our new services

to Ahmedabad will further strengthen

the existing trade and commercial ties

between the two fastest growing regions

of the world

Quantify the growth of cargo

volumes from India

Although the exports from India to Africa

have declined we have witnessed seven

percent year-on-year growth from India

in terms of cargo volumes Ethiopian

lifted an average of 1500 tonnes a

month from Mumbai Delhi was around

300 tonnes a month Chennai was 200-

250 tonnes a month whereas Bengaluru

was 100-150 tonnes a month We have

a dedicated freighter four times a week

from Mumbai twice a week each from

Chennai and Delhi and once a week from

Ahmedabad and Bengaluru

We are looking at increasing capacity

from Mumbai and upgrade from B787 to

B777 which will increase the capacity by 50

seats a day Also we plan to upgrade B767

to B787 that will further add 50 seats a day

As far Delhi is concerned we will upgrade

B737 to B767 which will give additional 160

seats per day

What is the target set for India

We would be looking at increasing the

number of destinations by adding more

Indian cities to our network Furthermore

we are looking at increasing the operational

frequency to all the existing airports

viz Chennai Mumbai New Delhi and

Bengaluru The wide range of experience in

operating in Africa Ethiopian would like to

capitalise on the same and widen our area

by more focus on lifting pharmaceuticals

and perishables

A state of the art warehouse is being built

at Addis Ababa airport with a capacity of

600 million tonnes per year in phase I and

will be ramped up to 600 million tonnes

in second phase Of the total capacity

40 percent will be dedicated to

perishables That means after the

completion of the said cargo

hub the capacity will touch

12 million tonnes We are

also looking at deploying

wide body aircraft in place of

narrow body wherever we

see an increase in demand

going forward what is

the expectation of Indian

cargo market

India is a major market for

Ethiopian network It is one of

the top five markets being US

at the top followed by China and

then India and UAE India is a

key market for us and

we have witnessed

continuous

passenger and

cargo growth

from India

Of the Brazil Russia India and China (BRIC)

nations India is the fastest growing country

Most of the African countries are importing

either from India or China It will not be

too far when India will overtake China in

capacity We expect the increase in export

volumes from India

Ethiopian is a Star Alliance member like

the national carrier of India Air India This

gives an advantage to both the airlines and

helps to exchange good volumes of

business We have a codeshare agreement

with Air India and this helps Air India to

reach out to more destinations in Africa

and Ethiopian to reach out to number of

destinations in India

interview | Paul J Kocheril

The first green-field airport in India built under the public-private partnership Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) registered a 178 percent growth in passenger traffic and 156 percent in cargo volumes in 2016 As the volume handled by the airport was on the rise recently a new international terminal was put into operations Over the last two decades Cochin Airport has become the hub of Middle East traffic (both passenger and cargo)

A civil engineer by profession Paul j Kocheril he was one of the first recruits at CIAL in 1994 Kocheril was instrumental in the construction of CIAL For the past 16 years he has been associated with the air cargo complex As the Deputy General Manager - Cargo Cochin International Airport Kocheril speaks to rashmi Pradhan on the growth of traffic and performance of CIAL

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom10

CIALThe new cargo hub

What are the key features of Cochin International

Airport

This is the first airport in the country built under

public-private partnership model and perhaps the first

airport in the world fully operated on solar power

Since its nception in 1999 CIAL has been trying to

integrate local and international technologies to

enhance effective operations We donrsquot compromise

on standards and always adhere to the inclusive

business model which encompass habitat around

when implementing infrastructure expansion

CIAL cargo facility has nearly 200000

square feet area (office and warehouse)

Of which nearly 132000 is dedicated for

warehouse To offer superior cargo services

to airlines forwarding agents shippers and

consignees we stick to the concept of fine

tuning our procedures to meet the ever-

changing demands and challenges of the

constantly evolving air cargo industry

elaborate on the performance of CIAL

in 2016

The total passenger traffic through the

airport in 2016 stood at 8736061 Of which

3764640 were domestic and 4971421

were international passengers In the cargo

front last year was a good year for CIAL

The cargo movement grew in double digit

registering a growth of 156 percent The

volume grew to 8533910 tonnes in 2016 as

against 7384920 tonnes in 2015 Of the total

cargo moved through the airport perishable

cargo share was 58261 tonnes

CIAL can easily accommodate long-haul

direct and non-stop internationaldomestic

crafts The biggest advantage CIAL has is

that it is well connected by road and rail

and rail network The NH 47 is connected

to CIAL by a four-kilometre four-lane road

The railway line cuts across the CIAL land

What is in the pipeline on the cargo

front

There is a full-fledged expansion plan in

place for cargo infrastructure expansion

As part of our vision we are in the process

of setting up a separate fully automated

new import and export section This facility

will have all the modern material handling

equipment and facilities The new import

warehouse will have a separate area for

courier baggage and commercial cargo In

addition to this the administrative offices

for customs and other related agencies also

will be integrated into the new premises

give details of the upcoming cargo

village concept

50 Acres has been earmarked for the cargo

village Once completed the cargo village

will offer separate sections for marine

products couriers express cargo valuables

and vulnerable cargo The logistic centre

along with the multi-modular operation of

the sea to air and air to sea transhipment

will be another attraction focusing on the

movements in Vallarpadam International

Container Terminal at Cochin Port

Also there are separate areas dedicated

to the storage and handling of domestic

(inbound outbound cargo including

courier) and international cargo including

the transhipment cargo

The entire International air cargo centre is

designated as a Customs Bonded area

It is equipped with the state of the art

automation tools and computers that

control the cargo terminals

We are also planning a separate import

warehouse which will be having separate

facilities for handling courier passenger

baggage and commercial cargo It will

also include administrative offices for

government agencies like customs PQ

PHO and other agencies associated with

cargo clearance

How do you ensure the smooth

functioning of cargo movement at

the airport

CIAL is the sole cargo handling agency

for all carrier operating from Cochin

International Airport Right from the

acceptance of cargo to the warehouse

to customs examination security

clearance stuffing documentation

including manifestation are all handled

by CIAL Since we are following a single

shop concept in cargo handling there

is practically very less interference and

coordination issues

What according to you makes Cochin

Airport the first choice of cargo

carriers

The addition of airline services to Cochin

Airport every year has led to increase in

passenger and cargo capacity Since it

started its operations CIAL has grown as the

hub of Middle East cargo traffic in South

India The accessibility the flying time etc

are the factors that determine the cargo

growth (especially fruits and vegetables to

the Middle East) of CIAL As over 80 percent

of export cargo at CIAL are perishables The

facilities like the centre for perishable cargo

a temperature controlled warehouse

exclusively for handling perishable has

fuelled the growth The airport adheres to

low-cost model with no compromise on the

quality of infrastructure and service

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 11

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom12

Take offThe perfect

Heres a story of a boy who was fascinated by aeroplanes in his childhood in a remote Kenyan village and pursued his dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer Last month Geoffrey Nyaga made his first plane journey of his life to Abu Dhabi as one of the five finalists of the IATA Air Cargo Innovation Awards He returned home with $20000 prize money and assurances of a promising future in the aviation industry

Geoffrey Nyaga is 25 years old He

is from Likii a small village on

the slopes of Mount Kenya near

Nanyuki town which is about

200km from Nairobi the capital city He

lives with his parents and his younger sister

His father owns a small retail shop while his

mother assists in running the shop He says

it was ldquojust enough to provide for our daily

basic needsrdquo

ldquoFrom as early as I can remember I have

always been fascinated by technology

specifically aeroplanesrdquo Geoffrey tells me

as he gets himself wired for the first ever

media interview of his life inside the majestic

National Exhibition Centre in Abu Dhabi

ldquoI grew up watching military aircrafts fly

above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and

small aircrafts taking off and landing from

Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody

from my extended family attend college or

anyone in our village working in aviation

I was always determined to pursue my

dreamsrdquo he adds

It is the fascination for technology

combined with his determination that led

him to pursue his dream of completing his

studies in Aeronautical Engineering from

the Technical University of Kenya With a

first class honour Geoffrey graduated in

December 2016 and immediately after he

began his first job at Astral Aerial Solutions

(AES) a subsidiary of Astral Aviation a

dedicated cargo airline with a strong African

footprint His first project was to build a UTM

(UAV Traffic Management) concept that

will safely manage UAS (Unmanned Aerial

System) traffic and to operate Flyox the

indigenously made cargo drone

Flyox has a payload capability of up to

2000kg 1200 km range and flight time of up

to 26 hours It can land in unpaved airstrips

and on water It is designed to enable safe

civilian UAV operations by providing pilots

with information on altitude separation

restricted airspace and weather conditions

The project will lay the foundation for safe

secure and effective UAS operations and

integrate into existing airspace to ultimately

allow the expansion of air cargo in Africa It

can be deployed for aid and relief medical

supplies mining oil and gas agriculture and

e-commerce products

It is this project that made Geoffrey

win the top award at the IATA Air Cargo

Innovation Award for 2017

He received the award at the 11th World

Cargo Symposium (WCS) in Abu Dhabi

ldquoWe hope to be able to develop a

Geoffrey NyaGaAstrAl AeriAl solutions

I grew up watching military aircrafts fly above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and small aircrafts taking off and landing from Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody from my extended family attend college or anyone in our village working in aviation I was always determined to pursue my dreams

rejI joHn

Profile

Sanjeev Gadhia Astral Aviation

Drone technology has strong potential to boost the continentrsquos air connectivity and deliver goods and services to remote regions and more critical lifesaving products to those in need

pathway that will encourage regulators

operators and manufacturers to come

together and pave the way forward

for safe and efficient UAS use in the

continentrdquo says Geoffrey

Sanjeev Gadhia the founder and

CEO of Astral Aviation who presented

the project on behalf of Geoffrey was

delighted to have been recognized

for the project ldquoDrone technology has

strong potential to boost the continentrsquos

air connectivity and deliver goods and

services to remote regions and more

critical lifesaving products to those in

needrdquo says Gadhia

Astral Aerialrsquos project seeks to lay the

It is great to see a developing nation company helping to drive the innovation that is needed throughout the global air cargo industry

Glyn Hughes iAtA

foundation for safe secure and effective

UAS operations and integration into

existing airspace to ultimately allow the

expansion of air cargo in Africa

ldquoIt is great to see a developing nation

company helping to drive the innovation

that is needed throughout the global air

cargo industryrdquo says Glyn Hughes IATArsquos

Global Head of Cargo

Geoffrey is still overwhelmed by the

warm reception he received from IATA

delegates and the acceptance of his

project ldquoI was also impressed with the

industry-wide drive to use new

technologies and innovation to improve

customer experience This united voice

by the industry towards adopting

innovation gave me hope that the cargo

industry would be attractive to young

talent wanting to join the aviation

industryrdquo he adds

UTM CONCEPT

LEVEL 1 1500ft

LEVEL 2 4000 ft

LEVEL 3 8000 ft

LEVEL 4 15000 ft

Medical Supplies Precison Agriculture and crop spraying

Mining

Wind Turbine inspections

Geofence

Power lines and Telecommunications

Emmergency Response

oil and gas

Pipeline inspections Wildlife

Sport and recreational

Surveillance Mapping Security

CARGO DRONESLarge Payload Long Range

General Aviation

Commercial Jets and Airliners

Flyox cargo drone developed by Astral Aerial Solutions

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 13

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14 APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14

rePort | air carGo africa

Bigger betterstrongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

teAM StAt trAde tIMeS

With massive

participation

from industry

stakeholders and

leaders at the fourth edition of

Air Cargo Africa the three-day

conference-cum-exhibition

was a resounding success To

unearth the growth potential of

the African continent the global

air cargo community converged

at the Air Cargo Africa 2017 at

the Emperors Palace in City of

Ekurhuleni Johannesburg from

February 21-23

The event under the theme

ldquoAir freight in Africa Building

tomorrowrsquos market todayrdquo was

inaugurated by the guest of

honour Dr Ismail Vadi Gauteng

Member of Executive Council

for Roads and Transport and Dr

N Xhakaza Member of Mayoral

Committee Finance and

Economic Development City

if Ekurhuleni along with Tleli

Makhetha General Manager

South African Airways and RK

Patra Group Editor-in Chief

STAT Media Group

Welcoming the delegates

to the fourth edition of Air

Cargo Africa RK Patra Group

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15

Editor-in Chief STAT Media

Group spoke about the

revolutionary changes that

the aviation industry is going

through where drones and

unmanned aerial vehicles are

being employed to deliver

cargo and Hyperloop is a

proposed new way to move

people and freight at airline

speeds for the price of a bus

ticket Emphasizing on the

importance of cooperation

he said ldquoAt Air Cargo Africa

through the deliberations in the

next three days we intend to

become a facilitator for greater

cooperation and collaborations

to enhance trade across

bordersrdquo and thus set the ball

rolling for the proceedings over

the next three days

Making his inaugural

address Dr Ismail Vadi pointed

out that significant innovations

are compelling people to

ldquorethink the way they live

interact transport domestically

and internationallyrdquo They are

influencing people to rethink

about all the ldquowell established

norms and practicesrdquo

Musa Zwane CEO (Acting)

South African Airways in his

keynote address said ldquoFor

South African Airways the

air cargo is an important and

significant part of businessrdquo

He goes on to add ldquoWe are

singularly proud that our

country is playing host to this

event which seeks to highlight

and enhance the development

of the air cargo and the

opportunities in the African

region We are also excited

that for the first time this year

shippers and forwarders are

participating fully in the event

to both exhibit and deliberaterdquo

IMPortAnt tALKIng PoIntSPanel discussions over the

three days touched upon

topics ranging from unlocking

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

to dealing with overcapacity

and declining yields in a volatile

market to understanding trade

agreements in the African

context and bringing to the fore

innovations in cargo delivery

The first panel of the day

saw the likes of Glyn Hughes

Global Head of Cargo IATA

Graham Perkins Vice President

Sales and Marketing (EMEIA)

Atlas Air Inc Barry D Nassberg

Group Chief Operating Officer

Worldwide Flight Services

Rudolf Steiner Senior Vice

President Cargo Global

Accounts amp Commercial

Swissport International

Rainer Mueller Vice President

Commercial Saudia Cargo and

Jan de Vegt Chief Operating

Officer Kenya Airways discuss

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Mueller highlighted that

even though the infrastructure

is somewhat in place when it

comes to handling the import

shipments or the export

shipments at the African

airports there is need to

improve the ground transport

ldquoWhat I would be hoping is

we as an industry manage for

setting up an effective ground

transport product in addition

to what we are having as an air

cargo productrdquo

Steiner however said that

investments are being made to

improve the current scenario

ldquoWe invested in brand new

facilities in Africa We have

opted for facilities in Dar es

Salaam and Kenya It is an

absolute must to invest in Good

Distribution Practices (GDP) and

core facilities we have done

that Are we yet there Most

probably not but compared to

two years ago we took a big

step We have to work closer to

the producer in order to further

improve in the logistics chainrdquo

he said

According to Barry D

Nassberg a lot more can be

done and that airports need to

be a willing partner in looking at

how it would develop a policy

where it allows a necessary

investment to happen

Graham Perkins pointed

out that with regards to

the readiness supporting

e-commerce African people

are ready to take this on but

the question is whether Africa

is ready to take it on He said

that custom infrastructure is

a major issue as it does not

support e-commerce ldquoIn many

cases a lot of countries have

customs rules and regulations

that dates back decades

and they are being used

unfortunatelyrdquo he said

Another significant topic

was the Yamoussoukro

Declaration that is most likely to

be implemented by December

2017 It was adopted out of the

recognition that the restrictive

and protectionist intra-African

regulatory regime hampers the

expansion and improvement of

air transport on the continent

Commenting on Africarsquos

Yamoussoukro Declaration and

the debate on opening skies

Jan de Vegt said Africa needs

to take cautious steps and not

rush to open skies outside Africa

ldquoWe have to come to a situation

where Africa has an open sky

within Africa firstrdquo he said

The panel moderated by

Glyn Hughes concluded that

for all countries across Africa

harmonisation is critical

particularly as the continent has

got a growing population and

a young labour force which

would be able to become a

young workforce and then a

young consumer market

In the session on trade

agreements the moderator

Tom Crabtree Regional

Director Airline Market

Analysis Marketing amp Business

Development Boeing

Commercial Airplanes put forth

three important questions

before the panel Are trade

agreements drafted with any

particular mode in mind Can

trade agreements liberalise

market access by themselves

What can we as industry

stakeholders do to make our

voices heard

Crabtree was joined on the

panel by Glyn Hughes global

head of cargo IATA Tleli

Makhetha general manager

South African Airways and

Vladimir Zubkov secretary

general TIACA

Hughes responded to

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom2

From the Presidents desk

We have entered the new financial

year with a difference from the

past years For the first time since

independence the presentation

of the Union Budget in Parliament

was advanced to the first day of February in 2017 as

compared to the earlier practice of presenting this

budget at the end of February each year As a result the

due process of approvals by the concerned authorities

could be completed by the end of March 2017 for

implementation of the budget provisions from April

1 2017 This is yet another instance of the numerous

reforms that the Union Government has been unveiling

since it assumed office almost three years ago with

the objective of doing away with legacy laws and

procedures which may have outlived their utility and

are therefore inadequate to meet the requirements of

the 21st century for a growing economy

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) legislation is making

rapid progress and it is expected to become law by July

1 2017 This path-breaking legislation will be a game

changer as it will unify the entire country into a single

market GST will subsume the various Indirect Taxes

which are levied by the Central and State Governments

such as Excise duty Service Tax Value Added Tax (VAT)

etc As in the case of any new legislation there are

bound to be teething problems which will be resolved

as and when the need arises The Union Government

has constituted a number of working groups for various

sectors and industries including the logistics and freight

forwarding industries to address their concerns about

GST The relevant issues have been jointly taken up by

ACAAI and several other associations with JM Kennedy

Hemant Bhatia President

Air Cargo Agents Association of India

(ACAAI)

who is in charge of the Working Group for GST for

Transport and Logistics

The dwell time of export and import cargo at airports in

India is amongst the highest in the world In the recent

past ACAAI has submitted its inputs to the concerned

authorities for streamlining the rules regulations and

procedures pertaining to the clearance of import and

export goods with the objective of reducing the dwell

time to global standards

In December 2016 Ministry of Civil Aviation issued

an order whereby the free period for import cargo

was reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours with effect

from April 1 2017 The order stated that the time of

reckoning of the free period would commence from

the segregation time which is reflected in ICEGATE

ACAAI submitted its representation to the Ministry

about the changes that are required in ICEGATE for the

efficient implementation of this Order As a result the

Ministry has issued a new order dated March 31 2017

whereby the segregation date and time indicated in

the segregation report should be jointly signed by the

airport operators airlines and customs These details

are to be reflected in the respective Airport Community

Systems for the purpose of the calculation of the

reduced free period of 48 hours This procedure will

continue until customs modify the ICEGATE system to

reflect the segregation date and time

In the recent past a few airlines have desired that

forwarders should furnish bank guarantees for utilising

their services ACAAI has taken up this issue with the

concerned airlines and expressed the inability of the

trade to provide such guarantees due to valid and

justifiable reasons Bank guarantees will substantially

increase the cost of business of the trade and many

agents will find it difficult to sustain their existing

business We are optimistic that the airlines will

understand the perspective and concerns of the trade

and that they will explore viable alternate solutions to

cover their business exposure

The planning for ACAAIrsquos Annual Convention for 2017

has commenced The dates and venue of this event

will be announced in due course

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 3

GST thegamechanger

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom4

Logistics industry set for a

smooth lift post GST

While the entire dynamics of transportation and logistics will undergo a sea change once GST is introduced it will lead to a leaner and fitter logistics industry which in turn will lead to greater efficiencies

Cover story | GST

SuryA KAnnotH amp rejI joHn

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 5

Goods amp Services

Tax (GST) for sure

remains one of

the two bold-play

initiatives taken by the reigning

government so far After years

of being entangled in political

knots debating a transparent

and efficient unified tax system

India is soon on its way to

become a clutter-free tax

highway

It (GST) looks on track

Subject to Parliament approval

it looks like the possible date of

implementation of GST is July

1 Finance Minister Arun Jaitley

said after the 11th GST Council

meet concluded

The three enabling GST bills

ndash Central GST Integrated GST

and Compensation to states

top the governmentrsquos agenda

during the second part of the

Budget session of Parliament

which will conclude on April 12

Indiarsquos logistics performance

at its key international

gateways has scaled up

significantly in the last two

years and that was evident

in the World Bankrsquos biennial

measure of international supply

chain efficiency report namely

the Logistics Performance

Index where Indiarsquos ranking

catapulted from 54 in 2014 to

35 in 2016

The introduction of GST

will further give impetus to the

transport and logistics industry

in India While the entire

dynamics of transportation

and logistics will undergo

a sea change once GST is

implemented it will lead to

a leaner and fitter logistics

industry which in turn will

lead to greater efficiencies

Both transport as well as

manufacturing companies

will be able to take better

advantage of the economies

of scale

Lauding the governmentrsquos

move Pirojshaw Sarkari CEO

Mahindra Logistics said ldquoThe

announcement of GST Council

finalising its recommendations

on almost all issues and timely

preparation of IT system

needs to be welcomed In an

endeavour to create awareness

about the new GST led taxation

system we support the

governmentrsquos move to reach-

out to trade and industryrdquo

Budget 2017-18 PuSHeS for InfrAStruCtureReadying the stage for GST

Jaitleyrsquos Budget proposal for

2017-18 laid special focus on

road and infrastructure sector

The Budget allocation for

highways was increased from

Rs 57976 crore in FY2016-17

to Rs 64900 crore in FY2017-

18 while 2000 km of coastal

connectivity roads have been

identified for construction and

development This will ensure

better connectivity with ports

and remote villages The total

length of roads including those

under the Pradhan Mantri Gram

Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) built

from 2014-15 till the current

year is about 140000 km

which is significantly higher

than previous three years

With an eye on improved

logistics across the country

in the future the finance

minister said ldquoAn effective

multi-modal logistics and

transport sector will make our

economy more competitive

A specific programme for

development of multi-modal

logistics parks together

with multi-modal transport

facilities will be drawn up and

implementedrdquo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom6

AdvAntAge for 3PL ProvIderSImplementation of GST will

ensure that the nascent 3PL

further embeds itself in the

logistics space Market research

agency Novonous in its

recent report estimates that

3PL logistics market in India is

expected to be worth $30189

billion by 2020 By 2020 Indian

logistics market is expected to

grow at a CAGR of 1217 percent

primarily driven by the growth in

the manufacturing retail FMCG

and e-commerce sectors This

growth rate is also based on

the expectation of GST being

implemented and the logistics

companies can optimise their

operations to reduce cost and

increase their margins

Further it is the

implementation of the GST that

would increase productivity

and raise efficiency levels in

the logistics sector and the

economy as a whole According

to various industry estimates

freight times will come down

by 30-40 percent and logistics

costs are expected to reduce by

20-30 percent

Once GST is implemented

instead of maintaining smaller

warehouses in each and

every state the companies

will be setting up lesser and

bigger warehouses and can

follow hub and scope model

for freight movement from

warehouses to manufacturing

plants distributors and retailers

ldquoWith GST in place there

will be consolidation of

warehouses thus reducing the

time lost between transporting

from one warehouse to

another Shorter supply chain

cycles will entail lesser time

spent on unnecessary activities

like paperwork material

scrutiny at checkpoints

compliance with multiple

regulations etc This will make

it smoother for transport

companies as they will be

able to transport goods with

lesser stoppages and breaks in

Pho

to G

reyO

ran

ge

Model of Indian Logistics Industry post gSt India becomes one big market there will be fewer

and larger warehouses

GST will result in larger trucks on road while the overall number of vehicles will go down The new tax will result in greater adoption of a hub-and-spoke model in segments such as warehousing cold chain container freight stations and inland container depots

GST will also bring in scale to logistics companies as there will be a lot of savings stoppage of wastage and lower delays

These above changes will lead to greater economies of scale for transport operators and lead to more companies outsourcing their logistics operations

journey Consequently it will

reduce the need for extensive

documentation in inter-state

sales making it a lot easier

to transport goods than it is

currentlyrdquo Allcargo Logistics

posted on its blog

Therefore there lies a bigger

opportunity for the 3PL service

providers who can manage

these bigger routes and deliver

accurately and efficiently

The Indian logistics industry

constitutes around 14 percent

of the GDP which is greater

than the other developing

nations The 3PL logistics firms

are evolving from traditional

service delivery systems

to highly integrated and

technically equipped service

providers striving to meet the

service demands GST provides

them with ample opportunity

to invest and expand the 3PL

base in India

According to a report

by CARE Ratings post GST

Cover story | GST

implementation the 3PLs would

have to restructure its assets

and realign its operations in line

with changes in the operations

of its customers in the new

scenario Currently 3PLs have

warehouses located near major

distribution centers of its key

clients (different industries)

irrespective of its geographic

disadvantage mainly to avoid

interstate taxes However

post GST implementation

3PLs are expected to build

integrated warehouses at

logistic suitable locations

So accordingly their assets

would need to be restructured

to accommodate the long

distance consignments which

will occur with this scenario of

free movement of goods across

the country The consumer

durables sector is expected to

witness maximum drop in the

logistics costs as percentage of

total sales as their warehouses

are built at different states to

avoid interstate tax

The central taxes which will

be subsumed into the GST are

Central Excise duty Additional

Excise duty Service tax

Countervailing duty and Special

Additional duty of Customs

Also the state taxes which will

be subsumed by GST are Sales

tax Entertainment tax Central

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 7

Salex tax Octroi and Entry tax

Purchase tax Luxury tax and

Taxes on lottery betting and

gambling GST will be collected

at every stage of sale or

purchase of goods or services

based on input tax credit

method This simplification of

the taxation system would make

the inter-state transportation of

goods more efficient

IMPACt on SuPPLy CHAIn MAnAgeMentThe structure of the supply

chain is influenced by

differential taxes based on

geographical location By

eliminating multiple state taxes

the logistics companies are

encouraged to consolidate

their warehouses instead of

maintaining one in each state

to avoid central tax

This in effect brings the

overall cost of the product

down as the inventory cost

and inventory carrying cost is

down This directly affects the

final cost of the product bring

the selling price down The

cost saved by the companies

as a result of GST can be used

to invest further to improve

serviceability

One important highlight

that GSTrsquos implementation

will do is to reduce the time

taken at various check posts

while transporting goods

This in turn will reduce costs

for customers and logistics

companies making the latter

more efficient and profitable

Presently trucks are idle for

about 40 per cent of the total

travel time due to Central Sales

TaxOctroi payment

GST has the potential to

accelerate growth in the logistics

industry While industry pundits

still feel that many contentious

issues remain such as the clear

definition of supply supply

chain management through

warehouse engineering credit

allowance during the transition

phase etc there is general

consensus to welcome this new

tax regime

With GSTrsquos imminent

implementation the logistics

industry should start exploring

different supply chain models

with their clients and at the same

time develop a completely

synchronised ERP accounting

system to support inventory

supply management as required

under the GST regime

Nevertheless GST is still the

change the logistics industry is

eagerly awaiting as overall the

positive impact of GST far

outweighs the disadvantages for

this industry

Benefits for logistics industry post gSt implementation

Pre gSt PoSt gSt

Interstate tax burden

Currently each of Indiarsquos 29 states taxes goods that move across their borders at different rates apart from that Corporate state tax of 2 is levied for inter-state goods transfer

Not applicable Uniform taxation and no varying tax structures would be allowed across states

Nature of the industry

Current interstate taxation has resulted in a large number of unorganized players in this industry Resulting in fragmented industry

With the introduction of GST there is likely to be major consoli-dation in the industry It could see the emergence of major large players who can span the entire logistics chain

Logistic time Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Cost The existing interstate taxation system has forced the companies to create and maintain warehouses in each state Currently there are around 20-30 warehouses per company one in every state in addition to this 20-30 Carry amp Forwarding agents per state making the supply chain longer and inef-ficient

GST tax will be levied on transportation of goods and full credit will be available on interstate transactions Logistic costs are expected to be decreased by 15-200 of sales on account of optimization of warehouses leading to lower inventory costs which are set up across states to avoid paying 2 corporate sales tax and phasing out of interstate sales tax There is immense scope for optimization of costs

Sou

rce

Car

e Ra

ting

s

Critical business implications post gSt implementationSupply Chain reengineeringMany service providers have to revamp their supply chains realign their warehouses and logistics networks This gives tremendous opportunity to 3PL and 4PL logistics providers

transportationRe-organised manufacturing plants and warehouses would reduce the primary freight charges as they are located close to each other irrespective of which state they are in However secondary freight may increase because of the fewer warehouses

Consolidation and outsourcingWith the increase in the availability of organized and efficient players there is a possibility of consolidation Also this leads to the outsourcing of their logistics operations to logistics service providers

Skill set upgradation and service levelsThe need for optimally skilled and technically qualified workforce is likely to become a challenge Hence to cater to this need supply of skillful workforce should improve which in turn improves the service level of the company in its operations and meet the customer demands

AutomationBecause of the fewer warehouses the warehouses can be ramped up and equipped with state of the art technology to facilitate long term benefits Latest warehouse management systems (WMS) and modern robotics can be used for the effective and efficient warehouse management

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

India to surpass China incargo volumesWith the implementation of Vision 2025 Ethiopian Airlines is aiming to be the leading aviation company in the region It has also added a feather to its cap by completing 45 years of service to Indiarsquos business capital Mumbai The milestone was celebrated by adding the fifth cargo destination - Ahmedabad to its cargo network tadesse tilahun Regional Director India Sub Continent Ethiopian Airlines expressed optimism about Indian market On a tecircte-agrave-tecircte with rashmi Pradhan he vividly painted the strategy for India

interview | TadeSSe Tilahun

elaborate on the vision 2025 of

ethiopian Airlines

According to Ethiopiarsquos 15-year strategic

plan named Vision 2025 we aim to

become a leading and competitive

aviation group in Africa with seven

business centers Ethiopian Domestic and

Regional Airline Ethiopian International

Passenger Airline Ethiopian Cargo

Ethiopian MRO Ethiopian Aviation

Academy Ethiopian In-flight Catering

Services and Ethiopian Ground Service

Ethiopian is a multi-award winning airline

registering an average growth of 25

percent in the past seven years In fact

we have achieved most of the targets set

in Vision 2025 much in advance

tell us about the journey so far

between India and ethiopia

India is a growing aviation market and

very strategic for an airline like Ethiopian

Airlines The carrier started operations

from Delhi way back in 1960s However

we decided to terminate that service

and later in 1971 Ethiopian Airlines made

its debut flight to Mumbai one of its

oldest destinations in Asia Since then

we increased our airlift to 28 scheduled

weekly flights to both Mumbai and

New Delhi The 45 years of uninterrupted

service to Mumbai was a successful

journey but not a smooth ride There

were many challenges (like operational

cost political unrest in Africa etc) From

Mumbai we started with three flights a

day and then increased the frequency

to five flights Earlier it was a turnaround

flight at Bangkok As we witnessed

increase in passenger flow we started a

dedicated flight to Mumbai

How was the performance of

ethiopian Airlines last year

In the past three years we have made a

significant expansion in India Now we

have double daily flights from Mumbai and

New Delhi In terms of passenger traffic

we have registered double digit growth

We witnessed 15 percent year-on-year

growth from Mumbai and 10 percent

growth from New Delhi We have plans

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

EXCELLENCE IN MUMBAI

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 9

to expand our operations in India both in

passenger and cargo We are looking at

starting passenger service to a South India

destination (probably Chennai) this year

What prompted the company to

add the fifth cargo destination from

India

Ethiopian Airlines is the largest cargo

operator in Africa We already have

dedicated cargo operations from four

Indian cities namely Mumbai Delhi

Chennai and Bengaluru On March 28 we

added the fifth cargo gateway to India

Ahmedabad to our global cargo network

Ahmedabad Indiarsquos second oldest

stock exchange and largest producer of

cotton is a fast emerging industrial hub

Right now a good volume of shipment

is trucked from Ahmedabad to Mumbai

and then lifted through Mumbai airport

One more advantage we see is not many

carriers have dedicated freight service

from Ahmedabad

While operating in the major trade

lanes between Africa Europe Middle East

and Asia our cargo network is efficiently

linking the Indian sub-continent and

Africa farther with China and Hong

Kong providing the Indian market with

minimum weekly import capacity of

240 tonnes I believe our new services

to Ahmedabad will further strengthen

the existing trade and commercial ties

between the two fastest growing regions

of the world

Quantify the growth of cargo

volumes from India

Although the exports from India to Africa

have declined we have witnessed seven

percent year-on-year growth from India

in terms of cargo volumes Ethiopian

lifted an average of 1500 tonnes a

month from Mumbai Delhi was around

300 tonnes a month Chennai was 200-

250 tonnes a month whereas Bengaluru

was 100-150 tonnes a month We have

a dedicated freighter four times a week

from Mumbai twice a week each from

Chennai and Delhi and once a week from

Ahmedabad and Bengaluru

We are looking at increasing capacity

from Mumbai and upgrade from B787 to

B777 which will increase the capacity by 50

seats a day Also we plan to upgrade B767

to B787 that will further add 50 seats a day

As far Delhi is concerned we will upgrade

B737 to B767 which will give additional 160

seats per day

What is the target set for India

We would be looking at increasing the

number of destinations by adding more

Indian cities to our network Furthermore

we are looking at increasing the operational

frequency to all the existing airports

viz Chennai Mumbai New Delhi and

Bengaluru The wide range of experience in

operating in Africa Ethiopian would like to

capitalise on the same and widen our area

by more focus on lifting pharmaceuticals

and perishables

A state of the art warehouse is being built

at Addis Ababa airport with a capacity of

600 million tonnes per year in phase I and

will be ramped up to 600 million tonnes

in second phase Of the total capacity

40 percent will be dedicated to

perishables That means after the

completion of the said cargo

hub the capacity will touch

12 million tonnes We are

also looking at deploying

wide body aircraft in place of

narrow body wherever we

see an increase in demand

going forward what is

the expectation of Indian

cargo market

India is a major market for

Ethiopian network It is one of

the top five markets being US

at the top followed by China and

then India and UAE India is a

key market for us and

we have witnessed

continuous

passenger and

cargo growth

from India

Of the Brazil Russia India and China (BRIC)

nations India is the fastest growing country

Most of the African countries are importing

either from India or China It will not be

too far when India will overtake China in

capacity We expect the increase in export

volumes from India

Ethiopian is a Star Alliance member like

the national carrier of India Air India This

gives an advantage to both the airlines and

helps to exchange good volumes of

business We have a codeshare agreement

with Air India and this helps Air India to

reach out to more destinations in Africa

and Ethiopian to reach out to number of

destinations in India

interview | Paul J Kocheril

The first green-field airport in India built under the public-private partnership Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) registered a 178 percent growth in passenger traffic and 156 percent in cargo volumes in 2016 As the volume handled by the airport was on the rise recently a new international terminal was put into operations Over the last two decades Cochin Airport has become the hub of Middle East traffic (both passenger and cargo)

A civil engineer by profession Paul j Kocheril he was one of the first recruits at CIAL in 1994 Kocheril was instrumental in the construction of CIAL For the past 16 years he has been associated with the air cargo complex As the Deputy General Manager - Cargo Cochin International Airport Kocheril speaks to rashmi Pradhan on the growth of traffic and performance of CIAL

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom10

CIALThe new cargo hub

What are the key features of Cochin International

Airport

This is the first airport in the country built under

public-private partnership model and perhaps the first

airport in the world fully operated on solar power

Since its nception in 1999 CIAL has been trying to

integrate local and international technologies to

enhance effective operations We donrsquot compromise

on standards and always adhere to the inclusive

business model which encompass habitat around

when implementing infrastructure expansion

CIAL cargo facility has nearly 200000

square feet area (office and warehouse)

Of which nearly 132000 is dedicated for

warehouse To offer superior cargo services

to airlines forwarding agents shippers and

consignees we stick to the concept of fine

tuning our procedures to meet the ever-

changing demands and challenges of the

constantly evolving air cargo industry

elaborate on the performance of CIAL

in 2016

The total passenger traffic through the

airport in 2016 stood at 8736061 Of which

3764640 were domestic and 4971421

were international passengers In the cargo

front last year was a good year for CIAL

The cargo movement grew in double digit

registering a growth of 156 percent The

volume grew to 8533910 tonnes in 2016 as

against 7384920 tonnes in 2015 Of the total

cargo moved through the airport perishable

cargo share was 58261 tonnes

CIAL can easily accommodate long-haul

direct and non-stop internationaldomestic

crafts The biggest advantage CIAL has is

that it is well connected by road and rail

and rail network The NH 47 is connected

to CIAL by a four-kilometre four-lane road

The railway line cuts across the CIAL land

What is in the pipeline on the cargo

front

There is a full-fledged expansion plan in

place for cargo infrastructure expansion

As part of our vision we are in the process

of setting up a separate fully automated

new import and export section This facility

will have all the modern material handling

equipment and facilities The new import

warehouse will have a separate area for

courier baggage and commercial cargo In

addition to this the administrative offices

for customs and other related agencies also

will be integrated into the new premises

give details of the upcoming cargo

village concept

50 Acres has been earmarked for the cargo

village Once completed the cargo village

will offer separate sections for marine

products couriers express cargo valuables

and vulnerable cargo The logistic centre

along with the multi-modular operation of

the sea to air and air to sea transhipment

will be another attraction focusing on the

movements in Vallarpadam International

Container Terminal at Cochin Port

Also there are separate areas dedicated

to the storage and handling of domestic

(inbound outbound cargo including

courier) and international cargo including

the transhipment cargo

The entire International air cargo centre is

designated as a Customs Bonded area

It is equipped with the state of the art

automation tools and computers that

control the cargo terminals

We are also planning a separate import

warehouse which will be having separate

facilities for handling courier passenger

baggage and commercial cargo It will

also include administrative offices for

government agencies like customs PQ

PHO and other agencies associated with

cargo clearance

How do you ensure the smooth

functioning of cargo movement at

the airport

CIAL is the sole cargo handling agency

for all carrier operating from Cochin

International Airport Right from the

acceptance of cargo to the warehouse

to customs examination security

clearance stuffing documentation

including manifestation are all handled

by CIAL Since we are following a single

shop concept in cargo handling there

is practically very less interference and

coordination issues

What according to you makes Cochin

Airport the first choice of cargo

carriers

The addition of airline services to Cochin

Airport every year has led to increase in

passenger and cargo capacity Since it

started its operations CIAL has grown as the

hub of Middle East cargo traffic in South

India The accessibility the flying time etc

are the factors that determine the cargo

growth (especially fruits and vegetables to

the Middle East) of CIAL As over 80 percent

of export cargo at CIAL are perishables The

facilities like the centre for perishable cargo

a temperature controlled warehouse

exclusively for handling perishable has

fuelled the growth The airport adheres to

low-cost model with no compromise on the

quality of infrastructure and service

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 11

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom12

Take offThe perfect

Heres a story of a boy who was fascinated by aeroplanes in his childhood in a remote Kenyan village and pursued his dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer Last month Geoffrey Nyaga made his first plane journey of his life to Abu Dhabi as one of the five finalists of the IATA Air Cargo Innovation Awards He returned home with $20000 prize money and assurances of a promising future in the aviation industry

Geoffrey Nyaga is 25 years old He

is from Likii a small village on

the slopes of Mount Kenya near

Nanyuki town which is about

200km from Nairobi the capital city He

lives with his parents and his younger sister

His father owns a small retail shop while his

mother assists in running the shop He says

it was ldquojust enough to provide for our daily

basic needsrdquo

ldquoFrom as early as I can remember I have

always been fascinated by technology

specifically aeroplanesrdquo Geoffrey tells me

as he gets himself wired for the first ever

media interview of his life inside the majestic

National Exhibition Centre in Abu Dhabi

ldquoI grew up watching military aircrafts fly

above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and

small aircrafts taking off and landing from

Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody

from my extended family attend college or

anyone in our village working in aviation

I was always determined to pursue my

dreamsrdquo he adds

It is the fascination for technology

combined with his determination that led

him to pursue his dream of completing his

studies in Aeronautical Engineering from

the Technical University of Kenya With a

first class honour Geoffrey graduated in

December 2016 and immediately after he

began his first job at Astral Aerial Solutions

(AES) a subsidiary of Astral Aviation a

dedicated cargo airline with a strong African

footprint His first project was to build a UTM

(UAV Traffic Management) concept that

will safely manage UAS (Unmanned Aerial

System) traffic and to operate Flyox the

indigenously made cargo drone

Flyox has a payload capability of up to

2000kg 1200 km range and flight time of up

to 26 hours It can land in unpaved airstrips

and on water It is designed to enable safe

civilian UAV operations by providing pilots

with information on altitude separation

restricted airspace and weather conditions

The project will lay the foundation for safe

secure and effective UAS operations and

integrate into existing airspace to ultimately

allow the expansion of air cargo in Africa It

can be deployed for aid and relief medical

supplies mining oil and gas agriculture and

e-commerce products

It is this project that made Geoffrey

win the top award at the IATA Air Cargo

Innovation Award for 2017

He received the award at the 11th World

Cargo Symposium (WCS) in Abu Dhabi

ldquoWe hope to be able to develop a

Geoffrey NyaGaAstrAl AeriAl solutions

I grew up watching military aircrafts fly above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and small aircrafts taking off and landing from Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody from my extended family attend college or anyone in our village working in aviation I was always determined to pursue my dreams

rejI joHn

Profile

Sanjeev Gadhia Astral Aviation

Drone technology has strong potential to boost the continentrsquos air connectivity and deliver goods and services to remote regions and more critical lifesaving products to those in need

pathway that will encourage regulators

operators and manufacturers to come

together and pave the way forward

for safe and efficient UAS use in the

continentrdquo says Geoffrey

Sanjeev Gadhia the founder and

CEO of Astral Aviation who presented

the project on behalf of Geoffrey was

delighted to have been recognized

for the project ldquoDrone technology has

strong potential to boost the continentrsquos

air connectivity and deliver goods and

services to remote regions and more

critical lifesaving products to those in

needrdquo says Gadhia

Astral Aerialrsquos project seeks to lay the

It is great to see a developing nation company helping to drive the innovation that is needed throughout the global air cargo industry

Glyn Hughes iAtA

foundation for safe secure and effective

UAS operations and integration into

existing airspace to ultimately allow the

expansion of air cargo in Africa

ldquoIt is great to see a developing nation

company helping to drive the innovation

that is needed throughout the global air

cargo industryrdquo says Glyn Hughes IATArsquos

Global Head of Cargo

Geoffrey is still overwhelmed by the

warm reception he received from IATA

delegates and the acceptance of his

project ldquoI was also impressed with the

industry-wide drive to use new

technologies and innovation to improve

customer experience This united voice

by the industry towards adopting

innovation gave me hope that the cargo

industry would be attractive to young

talent wanting to join the aviation

industryrdquo he adds

UTM CONCEPT

LEVEL 1 1500ft

LEVEL 2 4000 ft

LEVEL 3 8000 ft

LEVEL 4 15000 ft

Medical Supplies Precison Agriculture and crop spraying

Mining

Wind Turbine inspections

Geofence

Power lines and Telecommunications

Emmergency Response

oil and gas

Pipeline inspections Wildlife

Sport and recreational

Surveillance Mapping Security

CARGO DRONESLarge Payload Long Range

General Aviation

Commercial Jets and Airliners

Flyox cargo drone developed by Astral Aerial Solutions

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 13

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14 APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14

rePort | air carGo africa

Bigger betterstrongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

teAM StAt trAde tIMeS

With massive

participation

from industry

stakeholders and

leaders at the fourth edition of

Air Cargo Africa the three-day

conference-cum-exhibition

was a resounding success To

unearth the growth potential of

the African continent the global

air cargo community converged

at the Air Cargo Africa 2017 at

the Emperors Palace in City of

Ekurhuleni Johannesburg from

February 21-23

The event under the theme

ldquoAir freight in Africa Building

tomorrowrsquos market todayrdquo was

inaugurated by the guest of

honour Dr Ismail Vadi Gauteng

Member of Executive Council

for Roads and Transport and Dr

N Xhakaza Member of Mayoral

Committee Finance and

Economic Development City

if Ekurhuleni along with Tleli

Makhetha General Manager

South African Airways and RK

Patra Group Editor-in Chief

STAT Media Group

Welcoming the delegates

to the fourth edition of Air

Cargo Africa RK Patra Group

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15

Editor-in Chief STAT Media

Group spoke about the

revolutionary changes that

the aviation industry is going

through where drones and

unmanned aerial vehicles are

being employed to deliver

cargo and Hyperloop is a

proposed new way to move

people and freight at airline

speeds for the price of a bus

ticket Emphasizing on the

importance of cooperation

he said ldquoAt Air Cargo Africa

through the deliberations in the

next three days we intend to

become a facilitator for greater

cooperation and collaborations

to enhance trade across

bordersrdquo and thus set the ball

rolling for the proceedings over

the next three days

Making his inaugural

address Dr Ismail Vadi pointed

out that significant innovations

are compelling people to

ldquorethink the way they live

interact transport domestically

and internationallyrdquo They are

influencing people to rethink

about all the ldquowell established

norms and practicesrdquo

Musa Zwane CEO (Acting)

South African Airways in his

keynote address said ldquoFor

South African Airways the

air cargo is an important and

significant part of businessrdquo

He goes on to add ldquoWe are

singularly proud that our

country is playing host to this

event which seeks to highlight

and enhance the development

of the air cargo and the

opportunities in the African

region We are also excited

that for the first time this year

shippers and forwarders are

participating fully in the event

to both exhibit and deliberaterdquo

IMPortAnt tALKIng PoIntSPanel discussions over the

three days touched upon

topics ranging from unlocking

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

to dealing with overcapacity

and declining yields in a volatile

market to understanding trade

agreements in the African

context and bringing to the fore

innovations in cargo delivery

The first panel of the day

saw the likes of Glyn Hughes

Global Head of Cargo IATA

Graham Perkins Vice President

Sales and Marketing (EMEIA)

Atlas Air Inc Barry D Nassberg

Group Chief Operating Officer

Worldwide Flight Services

Rudolf Steiner Senior Vice

President Cargo Global

Accounts amp Commercial

Swissport International

Rainer Mueller Vice President

Commercial Saudia Cargo and

Jan de Vegt Chief Operating

Officer Kenya Airways discuss

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Mueller highlighted that

even though the infrastructure

is somewhat in place when it

comes to handling the import

shipments or the export

shipments at the African

airports there is need to

improve the ground transport

ldquoWhat I would be hoping is

we as an industry manage for

setting up an effective ground

transport product in addition

to what we are having as an air

cargo productrdquo

Steiner however said that

investments are being made to

improve the current scenario

ldquoWe invested in brand new

facilities in Africa We have

opted for facilities in Dar es

Salaam and Kenya It is an

absolute must to invest in Good

Distribution Practices (GDP) and

core facilities we have done

that Are we yet there Most

probably not but compared to

two years ago we took a big

step We have to work closer to

the producer in order to further

improve in the logistics chainrdquo

he said

According to Barry D

Nassberg a lot more can be

done and that airports need to

be a willing partner in looking at

how it would develop a policy

where it allows a necessary

investment to happen

Graham Perkins pointed

out that with regards to

the readiness supporting

e-commerce African people

are ready to take this on but

the question is whether Africa

is ready to take it on He said

that custom infrastructure is

a major issue as it does not

support e-commerce ldquoIn many

cases a lot of countries have

customs rules and regulations

that dates back decades

and they are being used

unfortunatelyrdquo he said

Another significant topic

was the Yamoussoukro

Declaration that is most likely to

be implemented by December

2017 It was adopted out of the

recognition that the restrictive

and protectionist intra-African

regulatory regime hampers the

expansion and improvement of

air transport on the continent

Commenting on Africarsquos

Yamoussoukro Declaration and

the debate on opening skies

Jan de Vegt said Africa needs

to take cautious steps and not

rush to open skies outside Africa

ldquoWe have to come to a situation

where Africa has an open sky

within Africa firstrdquo he said

The panel moderated by

Glyn Hughes concluded that

for all countries across Africa

harmonisation is critical

particularly as the continent has

got a growing population and

a young labour force which

would be able to become a

young workforce and then a

young consumer market

In the session on trade

agreements the moderator

Tom Crabtree Regional

Director Airline Market

Analysis Marketing amp Business

Development Boeing

Commercial Airplanes put forth

three important questions

before the panel Are trade

agreements drafted with any

particular mode in mind Can

trade agreements liberalise

market access by themselves

What can we as industry

stakeholders do to make our

voices heard

Crabtree was joined on the

panel by Glyn Hughes global

head of cargo IATA Tleli

Makhetha general manager

South African Airways and

Vladimir Zubkov secretary

general TIACA

Hughes responded to

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

We have entered the new financial

year with a difference from the

past years For the first time since

independence the presentation

of the Union Budget in Parliament

was advanced to the first day of February in 2017 as

compared to the earlier practice of presenting this

budget at the end of February each year As a result the

due process of approvals by the concerned authorities

could be completed by the end of March 2017 for

implementation of the budget provisions from April

1 2017 This is yet another instance of the numerous

reforms that the Union Government has been unveiling

since it assumed office almost three years ago with

the objective of doing away with legacy laws and

procedures which may have outlived their utility and

are therefore inadequate to meet the requirements of

the 21st century for a growing economy

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) legislation is making

rapid progress and it is expected to become law by July

1 2017 This path-breaking legislation will be a game

changer as it will unify the entire country into a single

market GST will subsume the various Indirect Taxes

which are levied by the Central and State Governments

such as Excise duty Service Tax Value Added Tax (VAT)

etc As in the case of any new legislation there are

bound to be teething problems which will be resolved

as and when the need arises The Union Government

has constituted a number of working groups for various

sectors and industries including the logistics and freight

forwarding industries to address their concerns about

GST The relevant issues have been jointly taken up by

ACAAI and several other associations with JM Kennedy

Hemant Bhatia President

Air Cargo Agents Association of India

(ACAAI)

who is in charge of the Working Group for GST for

Transport and Logistics

The dwell time of export and import cargo at airports in

India is amongst the highest in the world In the recent

past ACAAI has submitted its inputs to the concerned

authorities for streamlining the rules regulations and

procedures pertaining to the clearance of import and

export goods with the objective of reducing the dwell

time to global standards

In December 2016 Ministry of Civil Aviation issued

an order whereby the free period for import cargo

was reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours with effect

from April 1 2017 The order stated that the time of

reckoning of the free period would commence from

the segregation time which is reflected in ICEGATE

ACAAI submitted its representation to the Ministry

about the changes that are required in ICEGATE for the

efficient implementation of this Order As a result the

Ministry has issued a new order dated March 31 2017

whereby the segregation date and time indicated in

the segregation report should be jointly signed by the

airport operators airlines and customs These details

are to be reflected in the respective Airport Community

Systems for the purpose of the calculation of the

reduced free period of 48 hours This procedure will

continue until customs modify the ICEGATE system to

reflect the segregation date and time

In the recent past a few airlines have desired that

forwarders should furnish bank guarantees for utilising

their services ACAAI has taken up this issue with the

concerned airlines and expressed the inability of the

trade to provide such guarantees due to valid and

justifiable reasons Bank guarantees will substantially

increase the cost of business of the trade and many

agents will find it difficult to sustain their existing

business We are optimistic that the airlines will

understand the perspective and concerns of the trade

and that they will explore viable alternate solutions to

cover their business exposure

The planning for ACAAIrsquos Annual Convention for 2017

has commenced The dates and venue of this event

will be announced in due course

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 3

GST thegamechanger

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom4

Logistics industry set for a

smooth lift post GST

While the entire dynamics of transportation and logistics will undergo a sea change once GST is introduced it will lead to a leaner and fitter logistics industry which in turn will lead to greater efficiencies

Cover story | GST

SuryA KAnnotH amp rejI joHn

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 5

Goods amp Services

Tax (GST) for sure

remains one of

the two bold-play

initiatives taken by the reigning

government so far After years

of being entangled in political

knots debating a transparent

and efficient unified tax system

India is soon on its way to

become a clutter-free tax

highway

It (GST) looks on track

Subject to Parliament approval

it looks like the possible date of

implementation of GST is July

1 Finance Minister Arun Jaitley

said after the 11th GST Council

meet concluded

The three enabling GST bills

ndash Central GST Integrated GST

and Compensation to states

top the governmentrsquos agenda

during the second part of the

Budget session of Parliament

which will conclude on April 12

Indiarsquos logistics performance

at its key international

gateways has scaled up

significantly in the last two

years and that was evident

in the World Bankrsquos biennial

measure of international supply

chain efficiency report namely

the Logistics Performance

Index where Indiarsquos ranking

catapulted from 54 in 2014 to

35 in 2016

The introduction of GST

will further give impetus to the

transport and logistics industry

in India While the entire

dynamics of transportation

and logistics will undergo

a sea change once GST is

implemented it will lead to

a leaner and fitter logistics

industry which in turn will

lead to greater efficiencies

Both transport as well as

manufacturing companies

will be able to take better

advantage of the economies

of scale

Lauding the governmentrsquos

move Pirojshaw Sarkari CEO

Mahindra Logistics said ldquoThe

announcement of GST Council

finalising its recommendations

on almost all issues and timely

preparation of IT system

needs to be welcomed In an

endeavour to create awareness

about the new GST led taxation

system we support the

governmentrsquos move to reach-

out to trade and industryrdquo

Budget 2017-18 PuSHeS for InfrAStruCtureReadying the stage for GST

Jaitleyrsquos Budget proposal for

2017-18 laid special focus on

road and infrastructure sector

The Budget allocation for

highways was increased from

Rs 57976 crore in FY2016-17

to Rs 64900 crore in FY2017-

18 while 2000 km of coastal

connectivity roads have been

identified for construction and

development This will ensure

better connectivity with ports

and remote villages The total

length of roads including those

under the Pradhan Mantri Gram

Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) built

from 2014-15 till the current

year is about 140000 km

which is significantly higher

than previous three years

With an eye on improved

logistics across the country

in the future the finance

minister said ldquoAn effective

multi-modal logistics and

transport sector will make our

economy more competitive

A specific programme for

development of multi-modal

logistics parks together

with multi-modal transport

facilities will be drawn up and

implementedrdquo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom6

AdvAntAge for 3PL ProvIderSImplementation of GST will

ensure that the nascent 3PL

further embeds itself in the

logistics space Market research

agency Novonous in its

recent report estimates that

3PL logistics market in India is

expected to be worth $30189

billion by 2020 By 2020 Indian

logistics market is expected to

grow at a CAGR of 1217 percent

primarily driven by the growth in

the manufacturing retail FMCG

and e-commerce sectors This

growth rate is also based on

the expectation of GST being

implemented and the logistics

companies can optimise their

operations to reduce cost and

increase their margins

Further it is the

implementation of the GST that

would increase productivity

and raise efficiency levels in

the logistics sector and the

economy as a whole According

to various industry estimates

freight times will come down

by 30-40 percent and logistics

costs are expected to reduce by

20-30 percent

Once GST is implemented

instead of maintaining smaller

warehouses in each and

every state the companies

will be setting up lesser and

bigger warehouses and can

follow hub and scope model

for freight movement from

warehouses to manufacturing

plants distributors and retailers

ldquoWith GST in place there

will be consolidation of

warehouses thus reducing the

time lost between transporting

from one warehouse to

another Shorter supply chain

cycles will entail lesser time

spent on unnecessary activities

like paperwork material

scrutiny at checkpoints

compliance with multiple

regulations etc This will make

it smoother for transport

companies as they will be

able to transport goods with

lesser stoppages and breaks in

Pho

to G

reyO

ran

ge

Model of Indian Logistics Industry post gSt India becomes one big market there will be fewer

and larger warehouses

GST will result in larger trucks on road while the overall number of vehicles will go down The new tax will result in greater adoption of a hub-and-spoke model in segments such as warehousing cold chain container freight stations and inland container depots

GST will also bring in scale to logistics companies as there will be a lot of savings stoppage of wastage and lower delays

These above changes will lead to greater economies of scale for transport operators and lead to more companies outsourcing their logistics operations

journey Consequently it will

reduce the need for extensive

documentation in inter-state

sales making it a lot easier

to transport goods than it is

currentlyrdquo Allcargo Logistics

posted on its blog

Therefore there lies a bigger

opportunity for the 3PL service

providers who can manage

these bigger routes and deliver

accurately and efficiently

The Indian logistics industry

constitutes around 14 percent

of the GDP which is greater

than the other developing

nations The 3PL logistics firms

are evolving from traditional

service delivery systems

to highly integrated and

technically equipped service

providers striving to meet the

service demands GST provides

them with ample opportunity

to invest and expand the 3PL

base in India

According to a report

by CARE Ratings post GST

Cover story | GST

implementation the 3PLs would

have to restructure its assets

and realign its operations in line

with changes in the operations

of its customers in the new

scenario Currently 3PLs have

warehouses located near major

distribution centers of its key

clients (different industries)

irrespective of its geographic

disadvantage mainly to avoid

interstate taxes However

post GST implementation

3PLs are expected to build

integrated warehouses at

logistic suitable locations

So accordingly their assets

would need to be restructured

to accommodate the long

distance consignments which

will occur with this scenario of

free movement of goods across

the country The consumer

durables sector is expected to

witness maximum drop in the

logistics costs as percentage of

total sales as their warehouses

are built at different states to

avoid interstate tax

The central taxes which will

be subsumed into the GST are

Central Excise duty Additional

Excise duty Service tax

Countervailing duty and Special

Additional duty of Customs

Also the state taxes which will

be subsumed by GST are Sales

tax Entertainment tax Central

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 7

Salex tax Octroi and Entry tax

Purchase tax Luxury tax and

Taxes on lottery betting and

gambling GST will be collected

at every stage of sale or

purchase of goods or services

based on input tax credit

method This simplification of

the taxation system would make

the inter-state transportation of

goods more efficient

IMPACt on SuPPLy CHAIn MAnAgeMentThe structure of the supply

chain is influenced by

differential taxes based on

geographical location By

eliminating multiple state taxes

the logistics companies are

encouraged to consolidate

their warehouses instead of

maintaining one in each state

to avoid central tax

This in effect brings the

overall cost of the product

down as the inventory cost

and inventory carrying cost is

down This directly affects the

final cost of the product bring

the selling price down The

cost saved by the companies

as a result of GST can be used

to invest further to improve

serviceability

One important highlight

that GSTrsquos implementation

will do is to reduce the time

taken at various check posts

while transporting goods

This in turn will reduce costs

for customers and logistics

companies making the latter

more efficient and profitable

Presently trucks are idle for

about 40 per cent of the total

travel time due to Central Sales

TaxOctroi payment

GST has the potential to

accelerate growth in the logistics

industry While industry pundits

still feel that many contentious

issues remain such as the clear

definition of supply supply

chain management through

warehouse engineering credit

allowance during the transition

phase etc there is general

consensus to welcome this new

tax regime

With GSTrsquos imminent

implementation the logistics

industry should start exploring

different supply chain models

with their clients and at the same

time develop a completely

synchronised ERP accounting

system to support inventory

supply management as required

under the GST regime

Nevertheless GST is still the

change the logistics industry is

eagerly awaiting as overall the

positive impact of GST far

outweighs the disadvantages for

this industry

Benefits for logistics industry post gSt implementation

Pre gSt PoSt gSt

Interstate tax burden

Currently each of Indiarsquos 29 states taxes goods that move across their borders at different rates apart from that Corporate state tax of 2 is levied for inter-state goods transfer

Not applicable Uniform taxation and no varying tax structures would be allowed across states

Nature of the industry

Current interstate taxation has resulted in a large number of unorganized players in this industry Resulting in fragmented industry

With the introduction of GST there is likely to be major consoli-dation in the industry It could see the emergence of major large players who can span the entire logistics chain

Logistic time Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Cost The existing interstate taxation system has forced the companies to create and maintain warehouses in each state Currently there are around 20-30 warehouses per company one in every state in addition to this 20-30 Carry amp Forwarding agents per state making the supply chain longer and inef-ficient

GST tax will be levied on transportation of goods and full credit will be available on interstate transactions Logistic costs are expected to be decreased by 15-200 of sales on account of optimization of warehouses leading to lower inventory costs which are set up across states to avoid paying 2 corporate sales tax and phasing out of interstate sales tax There is immense scope for optimization of costs

Sou

rce

Car

e Ra

ting

s

Critical business implications post gSt implementationSupply Chain reengineeringMany service providers have to revamp their supply chains realign their warehouses and logistics networks This gives tremendous opportunity to 3PL and 4PL logistics providers

transportationRe-organised manufacturing plants and warehouses would reduce the primary freight charges as they are located close to each other irrespective of which state they are in However secondary freight may increase because of the fewer warehouses

Consolidation and outsourcingWith the increase in the availability of organized and efficient players there is a possibility of consolidation Also this leads to the outsourcing of their logistics operations to logistics service providers

Skill set upgradation and service levelsThe need for optimally skilled and technically qualified workforce is likely to become a challenge Hence to cater to this need supply of skillful workforce should improve which in turn improves the service level of the company in its operations and meet the customer demands

AutomationBecause of the fewer warehouses the warehouses can be ramped up and equipped with state of the art technology to facilitate long term benefits Latest warehouse management systems (WMS) and modern robotics can be used for the effective and efficient warehouse management

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

India to surpass China incargo volumesWith the implementation of Vision 2025 Ethiopian Airlines is aiming to be the leading aviation company in the region It has also added a feather to its cap by completing 45 years of service to Indiarsquos business capital Mumbai The milestone was celebrated by adding the fifth cargo destination - Ahmedabad to its cargo network tadesse tilahun Regional Director India Sub Continent Ethiopian Airlines expressed optimism about Indian market On a tecircte-agrave-tecircte with rashmi Pradhan he vividly painted the strategy for India

interview | TadeSSe Tilahun

elaborate on the vision 2025 of

ethiopian Airlines

According to Ethiopiarsquos 15-year strategic

plan named Vision 2025 we aim to

become a leading and competitive

aviation group in Africa with seven

business centers Ethiopian Domestic and

Regional Airline Ethiopian International

Passenger Airline Ethiopian Cargo

Ethiopian MRO Ethiopian Aviation

Academy Ethiopian In-flight Catering

Services and Ethiopian Ground Service

Ethiopian is a multi-award winning airline

registering an average growth of 25

percent in the past seven years In fact

we have achieved most of the targets set

in Vision 2025 much in advance

tell us about the journey so far

between India and ethiopia

India is a growing aviation market and

very strategic for an airline like Ethiopian

Airlines The carrier started operations

from Delhi way back in 1960s However

we decided to terminate that service

and later in 1971 Ethiopian Airlines made

its debut flight to Mumbai one of its

oldest destinations in Asia Since then

we increased our airlift to 28 scheduled

weekly flights to both Mumbai and

New Delhi The 45 years of uninterrupted

service to Mumbai was a successful

journey but not a smooth ride There

were many challenges (like operational

cost political unrest in Africa etc) From

Mumbai we started with three flights a

day and then increased the frequency

to five flights Earlier it was a turnaround

flight at Bangkok As we witnessed

increase in passenger flow we started a

dedicated flight to Mumbai

How was the performance of

ethiopian Airlines last year

In the past three years we have made a

significant expansion in India Now we

have double daily flights from Mumbai and

New Delhi In terms of passenger traffic

we have registered double digit growth

We witnessed 15 percent year-on-year

growth from Mumbai and 10 percent

growth from New Delhi We have plans

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

EXCELLENCE IN MUMBAI

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 9

to expand our operations in India both in

passenger and cargo We are looking at

starting passenger service to a South India

destination (probably Chennai) this year

What prompted the company to

add the fifth cargo destination from

India

Ethiopian Airlines is the largest cargo

operator in Africa We already have

dedicated cargo operations from four

Indian cities namely Mumbai Delhi

Chennai and Bengaluru On March 28 we

added the fifth cargo gateway to India

Ahmedabad to our global cargo network

Ahmedabad Indiarsquos second oldest

stock exchange and largest producer of

cotton is a fast emerging industrial hub

Right now a good volume of shipment

is trucked from Ahmedabad to Mumbai

and then lifted through Mumbai airport

One more advantage we see is not many

carriers have dedicated freight service

from Ahmedabad

While operating in the major trade

lanes between Africa Europe Middle East

and Asia our cargo network is efficiently

linking the Indian sub-continent and

Africa farther with China and Hong

Kong providing the Indian market with

minimum weekly import capacity of

240 tonnes I believe our new services

to Ahmedabad will further strengthen

the existing trade and commercial ties

between the two fastest growing regions

of the world

Quantify the growth of cargo

volumes from India

Although the exports from India to Africa

have declined we have witnessed seven

percent year-on-year growth from India

in terms of cargo volumes Ethiopian

lifted an average of 1500 tonnes a

month from Mumbai Delhi was around

300 tonnes a month Chennai was 200-

250 tonnes a month whereas Bengaluru

was 100-150 tonnes a month We have

a dedicated freighter four times a week

from Mumbai twice a week each from

Chennai and Delhi and once a week from

Ahmedabad and Bengaluru

We are looking at increasing capacity

from Mumbai and upgrade from B787 to

B777 which will increase the capacity by 50

seats a day Also we plan to upgrade B767

to B787 that will further add 50 seats a day

As far Delhi is concerned we will upgrade

B737 to B767 which will give additional 160

seats per day

What is the target set for India

We would be looking at increasing the

number of destinations by adding more

Indian cities to our network Furthermore

we are looking at increasing the operational

frequency to all the existing airports

viz Chennai Mumbai New Delhi and

Bengaluru The wide range of experience in

operating in Africa Ethiopian would like to

capitalise on the same and widen our area

by more focus on lifting pharmaceuticals

and perishables

A state of the art warehouse is being built

at Addis Ababa airport with a capacity of

600 million tonnes per year in phase I and

will be ramped up to 600 million tonnes

in second phase Of the total capacity

40 percent will be dedicated to

perishables That means after the

completion of the said cargo

hub the capacity will touch

12 million tonnes We are

also looking at deploying

wide body aircraft in place of

narrow body wherever we

see an increase in demand

going forward what is

the expectation of Indian

cargo market

India is a major market for

Ethiopian network It is one of

the top five markets being US

at the top followed by China and

then India and UAE India is a

key market for us and

we have witnessed

continuous

passenger and

cargo growth

from India

Of the Brazil Russia India and China (BRIC)

nations India is the fastest growing country

Most of the African countries are importing

either from India or China It will not be

too far when India will overtake China in

capacity We expect the increase in export

volumes from India

Ethiopian is a Star Alliance member like

the national carrier of India Air India This

gives an advantage to both the airlines and

helps to exchange good volumes of

business We have a codeshare agreement

with Air India and this helps Air India to

reach out to more destinations in Africa

and Ethiopian to reach out to number of

destinations in India

interview | Paul J Kocheril

The first green-field airport in India built under the public-private partnership Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) registered a 178 percent growth in passenger traffic and 156 percent in cargo volumes in 2016 As the volume handled by the airport was on the rise recently a new international terminal was put into operations Over the last two decades Cochin Airport has become the hub of Middle East traffic (both passenger and cargo)

A civil engineer by profession Paul j Kocheril he was one of the first recruits at CIAL in 1994 Kocheril was instrumental in the construction of CIAL For the past 16 years he has been associated with the air cargo complex As the Deputy General Manager - Cargo Cochin International Airport Kocheril speaks to rashmi Pradhan on the growth of traffic and performance of CIAL

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom10

CIALThe new cargo hub

What are the key features of Cochin International

Airport

This is the first airport in the country built under

public-private partnership model and perhaps the first

airport in the world fully operated on solar power

Since its nception in 1999 CIAL has been trying to

integrate local and international technologies to

enhance effective operations We donrsquot compromise

on standards and always adhere to the inclusive

business model which encompass habitat around

when implementing infrastructure expansion

CIAL cargo facility has nearly 200000

square feet area (office and warehouse)

Of which nearly 132000 is dedicated for

warehouse To offer superior cargo services

to airlines forwarding agents shippers and

consignees we stick to the concept of fine

tuning our procedures to meet the ever-

changing demands and challenges of the

constantly evolving air cargo industry

elaborate on the performance of CIAL

in 2016

The total passenger traffic through the

airport in 2016 stood at 8736061 Of which

3764640 were domestic and 4971421

were international passengers In the cargo

front last year was a good year for CIAL

The cargo movement grew in double digit

registering a growth of 156 percent The

volume grew to 8533910 tonnes in 2016 as

against 7384920 tonnes in 2015 Of the total

cargo moved through the airport perishable

cargo share was 58261 tonnes

CIAL can easily accommodate long-haul

direct and non-stop internationaldomestic

crafts The biggest advantage CIAL has is

that it is well connected by road and rail

and rail network The NH 47 is connected

to CIAL by a four-kilometre four-lane road

The railway line cuts across the CIAL land

What is in the pipeline on the cargo

front

There is a full-fledged expansion plan in

place for cargo infrastructure expansion

As part of our vision we are in the process

of setting up a separate fully automated

new import and export section This facility

will have all the modern material handling

equipment and facilities The new import

warehouse will have a separate area for

courier baggage and commercial cargo In

addition to this the administrative offices

for customs and other related agencies also

will be integrated into the new premises

give details of the upcoming cargo

village concept

50 Acres has been earmarked for the cargo

village Once completed the cargo village

will offer separate sections for marine

products couriers express cargo valuables

and vulnerable cargo The logistic centre

along with the multi-modular operation of

the sea to air and air to sea transhipment

will be another attraction focusing on the

movements in Vallarpadam International

Container Terminal at Cochin Port

Also there are separate areas dedicated

to the storage and handling of domestic

(inbound outbound cargo including

courier) and international cargo including

the transhipment cargo

The entire International air cargo centre is

designated as a Customs Bonded area

It is equipped with the state of the art

automation tools and computers that

control the cargo terminals

We are also planning a separate import

warehouse which will be having separate

facilities for handling courier passenger

baggage and commercial cargo It will

also include administrative offices for

government agencies like customs PQ

PHO and other agencies associated with

cargo clearance

How do you ensure the smooth

functioning of cargo movement at

the airport

CIAL is the sole cargo handling agency

for all carrier operating from Cochin

International Airport Right from the

acceptance of cargo to the warehouse

to customs examination security

clearance stuffing documentation

including manifestation are all handled

by CIAL Since we are following a single

shop concept in cargo handling there

is practically very less interference and

coordination issues

What according to you makes Cochin

Airport the first choice of cargo

carriers

The addition of airline services to Cochin

Airport every year has led to increase in

passenger and cargo capacity Since it

started its operations CIAL has grown as the

hub of Middle East cargo traffic in South

India The accessibility the flying time etc

are the factors that determine the cargo

growth (especially fruits and vegetables to

the Middle East) of CIAL As over 80 percent

of export cargo at CIAL are perishables The

facilities like the centre for perishable cargo

a temperature controlled warehouse

exclusively for handling perishable has

fuelled the growth The airport adheres to

low-cost model with no compromise on the

quality of infrastructure and service

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 11

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom12

Take offThe perfect

Heres a story of a boy who was fascinated by aeroplanes in his childhood in a remote Kenyan village and pursued his dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer Last month Geoffrey Nyaga made his first plane journey of his life to Abu Dhabi as one of the five finalists of the IATA Air Cargo Innovation Awards He returned home with $20000 prize money and assurances of a promising future in the aviation industry

Geoffrey Nyaga is 25 years old He

is from Likii a small village on

the slopes of Mount Kenya near

Nanyuki town which is about

200km from Nairobi the capital city He

lives with his parents and his younger sister

His father owns a small retail shop while his

mother assists in running the shop He says

it was ldquojust enough to provide for our daily

basic needsrdquo

ldquoFrom as early as I can remember I have

always been fascinated by technology

specifically aeroplanesrdquo Geoffrey tells me

as he gets himself wired for the first ever

media interview of his life inside the majestic

National Exhibition Centre in Abu Dhabi

ldquoI grew up watching military aircrafts fly

above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and

small aircrafts taking off and landing from

Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody

from my extended family attend college or

anyone in our village working in aviation

I was always determined to pursue my

dreamsrdquo he adds

It is the fascination for technology

combined with his determination that led

him to pursue his dream of completing his

studies in Aeronautical Engineering from

the Technical University of Kenya With a

first class honour Geoffrey graduated in

December 2016 and immediately after he

began his first job at Astral Aerial Solutions

(AES) a subsidiary of Astral Aviation a

dedicated cargo airline with a strong African

footprint His first project was to build a UTM

(UAV Traffic Management) concept that

will safely manage UAS (Unmanned Aerial

System) traffic and to operate Flyox the

indigenously made cargo drone

Flyox has a payload capability of up to

2000kg 1200 km range and flight time of up

to 26 hours It can land in unpaved airstrips

and on water It is designed to enable safe

civilian UAV operations by providing pilots

with information on altitude separation

restricted airspace and weather conditions

The project will lay the foundation for safe

secure and effective UAS operations and

integrate into existing airspace to ultimately

allow the expansion of air cargo in Africa It

can be deployed for aid and relief medical

supplies mining oil and gas agriculture and

e-commerce products

It is this project that made Geoffrey

win the top award at the IATA Air Cargo

Innovation Award for 2017

He received the award at the 11th World

Cargo Symposium (WCS) in Abu Dhabi

ldquoWe hope to be able to develop a

Geoffrey NyaGaAstrAl AeriAl solutions

I grew up watching military aircrafts fly above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and small aircrafts taking off and landing from Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody from my extended family attend college or anyone in our village working in aviation I was always determined to pursue my dreams

rejI joHn

Profile

Sanjeev Gadhia Astral Aviation

Drone technology has strong potential to boost the continentrsquos air connectivity and deliver goods and services to remote regions and more critical lifesaving products to those in need

pathway that will encourage regulators

operators and manufacturers to come

together and pave the way forward

for safe and efficient UAS use in the

continentrdquo says Geoffrey

Sanjeev Gadhia the founder and

CEO of Astral Aviation who presented

the project on behalf of Geoffrey was

delighted to have been recognized

for the project ldquoDrone technology has

strong potential to boost the continentrsquos

air connectivity and deliver goods and

services to remote regions and more

critical lifesaving products to those in

needrdquo says Gadhia

Astral Aerialrsquos project seeks to lay the

It is great to see a developing nation company helping to drive the innovation that is needed throughout the global air cargo industry

Glyn Hughes iAtA

foundation for safe secure and effective

UAS operations and integration into

existing airspace to ultimately allow the

expansion of air cargo in Africa

ldquoIt is great to see a developing nation

company helping to drive the innovation

that is needed throughout the global air

cargo industryrdquo says Glyn Hughes IATArsquos

Global Head of Cargo

Geoffrey is still overwhelmed by the

warm reception he received from IATA

delegates and the acceptance of his

project ldquoI was also impressed with the

industry-wide drive to use new

technologies and innovation to improve

customer experience This united voice

by the industry towards adopting

innovation gave me hope that the cargo

industry would be attractive to young

talent wanting to join the aviation

industryrdquo he adds

UTM CONCEPT

LEVEL 1 1500ft

LEVEL 2 4000 ft

LEVEL 3 8000 ft

LEVEL 4 15000 ft

Medical Supplies Precison Agriculture and crop spraying

Mining

Wind Turbine inspections

Geofence

Power lines and Telecommunications

Emmergency Response

oil and gas

Pipeline inspections Wildlife

Sport and recreational

Surveillance Mapping Security

CARGO DRONESLarge Payload Long Range

General Aviation

Commercial Jets and Airliners

Flyox cargo drone developed by Astral Aerial Solutions

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 13

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14 APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14

rePort | air carGo africa

Bigger betterstrongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

teAM StAt trAde tIMeS

With massive

participation

from industry

stakeholders and

leaders at the fourth edition of

Air Cargo Africa the three-day

conference-cum-exhibition

was a resounding success To

unearth the growth potential of

the African continent the global

air cargo community converged

at the Air Cargo Africa 2017 at

the Emperors Palace in City of

Ekurhuleni Johannesburg from

February 21-23

The event under the theme

ldquoAir freight in Africa Building

tomorrowrsquos market todayrdquo was

inaugurated by the guest of

honour Dr Ismail Vadi Gauteng

Member of Executive Council

for Roads and Transport and Dr

N Xhakaza Member of Mayoral

Committee Finance and

Economic Development City

if Ekurhuleni along with Tleli

Makhetha General Manager

South African Airways and RK

Patra Group Editor-in Chief

STAT Media Group

Welcoming the delegates

to the fourth edition of Air

Cargo Africa RK Patra Group

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15

Editor-in Chief STAT Media

Group spoke about the

revolutionary changes that

the aviation industry is going

through where drones and

unmanned aerial vehicles are

being employed to deliver

cargo and Hyperloop is a

proposed new way to move

people and freight at airline

speeds for the price of a bus

ticket Emphasizing on the

importance of cooperation

he said ldquoAt Air Cargo Africa

through the deliberations in the

next three days we intend to

become a facilitator for greater

cooperation and collaborations

to enhance trade across

bordersrdquo and thus set the ball

rolling for the proceedings over

the next three days

Making his inaugural

address Dr Ismail Vadi pointed

out that significant innovations

are compelling people to

ldquorethink the way they live

interact transport domestically

and internationallyrdquo They are

influencing people to rethink

about all the ldquowell established

norms and practicesrdquo

Musa Zwane CEO (Acting)

South African Airways in his

keynote address said ldquoFor

South African Airways the

air cargo is an important and

significant part of businessrdquo

He goes on to add ldquoWe are

singularly proud that our

country is playing host to this

event which seeks to highlight

and enhance the development

of the air cargo and the

opportunities in the African

region We are also excited

that for the first time this year

shippers and forwarders are

participating fully in the event

to both exhibit and deliberaterdquo

IMPortAnt tALKIng PoIntSPanel discussions over the

three days touched upon

topics ranging from unlocking

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

to dealing with overcapacity

and declining yields in a volatile

market to understanding trade

agreements in the African

context and bringing to the fore

innovations in cargo delivery

The first panel of the day

saw the likes of Glyn Hughes

Global Head of Cargo IATA

Graham Perkins Vice President

Sales and Marketing (EMEIA)

Atlas Air Inc Barry D Nassberg

Group Chief Operating Officer

Worldwide Flight Services

Rudolf Steiner Senior Vice

President Cargo Global

Accounts amp Commercial

Swissport International

Rainer Mueller Vice President

Commercial Saudia Cargo and

Jan de Vegt Chief Operating

Officer Kenya Airways discuss

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Mueller highlighted that

even though the infrastructure

is somewhat in place when it

comes to handling the import

shipments or the export

shipments at the African

airports there is need to

improve the ground transport

ldquoWhat I would be hoping is

we as an industry manage for

setting up an effective ground

transport product in addition

to what we are having as an air

cargo productrdquo

Steiner however said that

investments are being made to

improve the current scenario

ldquoWe invested in brand new

facilities in Africa We have

opted for facilities in Dar es

Salaam and Kenya It is an

absolute must to invest in Good

Distribution Practices (GDP) and

core facilities we have done

that Are we yet there Most

probably not but compared to

two years ago we took a big

step We have to work closer to

the producer in order to further

improve in the logistics chainrdquo

he said

According to Barry D

Nassberg a lot more can be

done and that airports need to

be a willing partner in looking at

how it would develop a policy

where it allows a necessary

investment to happen

Graham Perkins pointed

out that with regards to

the readiness supporting

e-commerce African people

are ready to take this on but

the question is whether Africa

is ready to take it on He said

that custom infrastructure is

a major issue as it does not

support e-commerce ldquoIn many

cases a lot of countries have

customs rules and regulations

that dates back decades

and they are being used

unfortunatelyrdquo he said

Another significant topic

was the Yamoussoukro

Declaration that is most likely to

be implemented by December

2017 It was adopted out of the

recognition that the restrictive

and protectionist intra-African

regulatory regime hampers the

expansion and improvement of

air transport on the continent

Commenting on Africarsquos

Yamoussoukro Declaration and

the debate on opening skies

Jan de Vegt said Africa needs

to take cautious steps and not

rush to open skies outside Africa

ldquoWe have to come to a situation

where Africa has an open sky

within Africa firstrdquo he said

The panel moderated by

Glyn Hughes concluded that

for all countries across Africa

harmonisation is critical

particularly as the continent has

got a growing population and

a young labour force which

would be able to become a

young workforce and then a

young consumer market

In the session on trade

agreements the moderator

Tom Crabtree Regional

Director Airline Market

Analysis Marketing amp Business

Development Boeing

Commercial Airplanes put forth

three important questions

before the panel Are trade

agreements drafted with any

particular mode in mind Can

trade agreements liberalise

market access by themselves

What can we as industry

stakeholders do to make our

voices heard

Crabtree was joined on the

panel by Glyn Hughes global

head of cargo IATA Tleli

Makhetha general manager

South African Airways and

Vladimir Zubkov secretary

general TIACA

Hughes responded to

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom4

Logistics industry set for a

smooth lift post GST

While the entire dynamics of transportation and logistics will undergo a sea change once GST is introduced it will lead to a leaner and fitter logistics industry which in turn will lead to greater efficiencies

Cover story | GST

SuryA KAnnotH amp rejI joHn

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 5

Goods amp Services

Tax (GST) for sure

remains one of

the two bold-play

initiatives taken by the reigning

government so far After years

of being entangled in political

knots debating a transparent

and efficient unified tax system

India is soon on its way to

become a clutter-free tax

highway

It (GST) looks on track

Subject to Parliament approval

it looks like the possible date of

implementation of GST is July

1 Finance Minister Arun Jaitley

said after the 11th GST Council

meet concluded

The three enabling GST bills

ndash Central GST Integrated GST

and Compensation to states

top the governmentrsquos agenda

during the second part of the

Budget session of Parliament

which will conclude on April 12

Indiarsquos logistics performance

at its key international

gateways has scaled up

significantly in the last two

years and that was evident

in the World Bankrsquos biennial

measure of international supply

chain efficiency report namely

the Logistics Performance

Index where Indiarsquos ranking

catapulted from 54 in 2014 to

35 in 2016

The introduction of GST

will further give impetus to the

transport and logistics industry

in India While the entire

dynamics of transportation

and logistics will undergo

a sea change once GST is

implemented it will lead to

a leaner and fitter logistics

industry which in turn will

lead to greater efficiencies

Both transport as well as

manufacturing companies

will be able to take better

advantage of the economies

of scale

Lauding the governmentrsquos

move Pirojshaw Sarkari CEO

Mahindra Logistics said ldquoThe

announcement of GST Council

finalising its recommendations

on almost all issues and timely

preparation of IT system

needs to be welcomed In an

endeavour to create awareness

about the new GST led taxation

system we support the

governmentrsquos move to reach-

out to trade and industryrdquo

Budget 2017-18 PuSHeS for InfrAStruCtureReadying the stage for GST

Jaitleyrsquos Budget proposal for

2017-18 laid special focus on

road and infrastructure sector

The Budget allocation for

highways was increased from

Rs 57976 crore in FY2016-17

to Rs 64900 crore in FY2017-

18 while 2000 km of coastal

connectivity roads have been

identified for construction and

development This will ensure

better connectivity with ports

and remote villages The total

length of roads including those

under the Pradhan Mantri Gram

Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) built

from 2014-15 till the current

year is about 140000 km

which is significantly higher

than previous three years

With an eye on improved

logistics across the country

in the future the finance

minister said ldquoAn effective

multi-modal logistics and

transport sector will make our

economy more competitive

A specific programme for

development of multi-modal

logistics parks together

with multi-modal transport

facilities will be drawn up and

implementedrdquo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom6

AdvAntAge for 3PL ProvIderSImplementation of GST will

ensure that the nascent 3PL

further embeds itself in the

logistics space Market research

agency Novonous in its

recent report estimates that

3PL logistics market in India is

expected to be worth $30189

billion by 2020 By 2020 Indian

logistics market is expected to

grow at a CAGR of 1217 percent

primarily driven by the growth in

the manufacturing retail FMCG

and e-commerce sectors This

growth rate is also based on

the expectation of GST being

implemented and the logistics

companies can optimise their

operations to reduce cost and

increase their margins

Further it is the

implementation of the GST that

would increase productivity

and raise efficiency levels in

the logistics sector and the

economy as a whole According

to various industry estimates

freight times will come down

by 30-40 percent and logistics

costs are expected to reduce by

20-30 percent

Once GST is implemented

instead of maintaining smaller

warehouses in each and

every state the companies

will be setting up lesser and

bigger warehouses and can

follow hub and scope model

for freight movement from

warehouses to manufacturing

plants distributors and retailers

ldquoWith GST in place there

will be consolidation of

warehouses thus reducing the

time lost between transporting

from one warehouse to

another Shorter supply chain

cycles will entail lesser time

spent on unnecessary activities

like paperwork material

scrutiny at checkpoints

compliance with multiple

regulations etc This will make

it smoother for transport

companies as they will be

able to transport goods with

lesser stoppages and breaks in

Pho

to G

reyO

ran

ge

Model of Indian Logistics Industry post gSt India becomes one big market there will be fewer

and larger warehouses

GST will result in larger trucks on road while the overall number of vehicles will go down The new tax will result in greater adoption of a hub-and-spoke model in segments such as warehousing cold chain container freight stations and inland container depots

GST will also bring in scale to logistics companies as there will be a lot of savings stoppage of wastage and lower delays

These above changes will lead to greater economies of scale for transport operators and lead to more companies outsourcing their logistics operations

journey Consequently it will

reduce the need for extensive

documentation in inter-state

sales making it a lot easier

to transport goods than it is

currentlyrdquo Allcargo Logistics

posted on its blog

Therefore there lies a bigger

opportunity for the 3PL service

providers who can manage

these bigger routes and deliver

accurately and efficiently

The Indian logistics industry

constitutes around 14 percent

of the GDP which is greater

than the other developing

nations The 3PL logistics firms

are evolving from traditional

service delivery systems

to highly integrated and

technically equipped service

providers striving to meet the

service demands GST provides

them with ample opportunity

to invest and expand the 3PL

base in India

According to a report

by CARE Ratings post GST

Cover story | GST

implementation the 3PLs would

have to restructure its assets

and realign its operations in line

with changes in the operations

of its customers in the new

scenario Currently 3PLs have

warehouses located near major

distribution centers of its key

clients (different industries)

irrespective of its geographic

disadvantage mainly to avoid

interstate taxes However

post GST implementation

3PLs are expected to build

integrated warehouses at

logistic suitable locations

So accordingly their assets

would need to be restructured

to accommodate the long

distance consignments which

will occur with this scenario of

free movement of goods across

the country The consumer

durables sector is expected to

witness maximum drop in the

logistics costs as percentage of

total sales as their warehouses

are built at different states to

avoid interstate tax

The central taxes which will

be subsumed into the GST are

Central Excise duty Additional

Excise duty Service tax

Countervailing duty and Special

Additional duty of Customs

Also the state taxes which will

be subsumed by GST are Sales

tax Entertainment tax Central

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 7

Salex tax Octroi and Entry tax

Purchase tax Luxury tax and

Taxes on lottery betting and

gambling GST will be collected

at every stage of sale or

purchase of goods or services

based on input tax credit

method This simplification of

the taxation system would make

the inter-state transportation of

goods more efficient

IMPACt on SuPPLy CHAIn MAnAgeMentThe structure of the supply

chain is influenced by

differential taxes based on

geographical location By

eliminating multiple state taxes

the logistics companies are

encouraged to consolidate

their warehouses instead of

maintaining one in each state

to avoid central tax

This in effect brings the

overall cost of the product

down as the inventory cost

and inventory carrying cost is

down This directly affects the

final cost of the product bring

the selling price down The

cost saved by the companies

as a result of GST can be used

to invest further to improve

serviceability

One important highlight

that GSTrsquos implementation

will do is to reduce the time

taken at various check posts

while transporting goods

This in turn will reduce costs

for customers and logistics

companies making the latter

more efficient and profitable

Presently trucks are idle for

about 40 per cent of the total

travel time due to Central Sales

TaxOctroi payment

GST has the potential to

accelerate growth in the logistics

industry While industry pundits

still feel that many contentious

issues remain such as the clear

definition of supply supply

chain management through

warehouse engineering credit

allowance during the transition

phase etc there is general

consensus to welcome this new

tax regime

With GSTrsquos imminent

implementation the logistics

industry should start exploring

different supply chain models

with their clients and at the same

time develop a completely

synchronised ERP accounting

system to support inventory

supply management as required

under the GST regime

Nevertheless GST is still the

change the logistics industry is

eagerly awaiting as overall the

positive impact of GST far

outweighs the disadvantages for

this industry

Benefits for logistics industry post gSt implementation

Pre gSt PoSt gSt

Interstate tax burden

Currently each of Indiarsquos 29 states taxes goods that move across their borders at different rates apart from that Corporate state tax of 2 is levied for inter-state goods transfer

Not applicable Uniform taxation and no varying tax structures would be allowed across states

Nature of the industry

Current interstate taxation has resulted in a large number of unorganized players in this industry Resulting in fragmented industry

With the introduction of GST there is likely to be major consoli-dation in the industry It could see the emergence of major large players who can span the entire logistics chain

Logistic time Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Cost The existing interstate taxation system has forced the companies to create and maintain warehouses in each state Currently there are around 20-30 warehouses per company one in every state in addition to this 20-30 Carry amp Forwarding agents per state making the supply chain longer and inef-ficient

GST tax will be levied on transportation of goods and full credit will be available on interstate transactions Logistic costs are expected to be decreased by 15-200 of sales on account of optimization of warehouses leading to lower inventory costs which are set up across states to avoid paying 2 corporate sales tax and phasing out of interstate sales tax There is immense scope for optimization of costs

Sou

rce

Car

e Ra

ting

s

Critical business implications post gSt implementationSupply Chain reengineeringMany service providers have to revamp their supply chains realign their warehouses and logistics networks This gives tremendous opportunity to 3PL and 4PL logistics providers

transportationRe-organised manufacturing plants and warehouses would reduce the primary freight charges as they are located close to each other irrespective of which state they are in However secondary freight may increase because of the fewer warehouses

Consolidation and outsourcingWith the increase in the availability of organized and efficient players there is a possibility of consolidation Also this leads to the outsourcing of their logistics operations to logistics service providers

Skill set upgradation and service levelsThe need for optimally skilled and technically qualified workforce is likely to become a challenge Hence to cater to this need supply of skillful workforce should improve which in turn improves the service level of the company in its operations and meet the customer demands

AutomationBecause of the fewer warehouses the warehouses can be ramped up and equipped with state of the art technology to facilitate long term benefits Latest warehouse management systems (WMS) and modern robotics can be used for the effective and efficient warehouse management

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

India to surpass China incargo volumesWith the implementation of Vision 2025 Ethiopian Airlines is aiming to be the leading aviation company in the region It has also added a feather to its cap by completing 45 years of service to Indiarsquos business capital Mumbai The milestone was celebrated by adding the fifth cargo destination - Ahmedabad to its cargo network tadesse tilahun Regional Director India Sub Continent Ethiopian Airlines expressed optimism about Indian market On a tecircte-agrave-tecircte with rashmi Pradhan he vividly painted the strategy for India

interview | TadeSSe Tilahun

elaborate on the vision 2025 of

ethiopian Airlines

According to Ethiopiarsquos 15-year strategic

plan named Vision 2025 we aim to

become a leading and competitive

aviation group in Africa with seven

business centers Ethiopian Domestic and

Regional Airline Ethiopian International

Passenger Airline Ethiopian Cargo

Ethiopian MRO Ethiopian Aviation

Academy Ethiopian In-flight Catering

Services and Ethiopian Ground Service

Ethiopian is a multi-award winning airline

registering an average growth of 25

percent in the past seven years In fact

we have achieved most of the targets set

in Vision 2025 much in advance

tell us about the journey so far

between India and ethiopia

India is a growing aviation market and

very strategic for an airline like Ethiopian

Airlines The carrier started operations

from Delhi way back in 1960s However

we decided to terminate that service

and later in 1971 Ethiopian Airlines made

its debut flight to Mumbai one of its

oldest destinations in Asia Since then

we increased our airlift to 28 scheduled

weekly flights to both Mumbai and

New Delhi The 45 years of uninterrupted

service to Mumbai was a successful

journey but not a smooth ride There

were many challenges (like operational

cost political unrest in Africa etc) From

Mumbai we started with three flights a

day and then increased the frequency

to five flights Earlier it was a turnaround

flight at Bangkok As we witnessed

increase in passenger flow we started a

dedicated flight to Mumbai

How was the performance of

ethiopian Airlines last year

In the past three years we have made a

significant expansion in India Now we

have double daily flights from Mumbai and

New Delhi In terms of passenger traffic

we have registered double digit growth

We witnessed 15 percent year-on-year

growth from Mumbai and 10 percent

growth from New Delhi We have plans

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

EXCELLENCE IN MUMBAI

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 9

to expand our operations in India both in

passenger and cargo We are looking at

starting passenger service to a South India

destination (probably Chennai) this year

What prompted the company to

add the fifth cargo destination from

India

Ethiopian Airlines is the largest cargo

operator in Africa We already have

dedicated cargo operations from four

Indian cities namely Mumbai Delhi

Chennai and Bengaluru On March 28 we

added the fifth cargo gateway to India

Ahmedabad to our global cargo network

Ahmedabad Indiarsquos second oldest

stock exchange and largest producer of

cotton is a fast emerging industrial hub

Right now a good volume of shipment

is trucked from Ahmedabad to Mumbai

and then lifted through Mumbai airport

One more advantage we see is not many

carriers have dedicated freight service

from Ahmedabad

While operating in the major trade

lanes between Africa Europe Middle East

and Asia our cargo network is efficiently

linking the Indian sub-continent and

Africa farther with China and Hong

Kong providing the Indian market with

minimum weekly import capacity of

240 tonnes I believe our new services

to Ahmedabad will further strengthen

the existing trade and commercial ties

between the two fastest growing regions

of the world

Quantify the growth of cargo

volumes from India

Although the exports from India to Africa

have declined we have witnessed seven

percent year-on-year growth from India

in terms of cargo volumes Ethiopian

lifted an average of 1500 tonnes a

month from Mumbai Delhi was around

300 tonnes a month Chennai was 200-

250 tonnes a month whereas Bengaluru

was 100-150 tonnes a month We have

a dedicated freighter four times a week

from Mumbai twice a week each from

Chennai and Delhi and once a week from

Ahmedabad and Bengaluru

We are looking at increasing capacity

from Mumbai and upgrade from B787 to

B777 which will increase the capacity by 50

seats a day Also we plan to upgrade B767

to B787 that will further add 50 seats a day

As far Delhi is concerned we will upgrade

B737 to B767 which will give additional 160

seats per day

What is the target set for India

We would be looking at increasing the

number of destinations by adding more

Indian cities to our network Furthermore

we are looking at increasing the operational

frequency to all the existing airports

viz Chennai Mumbai New Delhi and

Bengaluru The wide range of experience in

operating in Africa Ethiopian would like to

capitalise on the same and widen our area

by more focus on lifting pharmaceuticals

and perishables

A state of the art warehouse is being built

at Addis Ababa airport with a capacity of

600 million tonnes per year in phase I and

will be ramped up to 600 million tonnes

in second phase Of the total capacity

40 percent will be dedicated to

perishables That means after the

completion of the said cargo

hub the capacity will touch

12 million tonnes We are

also looking at deploying

wide body aircraft in place of

narrow body wherever we

see an increase in demand

going forward what is

the expectation of Indian

cargo market

India is a major market for

Ethiopian network It is one of

the top five markets being US

at the top followed by China and

then India and UAE India is a

key market for us and

we have witnessed

continuous

passenger and

cargo growth

from India

Of the Brazil Russia India and China (BRIC)

nations India is the fastest growing country

Most of the African countries are importing

either from India or China It will not be

too far when India will overtake China in

capacity We expect the increase in export

volumes from India

Ethiopian is a Star Alliance member like

the national carrier of India Air India This

gives an advantage to both the airlines and

helps to exchange good volumes of

business We have a codeshare agreement

with Air India and this helps Air India to

reach out to more destinations in Africa

and Ethiopian to reach out to number of

destinations in India

interview | Paul J Kocheril

The first green-field airport in India built under the public-private partnership Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) registered a 178 percent growth in passenger traffic and 156 percent in cargo volumes in 2016 As the volume handled by the airport was on the rise recently a new international terminal was put into operations Over the last two decades Cochin Airport has become the hub of Middle East traffic (both passenger and cargo)

A civil engineer by profession Paul j Kocheril he was one of the first recruits at CIAL in 1994 Kocheril was instrumental in the construction of CIAL For the past 16 years he has been associated with the air cargo complex As the Deputy General Manager - Cargo Cochin International Airport Kocheril speaks to rashmi Pradhan on the growth of traffic and performance of CIAL

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom10

CIALThe new cargo hub

What are the key features of Cochin International

Airport

This is the first airport in the country built under

public-private partnership model and perhaps the first

airport in the world fully operated on solar power

Since its nception in 1999 CIAL has been trying to

integrate local and international technologies to

enhance effective operations We donrsquot compromise

on standards and always adhere to the inclusive

business model which encompass habitat around

when implementing infrastructure expansion

CIAL cargo facility has nearly 200000

square feet area (office and warehouse)

Of which nearly 132000 is dedicated for

warehouse To offer superior cargo services

to airlines forwarding agents shippers and

consignees we stick to the concept of fine

tuning our procedures to meet the ever-

changing demands and challenges of the

constantly evolving air cargo industry

elaborate on the performance of CIAL

in 2016

The total passenger traffic through the

airport in 2016 stood at 8736061 Of which

3764640 were domestic and 4971421

were international passengers In the cargo

front last year was a good year for CIAL

The cargo movement grew in double digit

registering a growth of 156 percent The

volume grew to 8533910 tonnes in 2016 as

against 7384920 tonnes in 2015 Of the total

cargo moved through the airport perishable

cargo share was 58261 tonnes

CIAL can easily accommodate long-haul

direct and non-stop internationaldomestic

crafts The biggest advantage CIAL has is

that it is well connected by road and rail

and rail network The NH 47 is connected

to CIAL by a four-kilometre four-lane road

The railway line cuts across the CIAL land

What is in the pipeline on the cargo

front

There is a full-fledged expansion plan in

place for cargo infrastructure expansion

As part of our vision we are in the process

of setting up a separate fully automated

new import and export section This facility

will have all the modern material handling

equipment and facilities The new import

warehouse will have a separate area for

courier baggage and commercial cargo In

addition to this the administrative offices

for customs and other related agencies also

will be integrated into the new premises

give details of the upcoming cargo

village concept

50 Acres has been earmarked for the cargo

village Once completed the cargo village

will offer separate sections for marine

products couriers express cargo valuables

and vulnerable cargo The logistic centre

along with the multi-modular operation of

the sea to air and air to sea transhipment

will be another attraction focusing on the

movements in Vallarpadam International

Container Terminal at Cochin Port

Also there are separate areas dedicated

to the storage and handling of domestic

(inbound outbound cargo including

courier) and international cargo including

the transhipment cargo

The entire International air cargo centre is

designated as a Customs Bonded area

It is equipped with the state of the art

automation tools and computers that

control the cargo terminals

We are also planning a separate import

warehouse which will be having separate

facilities for handling courier passenger

baggage and commercial cargo It will

also include administrative offices for

government agencies like customs PQ

PHO and other agencies associated with

cargo clearance

How do you ensure the smooth

functioning of cargo movement at

the airport

CIAL is the sole cargo handling agency

for all carrier operating from Cochin

International Airport Right from the

acceptance of cargo to the warehouse

to customs examination security

clearance stuffing documentation

including manifestation are all handled

by CIAL Since we are following a single

shop concept in cargo handling there

is practically very less interference and

coordination issues

What according to you makes Cochin

Airport the first choice of cargo

carriers

The addition of airline services to Cochin

Airport every year has led to increase in

passenger and cargo capacity Since it

started its operations CIAL has grown as the

hub of Middle East cargo traffic in South

India The accessibility the flying time etc

are the factors that determine the cargo

growth (especially fruits and vegetables to

the Middle East) of CIAL As over 80 percent

of export cargo at CIAL are perishables The

facilities like the centre for perishable cargo

a temperature controlled warehouse

exclusively for handling perishable has

fuelled the growth The airport adheres to

low-cost model with no compromise on the

quality of infrastructure and service

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 11

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom12

Take offThe perfect

Heres a story of a boy who was fascinated by aeroplanes in his childhood in a remote Kenyan village and pursued his dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer Last month Geoffrey Nyaga made his first plane journey of his life to Abu Dhabi as one of the five finalists of the IATA Air Cargo Innovation Awards He returned home with $20000 prize money and assurances of a promising future in the aviation industry

Geoffrey Nyaga is 25 years old He

is from Likii a small village on

the slopes of Mount Kenya near

Nanyuki town which is about

200km from Nairobi the capital city He

lives with his parents and his younger sister

His father owns a small retail shop while his

mother assists in running the shop He says

it was ldquojust enough to provide for our daily

basic needsrdquo

ldquoFrom as early as I can remember I have

always been fascinated by technology

specifically aeroplanesrdquo Geoffrey tells me

as he gets himself wired for the first ever

media interview of his life inside the majestic

National Exhibition Centre in Abu Dhabi

ldquoI grew up watching military aircrafts fly

above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and

small aircrafts taking off and landing from

Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody

from my extended family attend college or

anyone in our village working in aviation

I was always determined to pursue my

dreamsrdquo he adds

It is the fascination for technology

combined with his determination that led

him to pursue his dream of completing his

studies in Aeronautical Engineering from

the Technical University of Kenya With a

first class honour Geoffrey graduated in

December 2016 and immediately after he

began his first job at Astral Aerial Solutions

(AES) a subsidiary of Astral Aviation a

dedicated cargo airline with a strong African

footprint His first project was to build a UTM

(UAV Traffic Management) concept that

will safely manage UAS (Unmanned Aerial

System) traffic and to operate Flyox the

indigenously made cargo drone

Flyox has a payload capability of up to

2000kg 1200 km range and flight time of up

to 26 hours It can land in unpaved airstrips

and on water It is designed to enable safe

civilian UAV operations by providing pilots

with information on altitude separation

restricted airspace and weather conditions

The project will lay the foundation for safe

secure and effective UAS operations and

integrate into existing airspace to ultimately

allow the expansion of air cargo in Africa It

can be deployed for aid and relief medical

supplies mining oil and gas agriculture and

e-commerce products

It is this project that made Geoffrey

win the top award at the IATA Air Cargo

Innovation Award for 2017

He received the award at the 11th World

Cargo Symposium (WCS) in Abu Dhabi

ldquoWe hope to be able to develop a

Geoffrey NyaGaAstrAl AeriAl solutions

I grew up watching military aircrafts fly above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and small aircrafts taking off and landing from Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody from my extended family attend college or anyone in our village working in aviation I was always determined to pursue my dreams

rejI joHn

Profile

Sanjeev Gadhia Astral Aviation

Drone technology has strong potential to boost the continentrsquos air connectivity and deliver goods and services to remote regions and more critical lifesaving products to those in need

pathway that will encourage regulators

operators and manufacturers to come

together and pave the way forward

for safe and efficient UAS use in the

continentrdquo says Geoffrey

Sanjeev Gadhia the founder and

CEO of Astral Aviation who presented

the project on behalf of Geoffrey was

delighted to have been recognized

for the project ldquoDrone technology has

strong potential to boost the continentrsquos

air connectivity and deliver goods and

services to remote regions and more

critical lifesaving products to those in

needrdquo says Gadhia

Astral Aerialrsquos project seeks to lay the

It is great to see a developing nation company helping to drive the innovation that is needed throughout the global air cargo industry

Glyn Hughes iAtA

foundation for safe secure and effective

UAS operations and integration into

existing airspace to ultimately allow the

expansion of air cargo in Africa

ldquoIt is great to see a developing nation

company helping to drive the innovation

that is needed throughout the global air

cargo industryrdquo says Glyn Hughes IATArsquos

Global Head of Cargo

Geoffrey is still overwhelmed by the

warm reception he received from IATA

delegates and the acceptance of his

project ldquoI was also impressed with the

industry-wide drive to use new

technologies and innovation to improve

customer experience This united voice

by the industry towards adopting

innovation gave me hope that the cargo

industry would be attractive to young

talent wanting to join the aviation

industryrdquo he adds

UTM CONCEPT

LEVEL 1 1500ft

LEVEL 2 4000 ft

LEVEL 3 8000 ft

LEVEL 4 15000 ft

Medical Supplies Precison Agriculture and crop spraying

Mining

Wind Turbine inspections

Geofence

Power lines and Telecommunications

Emmergency Response

oil and gas

Pipeline inspections Wildlife

Sport and recreational

Surveillance Mapping Security

CARGO DRONESLarge Payload Long Range

General Aviation

Commercial Jets and Airliners

Flyox cargo drone developed by Astral Aerial Solutions

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 13

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14 APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14

rePort | air carGo africa

Bigger betterstrongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

teAM StAt trAde tIMeS

With massive

participation

from industry

stakeholders and

leaders at the fourth edition of

Air Cargo Africa the three-day

conference-cum-exhibition

was a resounding success To

unearth the growth potential of

the African continent the global

air cargo community converged

at the Air Cargo Africa 2017 at

the Emperors Palace in City of

Ekurhuleni Johannesburg from

February 21-23

The event under the theme

ldquoAir freight in Africa Building

tomorrowrsquos market todayrdquo was

inaugurated by the guest of

honour Dr Ismail Vadi Gauteng

Member of Executive Council

for Roads and Transport and Dr

N Xhakaza Member of Mayoral

Committee Finance and

Economic Development City

if Ekurhuleni along with Tleli

Makhetha General Manager

South African Airways and RK

Patra Group Editor-in Chief

STAT Media Group

Welcoming the delegates

to the fourth edition of Air

Cargo Africa RK Patra Group

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15

Editor-in Chief STAT Media

Group spoke about the

revolutionary changes that

the aviation industry is going

through where drones and

unmanned aerial vehicles are

being employed to deliver

cargo and Hyperloop is a

proposed new way to move

people and freight at airline

speeds for the price of a bus

ticket Emphasizing on the

importance of cooperation

he said ldquoAt Air Cargo Africa

through the deliberations in the

next three days we intend to

become a facilitator for greater

cooperation and collaborations

to enhance trade across

bordersrdquo and thus set the ball

rolling for the proceedings over

the next three days

Making his inaugural

address Dr Ismail Vadi pointed

out that significant innovations

are compelling people to

ldquorethink the way they live

interact transport domestically

and internationallyrdquo They are

influencing people to rethink

about all the ldquowell established

norms and practicesrdquo

Musa Zwane CEO (Acting)

South African Airways in his

keynote address said ldquoFor

South African Airways the

air cargo is an important and

significant part of businessrdquo

He goes on to add ldquoWe are

singularly proud that our

country is playing host to this

event which seeks to highlight

and enhance the development

of the air cargo and the

opportunities in the African

region We are also excited

that for the first time this year

shippers and forwarders are

participating fully in the event

to both exhibit and deliberaterdquo

IMPortAnt tALKIng PoIntSPanel discussions over the

three days touched upon

topics ranging from unlocking

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

to dealing with overcapacity

and declining yields in a volatile

market to understanding trade

agreements in the African

context and bringing to the fore

innovations in cargo delivery

The first panel of the day

saw the likes of Glyn Hughes

Global Head of Cargo IATA

Graham Perkins Vice President

Sales and Marketing (EMEIA)

Atlas Air Inc Barry D Nassberg

Group Chief Operating Officer

Worldwide Flight Services

Rudolf Steiner Senior Vice

President Cargo Global

Accounts amp Commercial

Swissport International

Rainer Mueller Vice President

Commercial Saudia Cargo and

Jan de Vegt Chief Operating

Officer Kenya Airways discuss

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Mueller highlighted that

even though the infrastructure

is somewhat in place when it

comes to handling the import

shipments or the export

shipments at the African

airports there is need to

improve the ground transport

ldquoWhat I would be hoping is

we as an industry manage for

setting up an effective ground

transport product in addition

to what we are having as an air

cargo productrdquo

Steiner however said that

investments are being made to

improve the current scenario

ldquoWe invested in brand new

facilities in Africa We have

opted for facilities in Dar es

Salaam and Kenya It is an

absolute must to invest in Good

Distribution Practices (GDP) and

core facilities we have done

that Are we yet there Most

probably not but compared to

two years ago we took a big

step We have to work closer to

the producer in order to further

improve in the logistics chainrdquo

he said

According to Barry D

Nassberg a lot more can be

done and that airports need to

be a willing partner in looking at

how it would develop a policy

where it allows a necessary

investment to happen

Graham Perkins pointed

out that with regards to

the readiness supporting

e-commerce African people

are ready to take this on but

the question is whether Africa

is ready to take it on He said

that custom infrastructure is

a major issue as it does not

support e-commerce ldquoIn many

cases a lot of countries have

customs rules and regulations

that dates back decades

and they are being used

unfortunatelyrdquo he said

Another significant topic

was the Yamoussoukro

Declaration that is most likely to

be implemented by December

2017 It was adopted out of the

recognition that the restrictive

and protectionist intra-African

regulatory regime hampers the

expansion and improvement of

air transport on the continent

Commenting on Africarsquos

Yamoussoukro Declaration and

the debate on opening skies

Jan de Vegt said Africa needs

to take cautious steps and not

rush to open skies outside Africa

ldquoWe have to come to a situation

where Africa has an open sky

within Africa firstrdquo he said

The panel moderated by

Glyn Hughes concluded that

for all countries across Africa

harmonisation is critical

particularly as the continent has

got a growing population and

a young labour force which

would be able to become a

young workforce and then a

young consumer market

In the session on trade

agreements the moderator

Tom Crabtree Regional

Director Airline Market

Analysis Marketing amp Business

Development Boeing

Commercial Airplanes put forth

three important questions

before the panel Are trade

agreements drafted with any

particular mode in mind Can

trade agreements liberalise

market access by themselves

What can we as industry

stakeholders do to make our

voices heard

Crabtree was joined on the

panel by Glyn Hughes global

head of cargo IATA Tleli

Makhetha general manager

South African Airways and

Vladimir Zubkov secretary

general TIACA

Hughes responded to

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 5

Goods amp Services

Tax (GST) for sure

remains one of

the two bold-play

initiatives taken by the reigning

government so far After years

of being entangled in political

knots debating a transparent

and efficient unified tax system

India is soon on its way to

become a clutter-free tax

highway

It (GST) looks on track

Subject to Parliament approval

it looks like the possible date of

implementation of GST is July

1 Finance Minister Arun Jaitley

said after the 11th GST Council

meet concluded

The three enabling GST bills

ndash Central GST Integrated GST

and Compensation to states

top the governmentrsquos agenda

during the second part of the

Budget session of Parliament

which will conclude on April 12

Indiarsquos logistics performance

at its key international

gateways has scaled up

significantly in the last two

years and that was evident

in the World Bankrsquos biennial

measure of international supply

chain efficiency report namely

the Logistics Performance

Index where Indiarsquos ranking

catapulted from 54 in 2014 to

35 in 2016

The introduction of GST

will further give impetus to the

transport and logistics industry

in India While the entire

dynamics of transportation

and logistics will undergo

a sea change once GST is

implemented it will lead to

a leaner and fitter logistics

industry which in turn will

lead to greater efficiencies

Both transport as well as

manufacturing companies

will be able to take better

advantage of the economies

of scale

Lauding the governmentrsquos

move Pirojshaw Sarkari CEO

Mahindra Logistics said ldquoThe

announcement of GST Council

finalising its recommendations

on almost all issues and timely

preparation of IT system

needs to be welcomed In an

endeavour to create awareness

about the new GST led taxation

system we support the

governmentrsquos move to reach-

out to trade and industryrdquo

Budget 2017-18 PuSHeS for InfrAStruCtureReadying the stage for GST

Jaitleyrsquos Budget proposal for

2017-18 laid special focus on

road and infrastructure sector

The Budget allocation for

highways was increased from

Rs 57976 crore in FY2016-17

to Rs 64900 crore in FY2017-

18 while 2000 km of coastal

connectivity roads have been

identified for construction and

development This will ensure

better connectivity with ports

and remote villages The total

length of roads including those

under the Pradhan Mantri Gram

Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) built

from 2014-15 till the current

year is about 140000 km

which is significantly higher

than previous three years

With an eye on improved

logistics across the country

in the future the finance

minister said ldquoAn effective

multi-modal logistics and

transport sector will make our

economy more competitive

A specific programme for

development of multi-modal

logistics parks together

with multi-modal transport

facilities will be drawn up and

implementedrdquo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom6

AdvAntAge for 3PL ProvIderSImplementation of GST will

ensure that the nascent 3PL

further embeds itself in the

logistics space Market research

agency Novonous in its

recent report estimates that

3PL logistics market in India is

expected to be worth $30189

billion by 2020 By 2020 Indian

logistics market is expected to

grow at a CAGR of 1217 percent

primarily driven by the growth in

the manufacturing retail FMCG

and e-commerce sectors This

growth rate is also based on

the expectation of GST being

implemented and the logistics

companies can optimise their

operations to reduce cost and

increase their margins

Further it is the

implementation of the GST that

would increase productivity

and raise efficiency levels in

the logistics sector and the

economy as a whole According

to various industry estimates

freight times will come down

by 30-40 percent and logistics

costs are expected to reduce by

20-30 percent

Once GST is implemented

instead of maintaining smaller

warehouses in each and

every state the companies

will be setting up lesser and

bigger warehouses and can

follow hub and scope model

for freight movement from

warehouses to manufacturing

plants distributors and retailers

ldquoWith GST in place there

will be consolidation of

warehouses thus reducing the

time lost between transporting

from one warehouse to

another Shorter supply chain

cycles will entail lesser time

spent on unnecessary activities

like paperwork material

scrutiny at checkpoints

compliance with multiple

regulations etc This will make

it smoother for transport

companies as they will be

able to transport goods with

lesser stoppages and breaks in

Pho

to G

reyO

ran

ge

Model of Indian Logistics Industry post gSt India becomes one big market there will be fewer

and larger warehouses

GST will result in larger trucks on road while the overall number of vehicles will go down The new tax will result in greater adoption of a hub-and-spoke model in segments such as warehousing cold chain container freight stations and inland container depots

GST will also bring in scale to logistics companies as there will be a lot of savings stoppage of wastage and lower delays

These above changes will lead to greater economies of scale for transport operators and lead to more companies outsourcing their logistics operations

journey Consequently it will

reduce the need for extensive

documentation in inter-state

sales making it a lot easier

to transport goods than it is

currentlyrdquo Allcargo Logistics

posted on its blog

Therefore there lies a bigger

opportunity for the 3PL service

providers who can manage

these bigger routes and deliver

accurately and efficiently

The Indian logistics industry

constitutes around 14 percent

of the GDP which is greater

than the other developing

nations The 3PL logistics firms

are evolving from traditional

service delivery systems

to highly integrated and

technically equipped service

providers striving to meet the

service demands GST provides

them with ample opportunity

to invest and expand the 3PL

base in India

According to a report

by CARE Ratings post GST

Cover story | GST

implementation the 3PLs would

have to restructure its assets

and realign its operations in line

with changes in the operations

of its customers in the new

scenario Currently 3PLs have

warehouses located near major

distribution centers of its key

clients (different industries)

irrespective of its geographic

disadvantage mainly to avoid

interstate taxes However

post GST implementation

3PLs are expected to build

integrated warehouses at

logistic suitable locations

So accordingly their assets

would need to be restructured

to accommodate the long

distance consignments which

will occur with this scenario of

free movement of goods across

the country The consumer

durables sector is expected to

witness maximum drop in the

logistics costs as percentage of

total sales as their warehouses

are built at different states to

avoid interstate tax

The central taxes which will

be subsumed into the GST are

Central Excise duty Additional

Excise duty Service tax

Countervailing duty and Special

Additional duty of Customs

Also the state taxes which will

be subsumed by GST are Sales

tax Entertainment tax Central

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 7

Salex tax Octroi and Entry tax

Purchase tax Luxury tax and

Taxes on lottery betting and

gambling GST will be collected

at every stage of sale or

purchase of goods or services

based on input tax credit

method This simplification of

the taxation system would make

the inter-state transportation of

goods more efficient

IMPACt on SuPPLy CHAIn MAnAgeMentThe structure of the supply

chain is influenced by

differential taxes based on

geographical location By

eliminating multiple state taxes

the logistics companies are

encouraged to consolidate

their warehouses instead of

maintaining one in each state

to avoid central tax

This in effect brings the

overall cost of the product

down as the inventory cost

and inventory carrying cost is

down This directly affects the

final cost of the product bring

the selling price down The

cost saved by the companies

as a result of GST can be used

to invest further to improve

serviceability

One important highlight

that GSTrsquos implementation

will do is to reduce the time

taken at various check posts

while transporting goods

This in turn will reduce costs

for customers and logistics

companies making the latter

more efficient and profitable

Presently trucks are idle for

about 40 per cent of the total

travel time due to Central Sales

TaxOctroi payment

GST has the potential to

accelerate growth in the logistics

industry While industry pundits

still feel that many contentious

issues remain such as the clear

definition of supply supply

chain management through

warehouse engineering credit

allowance during the transition

phase etc there is general

consensus to welcome this new

tax regime

With GSTrsquos imminent

implementation the logistics

industry should start exploring

different supply chain models

with their clients and at the same

time develop a completely

synchronised ERP accounting

system to support inventory

supply management as required

under the GST regime

Nevertheless GST is still the

change the logistics industry is

eagerly awaiting as overall the

positive impact of GST far

outweighs the disadvantages for

this industry

Benefits for logistics industry post gSt implementation

Pre gSt PoSt gSt

Interstate tax burden

Currently each of Indiarsquos 29 states taxes goods that move across their borders at different rates apart from that Corporate state tax of 2 is levied for inter-state goods transfer

Not applicable Uniform taxation and no varying tax structures would be allowed across states

Nature of the industry

Current interstate taxation has resulted in a large number of unorganized players in this industry Resulting in fragmented industry

With the introduction of GST there is likely to be major consoli-dation in the industry It could see the emergence of major large players who can span the entire logistics chain

Logistic time Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Cost The existing interstate taxation system has forced the companies to create and maintain warehouses in each state Currently there are around 20-30 warehouses per company one in every state in addition to this 20-30 Carry amp Forwarding agents per state making the supply chain longer and inef-ficient

GST tax will be levied on transportation of goods and full credit will be available on interstate transactions Logistic costs are expected to be decreased by 15-200 of sales on account of optimization of warehouses leading to lower inventory costs which are set up across states to avoid paying 2 corporate sales tax and phasing out of interstate sales tax There is immense scope for optimization of costs

Sou

rce

Car

e Ra

ting

s

Critical business implications post gSt implementationSupply Chain reengineeringMany service providers have to revamp their supply chains realign their warehouses and logistics networks This gives tremendous opportunity to 3PL and 4PL logistics providers

transportationRe-organised manufacturing plants and warehouses would reduce the primary freight charges as they are located close to each other irrespective of which state they are in However secondary freight may increase because of the fewer warehouses

Consolidation and outsourcingWith the increase in the availability of organized and efficient players there is a possibility of consolidation Also this leads to the outsourcing of their logistics operations to logistics service providers

Skill set upgradation and service levelsThe need for optimally skilled and technically qualified workforce is likely to become a challenge Hence to cater to this need supply of skillful workforce should improve which in turn improves the service level of the company in its operations and meet the customer demands

AutomationBecause of the fewer warehouses the warehouses can be ramped up and equipped with state of the art technology to facilitate long term benefits Latest warehouse management systems (WMS) and modern robotics can be used for the effective and efficient warehouse management

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

India to surpass China incargo volumesWith the implementation of Vision 2025 Ethiopian Airlines is aiming to be the leading aviation company in the region It has also added a feather to its cap by completing 45 years of service to Indiarsquos business capital Mumbai The milestone was celebrated by adding the fifth cargo destination - Ahmedabad to its cargo network tadesse tilahun Regional Director India Sub Continent Ethiopian Airlines expressed optimism about Indian market On a tecircte-agrave-tecircte with rashmi Pradhan he vividly painted the strategy for India

interview | TadeSSe Tilahun

elaborate on the vision 2025 of

ethiopian Airlines

According to Ethiopiarsquos 15-year strategic

plan named Vision 2025 we aim to

become a leading and competitive

aviation group in Africa with seven

business centers Ethiopian Domestic and

Regional Airline Ethiopian International

Passenger Airline Ethiopian Cargo

Ethiopian MRO Ethiopian Aviation

Academy Ethiopian In-flight Catering

Services and Ethiopian Ground Service

Ethiopian is a multi-award winning airline

registering an average growth of 25

percent in the past seven years In fact

we have achieved most of the targets set

in Vision 2025 much in advance

tell us about the journey so far

between India and ethiopia

India is a growing aviation market and

very strategic for an airline like Ethiopian

Airlines The carrier started operations

from Delhi way back in 1960s However

we decided to terminate that service

and later in 1971 Ethiopian Airlines made

its debut flight to Mumbai one of its

oldest destinations in Asia Since then

we increased our airlift to 28 scheduled

weekly flights to both Mumbai and

New Delhi The 45 years of uninterrupted

service to Mumbai was a successful

journey but not a smooth ride There

were many challenges (like operational

cost political unrest in Africa etc) From

Mumbai we started with three flights a

day and then increased the frequency

to five flights Earlier it was a turnaround

flight at Bangkok As we witnessed

increase in passenger flow we started a

dedicated flight to Mumbai

How was the performance of

ethiopian Airlines last year

In the past three years we have made a

significant expansion in India Now we

have double daily flights from Mumbai and

New Delhi In terms of passenger traffic

we have registered double digit growth

We witnessed 15 percent year-on-year

growth from Mumbai and 10 percent

growth from New Delhi We have plans

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

EXCELLENCE IN MUMBAI

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 9

to expand our operations in India both in

passenger and cargo We are looking at

starting passenger service to a South India

destination (probably Chennai) this year

What prompted the company to

add the fifth cargo destination from

India

Ethiopian Airlines is the largest cargo

operator in Africa We already have

dedicated cargo operations from four

Indian cities namely Mumbai Delhi

Chennai and Bengaluru On March 28 we

added the fifth cargo gateway to India

Ahmedabad to our global cargo network

Ahmedabad Indiarsquos second oldest

stock exchange and largest producer of

cotton is a fast emerging industrial hub

Right now a good volume of shipment

is trucked from Ahmedabad to Mumbai

and then lifted through Mumbai airport

One more advantage we see is not many

carriers have dedicated freight service

from Ahmedabad

While operating in the major trade

lanes between Africa Europe Middle East

and Asia our cargo network is efficiently

linking the Indian sub-continent and

Africa farther with China and Hong

Kong providing the Indian market with

minimum weekly import capacity of

240 tonnes I believe our new services

to Ahmedabad will further strengthen

the existing trade and commercial ties

between the two fastest growing regions

of the world

Quantify the growth of cargo

volumes from India

Although the exports from India to Africa

have declined we have witnessed seven

percent year-on-year growth from India

in terms of cargo volumes Ethiopian

lifted an average of 1500 tonnes a

month from Mumbai Delhi was around

300 tonnes a month Chennai was 200-

250 tonnes a month whereas Bengaluru

was 100-150 tonnes a month We have

a dedicated freighter four times a week

from Mumbai twice a week each from

Chennai and Delhi and once a week from

Ahmedabad and Bengaluru

We are looking at increasing capacity

from Mumbai and upgrade from B787 to

B777 which will increase the capacity by 50

seats a day Also we plan to upgrade B767

to B787 that will further add 50 seats a day

As far Delhi is concerned we will upgrade

B737 to B767 which will give additional 160

seats per day

What is the target set for India

We would be looking at increasing the

number of destinations by adding more

Indian cities to our network Furthermore

we are looking at increasing the operational

frequency to all the existing airports

viz Chennai Mumbai New Delhi and

Bengaluru The wide range of experience in

operating in Africa Ethiopian would like to

capitalise on the same and widen our area

by more focus on lifting pharmaceuticals

and perishables

A state of the art warehouse is being built

at Addis Ababa airport with a capacity of

600 million tonnes per year in phase I and

will be ramped up to 600 million tonnes

in second phase Of the total capacity

40 percent will be dedicated to

perishables That means after the

completion of the said cargo

hub the capacity will touch

12 million tonnes We are

also looking at deploying

wide body aircraft in place of

narrow body wherever we

see an increase in demand

going forward what is

the expectation of Indian

cargo market

India is a major market for

Ethiopian network It is one of

the top five markets being US

at the top followed by China and

then India and UAE India is a

key market for us and

we have witnessed

continuous

passenger and

cargo growth

from India

Of the Brazil Russia India and China (BRIC)

nations India is the fastest growing country

Most of the African countries are importing

either from India or China It will not be

too far when India will overtake China in

capacity We expect the increase in export

volumes from India

Ethiopian is a Star Alliance member like

the national carrier of India Air India This

gives an advantage to both the airlines and

helps to exchange good volumes of

business We have a codeshare agreement

with Air India and this helps Air India to

reach out to more destinations in Africa

and Ethiopian to reach out to number of

destinations in India

interview | Paul J Kocheril

The first green-field airport in India built under the public-private partnership Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) registered a 178 percent growth in passenger traffic and 156 percent in cargo volumes in 2016 As the volume handled by the airport was on the rise recently a new international terminal was put into operations Over the last two decades Cochin Airport has become the hub of Middle East traffic (both passenger and cargo)

A civil engineer by profession Paul j Kocheril he was one of the first recruits at CIAL in 1994 Kocheril was instrumental in the construction of CIAL For the past 16 years he has been associated with the air cargo complex As the Deputy General Manager - Cargo Cochin International Airport Kocheril speaks to rashmi Pradhan on the growth of traffic and performance of CIAL

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom10

CIALThe new cargo hub

What are the key features of Cochin International

Airport

This is the first airport in the country built under

public-private partnership model and perhaps the first

airport in the world fully operated on solar power

Since its nception in 1999 CIAL has been trying to

integrate local and international technologies to

enhance effective operations We donrsquot compromise

on standards and always adhere to the inclusive

business model which encompass habitat around

when implementing infrastructure expansion

CIAL cargo facility has nearly 200000

square feet area (office and warehouse)

Of which nearly 132000 is dedicated for

warehouse To offer superior cargo services

to airlines forwarding agents shippers and

consignees we stick to the concept of fine

tuning our procedures to meet the ever-

changing demands and challenges of the

constantly evolving air cargo industry

elaborate on the performance of CIAL

in 2016

The total passenger traffic through the

airport in 2016 stood at 8736061 Of which

3764640 were domestic and 4971421

were international passengers In the cargo

front last year was a good year for CIAL

The cargo movement grew in double digit

registering a growth of 156 percent The

volume grew to 8533910 tonnes in 2016 as

against 7384920 tonnes in 2015 Of the total

cargo moved through the airport perishable

cargo share was 58261 tonnes

CIAL can easily accommodate long-haul

direct and non-stop internationaldomestic

crafts The biggest advantage CIAL has is

that it is well connected by road and rail

and rail network The NH 47 is connected

to CIAL by a four-kilometre four-lane road

The railway line cuts across the CIAL land

What is in the pipeline on the cargo

front

There is a full-fledged expansion plan in

place for cargo infrastructure expansion

As part of our vision we are in the process

of setting up a separate fully automated

new import and export section This facility

will have all the modern material handling

equipment and facilities The new import

warehouse will have a separate area for

courier baggage and commercial cargo In

addition to this the administrative offices

for customs and other related agencies also

will be integrated into the new premises

give details of the upcoming cargo

village concept

50 Acres has been earmarked for the cargo

village Once completed the cargo village

will offer separate sections for marine

products couriers express cargo valuables

and vulnerable cargo The logistic centre

along with the multi-modular operation of

the sea to air and air to sea transhipment

will be another attraction focusing on the

movements in Vallarpadam International

Container Terminal at Cochin Port

Also there are separate areas dedicated

to the storage and handling of domestic

(inbound outbound cargo including

courier) and international cargo including

the transhipment cargo

The entire International air cargo centre is

designated as a Customs Bonded area

It is equipped with the state of the art

automation tools and computers that

control the cargo terminals

We are also planning a separate import

warehouse which will be having separate

facilities for handling courier passenger

baggage and commercial cargo It will

also include administrative offices for

government agencies like customs PQ

PHO and other agencies associated with

cargo clearance

How do you ensure the smooth

functioning of cargo movement at

the airport

CIAL is the sole cargo handling agency

for all carrier operating from Cochin

International Airport Right from the

acceptance of cargo to the warehouse

to customs examination security

clearance stuffing documentation

including manifestation are all handled

by CIAL Since we are following a single

shop concept in cargo handling there

is practically very less interference and

coordination issues

What according to you makes Cochin

Airport the first choice of cargo

carriers

The addition of airline services to Cochin

Airport every year has led to increase in

passenger and cargo capacity Since it

started its operations CIAL has grown as the

hub of Middle East cargo traffic in South

India The accessibility the flying time etc

are the factors that determine the cargo

growth (especially fruits and vegetables to

the Middle East) of CIAL As over 80 percent

of export cargo at CIAL are perishables The

facilities like the centre for perishable cargo

a temperature controlled warehouse

exclusively for handling perishable has

fuelled the growth The airport adheres to

low-cost model with no compromise on the

quality of infrastructure and service

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 11

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom12

Take offThe perfect

Heres a story of a boy who was fascinated by aeroplanes in his childhood in a remote Kenyan village and pursued his dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer Last month Geoffrey Nyaga made his first plane journey of his life to Abu Dhabi as one of the five finalists of the IATA Air Cargo Innovation Awards He returned home with $20000 prize money and assurances of a promising future in the aviation industry

Geoffrey Nyaga is 25 years old He

is from Likii a small village on

the slopes of Mount Kenya near

Nanyuki town which is about

200km from Nairobi the capital city He

lives with his parents and his younger sister

His father owns a small retail shop while his

mother assists in running the shop He says

it was ldquojust enough to provide for our daily

basic needsrdquo

ldquoFrom as early as I can remember I have

always been fascinated by technology

specifically aeroplanesrdquo Geoffrey tells me

as he gets himself wired for the first ever

media interview of his life inside the majestic

National Exhibition Centre in Abu Dhabi

ldquoI grew up watching military aircrafts fly

above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and

small aircrafts taking off and landing from

Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody

from my extended family attend college or

anyone in our village working in aviation

I was always determined to pursue my

dreamsrdquo he adds

It is the fascination for technology

combined with his determination that led

him to pursue his dream of completing his

studies in Aeronautical Engineering from

the Technical University of Kenya With a

first class honour Geoffrey graduated in

December 2016 and immediately after he

began his first job at Astral Aerial Solutions

(AES) a subsidiary of Astral Aviation a

dedicated cargo airline with a strong African

footprint His first project was to build a UTM

(UAV Traffic Management) concept that

will safely manage UAS (Unmanned Aerial

System) traffic and to operate Flyox the

indigenously made cargo drone

Flyox has a payload capability of up to

2000kg 1200 km range and flight time of up

to 26 hours It can land in unpaved airstrips

and on water It is designed to enable safe

civilian UAV operations by providing pilots

with information on altitude separation

restricted airspace and weather conditions

The project will lay the foundation for safe

secure and effective UAS operations and

integrate into existing airspace to ultimately

allow the expansion of air cargo in Africa It

can be deployed for aid and relief medical

supplies mining oil and gas agriculture and

e-commerce products

It is this project that made Geoffrey

win the top award at the IATA Air Cargo

Innovation Award for 2017

He received the award at the 11th World

Cargo Symposium (WCS) in Abu Dhabi

ldquoWe hope to be able to develop a

Geoffrey NyaGaAstrAl AeriAl solutions

I grew up watching military aircrafts fly above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and small aircrafts taking off and landing from Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody from my extended family attend college or anyone in our village working in aviation I was always determined to pursue my dreams

rejI joHn

Profile

Sanjeev Gadhia Astral Aviation

Drone technology has strong potential to boost the continentrsquos air connectivity and deliver goods and services to remote regions and more critical lifesaving products to those in need

pathway that will encourage regulators

operators and manufacturers to come

together and pave the way forward

for safe and efficient UAS use in the

continentrdquo says Geoffrey

Sanjeev Gadhia the founder and

CEO of Astral Aviation who presented

the project on behalf of Geoffrey was

delighted to have been recognized

for the project ldquoDrone technology has

strong potential to boost the continentrsquos

air connectivity and deliver goods and

services to remote regions and more

critical lifesaving products to those in

needrdquo says Gadhia

Astral Aerialrsquos project seeks to lay the

It is great to see a developing nation company helping to drive the innovation that is needed throughout the global air cargo industry

Glyn Hughes iAtA

foundation for safe secure and effective

UAS operations and integration into

existing airspace to ultimately allow the

expansion of air cargo in Africa

ldquoIt is great to see a developing nation

company helping to drive the innovation

that is needed throughout the global air

cargo industryrdquo says Glyn Hughes IATArsquos

Global Head of Cargo

Geoffrey is still overwhelmed by the

warm reception he received from IATA

delegates and the acceptance of his

project ldquoI was also impressed with the

industry-wide drive to use new

technologies and innovation to improve

customer experience This united voice

by the industry towards adopting

innovation gave me hope that the cargo

industry would be attractive to young

talent wanting to join the aviation

industryrdquo he adds

UTM CONCEPT

LEVEL 1 1500ft

LEVEL 2 4000 ft

LEVEL 3 8000 ft

LEVEL 4 15000 ft

Medical Supplies Precison Agriculture and crop spraying

Mining

Wind Turbine inspections

Geofence

Power lines and Telecommunications

Emmergency Response

oil and gas

Pipeline inspections Wildlife

Sport and recreational

Surveillance Mapping Security

CARGO DRONESLarge Payload Long Range

General Aviation

Commercial Jets and Airliners

Flyox cargo drone developed by Astral Aerial Solutions

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 13

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14 APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14

rePort | air carGo africa

Bigger betterstrongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

teAM StAt trAde tIMeS

With massive

participation

from industry

stakeholders and

leaders at the fourth edition of

Air Cargo Africa the three-day

conference-cum-exhibition

was a resounding success To

unearth the growth potential of

the African continent the global

air cargo community converged

at the Air Cargo Africa 2017 at

the Emperors Palace in City of

Ekurhuleni Johannesburg from

February 21-23

The event under the theme

ldquoAir freight in Africa Building

tomorrowrsquos market todayrdquo was

inaugurated by the guest of

honour Dr Ismail Vadi Gauteng

Member of Executive Council

for Roads and Transport and Dr

N Xhakaza Member of Mayoral

Committee Finance and

Economic Development City

if Ekurhuleni along with Tleli

Makhetha General Manager

South African Airways and RK

Patra Group Editor-in Chief

STAT Media Group

Welcoming the delegates

to the fourth edition of Air

Cargo Africa RK Patra Group

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15

Editor-in Chief STAT Media

Group spoke about the

revolutionary changes that

the aviation industry is going

through where drones and

unmanned aerial vehicles are

being employed to deliver

cargo and Hyperloop is a

proposed new way to move

people and freight at airline

speeds for the price of a bus

ticket Emphasizing on the

importance of cooperation

he said ldquoAt Air Cargo Africa

through the deliberations in the

next three days we intend to

become a facilitator for greater

cooperation and collaborations

to enhance trade across

bordersrdquo and thus set the ball

rolling for the proceedings over

the next three days

Making his inaugural

address Dr Ismail Vadi pointed

out that significant innovations

are compelling people to

ldquorethink the way they live

interact transport domestically

and internationallyrdquo They are

influencing people to rethink

about all the ldquowell established

norms and practicesrdquo

Musa Zwane CEO (Acting)

South African Airways in his

keynote address said ldquoFor

South African Airways the

air cargo is an important and

significant part of businessrdquo

He goes on to add ldquoWe are

singularly proud that our

country is playing host to this

event which seeks to highlight

and enhance the development

of the air cargo and the

opportunities in the African

region We are also excited

that for the first time this year

shippers and forwarders are

participating fully in the event

to both exhibit and deliberaterdquo

IMPortAnt tALKIng PoIntSPanel discussions over the

three days touched upon

topics ranging from unlocking

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

to dealing with overcapacity

and declining yields in a volatile

market to understanding trade

agreements in the African

context and bringing to the fore

innovations in cargo delivery

The first panel of the day

saw the likes of Glyn Hughes

Global Head of Cargo IATA

Graham Perkins Vice President

Sales and Marketing (EMEIA)

Atlas Air Inc Barry D Nassberg

Group Chief Operating Officer

Worldwide Flight Services

Rudolf Steiner Senior Vice

President Cargo Global

Accounts amp Commercial

Swissport International

Rainer Mueller Vice President

Commercial Saudia Cargo and

Jan de Vegt Chief Operating

Officer Kenya Airways discuss

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Mueller highlighted that

even though the infrastructure

is somewhat in place when it

comes to handling the import

shipments or the export

shipments at the African

airports there is need to

improve the ground transport

ldquoWhat I would be hoping is

we as an industry manage for

setting up an effective ground

transport product in addition

to what we are having as an air

cargo productrdquo

Steiner however said that

investments are being made to

improve the current scenario

ldquoWe invested in brand new

facilities in Africa We have

opted for facilities in Dar es

Salaam and Kenya It is an

absolute must to invest in Good

Distribution Practices (GDP) and

core facilities we have done

that Are we yet there Most

probably not but compared to

two years ago we took a big

step We have to work closer to

the producer in order to further

improve in the logistics chainrdquo

he said

According to Barry D

Nassberg a lot more can be

done and that airports need to

be a willing partner in looking at

how it would develop a policy

where it allows a necessary

investment to happen

Graham Perkins pointed

out that with regards to

the readiness supporting

e-commerce African people

are ready to take this on but

the question is whether Africa

is ready to take it on He said

that custom infrastructure is

a major issue as it does not

support e-commerce ldquoIn many

cases a lot of countries have

customs rules and regulations

that dates back decades

and they are being used

unfortunatelyrdquo he said

Another significant topic

was the Yamoussoukro

Declaration that is most likely to

be implemented by December

2017 It was adopted out of the

recognition that the restrictive

and protectionist intra-African

regulatory regime hampers the

expansion and improvement of

air transport on the continent

Commenting on Africarsquos

Yamoussoukro Declaration and

the debate on opening skies

Jan de Vegt said Africa needs

to take cautious steps and not

rush to open skies outside Africa

ldquoWe have to come to a situation

where Africa has an open sky

within Africa firstrdquo he said

The panel moderated by

Glyn Hughes concluded that

for all countries across Africa

harmonisation is critical

particularly as the continent has

got a growing population and

a young labour force which

would be able to become a

young workforce and then a

young consumer market

In the session on trade

agreements the moderator

Tom Crabtree Regional

Director Airline Market

Analysis Marketing amp Business

Development Boeing

Commercial Airplanes put forth

three important questions

before the panel Are trade

agreements drafted with any

particular mode in mind Can

trade agreements liberalise

market access by themselves

What can we as industry

stakeholders do to make our

voices heard

Crabtree was joined on the

panel by Glyn Hughes global

head of cargo IATA Tleli

Makhetha general manager

South African Airways and

Vladimir Zubkov secretary

general TIACA

Hughes responded to

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom6

AdvAntAge for 3PL ProvIderSImplementation of GST will

ensure that the nascent 3PL

further embeds itself in the

logistics space Market research

agency Novonous in its

recent report estimates that

3PL logistics market in India is

expected to be worth $30189

billion by 2020 By 2020 Indian

logistics market is expected to

grow at a CAGR of 1217 percent

primarily driven by the growth in

the manufacturing retail FMCG

and e-commerce sectors This

growth rate is also based on

the expectation of GST being

implemented and the logistics

companies can optimise their

operations to reduce cost and

increase their margins

Further it is the

implementation of the GST that

would increase productivity

and raise efficiency levels in

the logistics sector and the

economy as a whole According

to various industry estimates

freight times will come down

by 30-40 percent and logistics

costs are expected to reduce by

20-30 percent

Once GST is implemented

instead of maintaining smaller

warehouses in each and

every state the companies

will be setting up lesser and

bigger warehouses and can

follow hub and scope model

for freight movement from

warehouses to manufacturing

plants distributors and retailers

ldquoWith GST in place there

will be consolidation of

warehouses thus reducing the

time lost between transporting

from one warehouse to

another Shorter supply chain

cycles will entail lesser time

spent on unnecessary activities

like paperwork material

scrutiny at checkpoints

compliance with multiple

regulations etc This will make

it smoother for transport

companies as they will be

able to transport goods with

lesser stoppages and breaks in

Pho

to G

reyO

ran

ge

Model of Indian Logistics Industry post gSt India becomes one big market there will be fewer

and larger warehouses

GST will result in larger trucks on road while the overall number of vehicles will go down The new tax will result in greater adoption of a hub-and-spoke model in segments such as warehousing cold chain container freight stations and inland container depots

GST will also bring in scale to logistics companies as there will be a lot of savings stoppage of wastage and lower delays

These above changes will lead to greater economies of scale for transport operators and lead to more companies outsourcing their logistics operations

journey Consequently it will

reduce the need for extensive

documentation in inter-state

sales making it a lot easier

to transport goods than it is

currentlyrdquo Allcargo Logistics

posted on its blog

Therefore there lies a bigger

opportunity for the 3PL service

providers who can manage

these bigger routes and deliver

accurately and efficiently

The Indian logistics industry

constitutes around 14 percent

of the GDP which is greater

than the other developing

nations The 3PL logistics firms

are evolving from traditional

service delivery systems

to highly integrated and

technically equipped service

providers striving to meet the

service demands GST provides

them with ample opportunity

to invest and expand the 3PL

base in India

According to a report

by CARE Ratings post GST

Cover story | GST

implementation the 3PLs would

have to restructure its assets

and realign its operations in line

with changes in the operations

of its customers in the new

scenario Currently 3PLs have

warehouses located near major

distribution centers of its key

clients (different industries)

irrespective of its geographic

disadvantage mainly to avoid

interstate taxes However

post GST implementation

3PLs are expected to build

integrated warehouses at

logistic suitable locations

So accordingly their assets

would need to be restructured

to accommodate the long

distance consignments which

will occur with this scenario of

free movement of goods across

the country The consumer

durables sector is expected to

witness maximum drop in the

logistics costs as percentage of

total sales as their warehouses

are built at different states to

avoid interstate tax

The central taxes which will

be subsumed into the GST are

Central Excise duty Additional

Excise duty Service tax

Countervailing duty and Special

Additional duty of Customs

Also the state taxes which will

be subsumed by GST are Sales

tax Entertainment tax Central

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 7

Salex tax Octroi and Entry tax

Purchase tax Luxury tax and

Taxes on lottery betting and

gambling GST will be collected

at every stage of sale or

purchase of goods or services

based on input tax credit

method This simplification of

the taxation system would make

the inter-state transportation of

goods more efficient

IMPACt on SuPPLy CHAIn MAnAgeMentThe structure of the supply

chain is influenced by

differential taxes based on

geographical location By

eliminating multiple state taxes

the logistics companies are

encouraged to consolidate

their warehouses instead of

maintaining one in each state

to avoid central tax

This in effect brings the

overall cost of the product

down as the inventory cost

and inventory carrying cost is

down This directly affects the

final cost of the product bring

the selling price down The

cost saved by the companies

as a result of GST can be used

to invest further to improve

serviceability

One important highlight

that GSTrsquos implementation

will do is to reduce the time

taken at various check posts

while transporting goods

This in turn will reduce costs

for customers and logistics

companies making the latter

more efficient and profitable

Presently trucks are idle for

about 40 per cent of the total

travel time due to Central Sales

TaxOctroi payment

GST has the potential to

accelerate growth in the logistics

industry While industry pundits

still feel that many contentious

issues remain such as the clear

definition of supply supply

chain management through

warehouse engineering credit

allowance during the transition

phase etc there is general

consensus to welcome this new

tax regime

With GSTrsquos imminent

implementation the logistics

industry should start exploring

different supply chain models

with their clients and at the same

time develop a completely

synchronised ERP accounting

system to support inventory

supply management as required

under the GST regime

Nevertheless GST is still the

change the logistics industry is

eagerly awaiting as overall the

positive impact of GST far

outweighs the disadvantages for

this industry

Benefits for logistics industry post gSt implementation

Pre gSt PoSt gSt

Interstate tax burden

Currently each of Indiarsquos 29 states taxes goods that move across their borders at different rates apart from that Corporate state tax of 2 is levied for inter-state goods transfer

Not applicable Uniform taxation and no varying tax structures would be allowed across states

Nature of the industry

Current interstate taxation has resulted in a large number of unorganized players in this industry Resulting in fragmented industry

With the introduction of GST there is likely to be major consoli-dation in the industry It could see the emergence of major large players who can span the entire logistics chain

Logistic time Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Cost The existing interstate taxation system has forced the companies to create and maintain warehouses in each state Currently there are around 20-30 warehouses per company one in every state in addition to this 20-30 Carry amp Forwarding agents per state making the supply chain longer and inef-ficient

GST tax will be levied on transportation of goods and full credit will be available on interstate transactions Logistic costs are expected to be decreased by 15-200 of sales on account of optimization of warehouses leading to lower inventory costs which are set up across states to avoid paying 2 corporate sales tax and phasing out of interstate sales tax There is immense scope for optimization of costs

Sou

rce

Car

e Ra

ting

s

Critical business implications post gSt implementationSupply Chain reengineeringMany service providers have to revamp their supply chains realign their warehouses and logistics networks This gives tremendous opportunity to 3PL and 4PL logistics providers

transportationRe-organised manufacturing plants and warehouses would reduce the primary freight charges as they are located close to each other irrespective of which state they are in However secondary freight may increase because of the fewer warehouses

Consolidation and outsourcingWith the increase in the availability of organized and efficient players there is a possibility of consolidation Also this leads to the outsourcing of their logistics operations to logistics service providers

Skill set upgradation and service levelsThe need for optimally skilled and technically qualified workforce is likely to become a challenge Hence to cater to this need supply of skillful workforce should improve which in turn improves the service level of the company in its operations and meet the customer demands

AutomationBecause of the fewer warehouses the warehouses can be ramped up and equipped with state of the art technology to facilitate long term benefits Latest warehouse management systems (WMS) and modern robotics can be used for the effective and efficient warehouse management

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

India to surpass China incargo volumesWith the implementation of Vision 2025 Ethiopian Airlines is aiming to be the leading aviation company in the region It has also added a feather to its cap by completing 45 years of service to Indiarsquos business capital Mumbai The milestone was celebrated by adding the fifth cargo destination - Ahmedabad to its cargo network tadesse tilahun Regional Director India Sub Continent Ethiopian Airlines expressed optimism about Indian market On a tecircte-agrave-tecircte with rashmi Pradhan he vividly painted the strategy for India

interview | TadeSSe Tilahun

elaborate on the vision 2025 of

ethiopian Airlines

According to Ethiopiarsquos 15-year strategic

plan named Vision 2025 we aim to

become a leading and competitive

aviation group in Africa with seven

business centers Ethiopian Domestic and

Regional Airline Ethiopian International

Passenger Airline Ethiopian Cargo

Ethiopian MRO Ethiopian Aviation

Academy Ethiopian In-flight Catering

Services and Ethiopian Ground Service

Ethiopian is a multi-award winning airline

registering an average growth of 25

percent in the past seven years In fact

we have achieved most of the targets set

in Vision 2025 much in advance

tell us about the journey so far

between India and ethiopia

India is a growing aviation market and

very strategic for an airline like Ethiopian

Airlines The carrier started operations

from Delhi way back in 1960s However

we decided to terminate that service

and later in 1971 Ethiopian Airlines made

its debut flight to Mumbai one of its

oldest destinations in Asia Since then

we increased our airlift to 28 scheduled

weekly flights to both Mumbai and

New Delhi The 45 years of uninterrupted

service to Mumbai was a successful

journey but not a smooth ride There

were many challenges (like operational

cost political unrest in Africa etc) From

Mumbai we started with three flights a

day and then increased the frequency

to five flights Earlier it was a turnaround

flight at Bangkok As we witnessed

increase in passenger flow we started a

dedicated flight to Mumbai

How was the performance of

ethiopian Airlines last year

In the past three years we have made a

significant expansion in India Now we

have double daily flights from Mumbai and

New Delhi In terms of passenger traffic

we have registered double digit growth

We witnessed 15 percent year-on-year

growth from Mumbai and 10 percent

growth from New Delhi We have plans

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

EXCELLENCE IN MUMBAI

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 9

to expand our operations in India both in

passenger and cargo We are looking at

starting passenger service to a South India

destination (probably Chennai) this year

What prompted the company to

add the fifth cargo destination from

India

Ethiopian Airlines is the largest cargo

operator in Africa We already have

dedicated cargo operations from four

Indian cities namely Mumbai Delhi

Chennai and Bengaluru On March 28 we

added the fifth cargo gateway to India

Ahmedabad to our global cargo network

Ahmedabad Indiarsquos second oldest

stock exchange and largest producer of

cotton is a fast emerging industrial hub

Right now a good volume of shipment

is trucked from Ahmedabad to Mumbai

and then lifted through Mumbai airport

One more advantage we see is not many

carriers have dedicated freight service

from Ahmedabad

While operating in the major trade

lanes between Africa Europe Middle East

and Asia our cargo network is efficiently

linking the Indian sub-continent and

Africa farther with China and Hong

Kong providing the Indian market with

minimum weekly import capacity of

240 tonnes I believe our new services

to Ahmedabad will further strengthen

the existing trade and commercial ties

between the two fastest growing regions

of the world

Quantify the growth of cargo

volumes from India

Although the exports from India to Africa

have declined we have witnessed seven

percent year-on-year growth from India

in terms of cargo volumes Ethiopian

lifted an average of 1500 tonnes a

month from Mumbai Delhi was around

300 tonnes a month Chennai was 200-

250 tonnes a month whereas Bengaluru

was 100-150 tonnes a month We have

a dedicated freighter four times a week

from Mumbai twice a week each from

Chennai and Delhi and once a week from

Ahmedabad and Bengaluru

We are looking at increasing capacity

from Mumbai and upgrade from B787 to

B777 which will increase the capacity by 50

seats a day Also we plan to upgrade B767

to B787 that will further add 50 seats a day

As far Delhi is concerned we will upgrade

B737 to B767 which will give additional 160

seats per day

What is the target set for India

We would be looking at increasing the

number of destinations by adding more

Indian cities to our network Furthermore

we are looking at increasing the operational

frequency to all the existing airports

viz Chennai Mumbai New Delhi and

Bengaluru The wide range of experience in

operating in Africa Ethiopian would like to

capitalise on the same and widen our area

by more focus on lifting pharmaceuticals

and perishables

A state of the art warehouse is being built

at Addis Ababa airport with a capacity of

600 million tonnes per year in phase I and

will be ramped up to 600 million tonnes

in second phase Of the total capacity

40 percent will be dedicated to

perishables That means after the

completion of the said cargo

hub the capacity will touch

12 million tonnes We are

also looking at deploying

wide body aircraft in place of

narrow body wherever we

see an increase in demand

going forward what is

the expectation of Indian

cargo market

India is a major market for

Ethiopian network It is one of

the top five markets being US

at the top followed by China and

then India and UAE India is a

key market for us and

we have witnessed

continuous

passenger and

cargo growth

from India

Of the Brazil Russia India and China (BRIC)

nations India is the fastest growing country

Most of the African countries are importing

either from India or China It will not be

too far when India will overtake China in

capacity We expect the increase in export

volumes from India

Ethiopian is a Star Alliance member like

the national carrier of India Air India This

gives an advantage to both the airlines and

helps to exchange good volumes of

business We have a codeshare agreement

with Air India and this helps Air India to

reach out to more destinations in Africa

and Ethiopian to reach out to number of

destinations in India

interview | Paul J Kocheril

The first green-field airport in India built under the public-private partnership Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) registered a 178 percent growth in passenger traffic and 156 percent in cargo volumes in 2016 As the volume handled by the airport was on the rise recently a new international terminal was put into operations Over the last two decades Cochin Airport has become the hub of Middle East traffic (both passenger and cargo)

A civil engineer by profession Paul j Kocheril he was one of the first recruits at CIAL in 1994 Kocheril was instrumental in the construction of CIAL For the past 16 years he has been associated with the air cargo complex As the Deputy General Manager - Cargo Cochin International Airport Kocheril speaks to rashmi Pradhan on the growth of traffic and performance of CIAL

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom10

CIALThe new cargo hub

What are the key features of Cochin International

Airport

This is the first airport in the country built under

public-private partnership model and perhaps the first

airport in the world fully operated on solar power

Since its nception in 1999 CIAL has been trying to

integrate local and international technologies to

enhance effective operations We donrsquot compromise

on standards and always adhere to the inclusive

business model which encompass habitat around

when implementing infrastructure expansion

CIAL cargo facility has nearly 200000

square feet area (office and warehouse)

Of which nearly 132000 is dedicated for

warehouse To offer superior cargo services

to airlines forwarding agents shippers and

consignees we stick to the concept of fine

tuning our procedures to meet the ever-

changing demands and challenges of the

constantly evolving air cargo industry

elaborate on the performance of CIAL

in 2016

The total passenger traffic through the

airport in 2016 stood at 8736061 Of which

3764640 were domestic and 4971421

were international passengers In the cargo

front last year was a good year for CIAL

The cargo movement grew in double digit

registering a growth of 156 percent The

volume grew to 8533910 tonnes in 2016 as

against 7384920 tonnes in 2015 Of the total

cargo moved through the airport perishable

cargo share was 58261 tonnes

CIAL can easily accommodate long-haul

direct and non-stop internationaldomestic

crafts The biggest advantage CIAL has is

that it is well connected by road and rail

and rail network The NH 47 is connected

to CIAL by a four-kilometre four-lane road

The railway line cuts across the CIAL land

What is in the pipeline on the cargo

front

There is a full-fledged expansion plan in

place for cargo infrastructure expansion

As part of our vision we are in the process

of setting up a separate fully automated

new import and export section This facility

will have all the modern material handling

equipment and facilities The new import

warehouse will have a separate area for

courier baggage and commercial cargo In

addition to this the administrative offices

for customs and other related agencies also

will be integrated into the new premises

give details of the upcoming cargo

village concept

50 Acres has been earmarked for the cargo

village Once completed the cargo village

will offer separate sections for marine

products couriers express cargo valuables

and vulnerable cargo The logistic centre

along with the multi-modular operation of

the sea to air and air to sea transhipment

will be another attraction focusing on the

movements in Vallarpadam International

Container Terminal at Cochin Port

Also there are separate areas dedicated

to the storage and handling of domestic

(inbound outbound cargo including

courier) and international cargo including

the transhipment cargo

The entire International air cargo centre is

designated as a Customs Bonded area

It is equipped with the state of the art

automation tools and computers that

control the cargo terminals

We are also planning a separate import

warehouse which will be having separate

facilities for handling courier passenger

baggage and commercial cargo It will

also include administrative offices for

government agencies like customs PQ

PHO and other agencies associated with

cargo clearance

How do you ensure the smooth

functioning of cargo movement at

the airport

CIAL is the sole cargo handling agency

for all carrier operating from Cochin

International Airport Right from the

acceptance of cargo to the warehouse

to customs examination security

clearance stuffing documentation

including manifestation are all handled

by CIAL Since we are following a single

shop concept in cargo handling there

is practically very less interference and

coordination issues

What according to you makes Cochin

Airport the first choice of cargo

carriers

The addition of airline services to Cochin

Airport every year has led to increase in

passenger and cargo capacity Since it

started its operations CIAL has grown as the

hub of Middle East cargo traffic in South

India The accessibility the flying time etc

are the factors that determine the cargo

growth (especially fruits and vegetables to

the Middle East) of CIAL As over 80 percent

of export cargo at CIAL are perishables The

facilities like the centre for perishable cargo

a temperature controlled warehouse

exclusively for handling perishable has

fuelled the growth The airport adheres to

low-cost model with no compromise on the

quality of infrastructure and service

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 11

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom12

Take offThe perfect

Heres a story of a boy who was fascinated by aeroplanes in his childhood in a remote Kenyan village and pursued his dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer Last month Geoffrey Nyaga made his first plane journey of his life to Abu Dhabi as one of the five finalists of the IATA Air Cargo Innovation Awards He returned home with $20000 prize money and assurances of a promising future in the aviation industry

Geoffrey Nyaga is 25 years old He

is from Likii a small village on

the slopes of Mount Kenya near

Nanyuki town which is about

200km from Nairobi the capital city He

lives with his parents and his younger sister

His father owns a small retail shop while his

mother assists in running the shop He says

it was ldquojust enough to provide for our daily

basic needsrdquo

ldquoFrom as early as I can remember I have

always been fascinated by technology

specifically aeroplanesrdquo Geoffrey tells me

as he gets himself wired for the first ever

media interview of his life inside the majestic

National Exhibition Centre in Abu Dhabi

ldquoI grew up watching military aircrafts fly

above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and

small aircrafts taking off and landing from

Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody

from my extended family attend college or

anyone in our village working in aviation

I was always determined to pursue my

dreamsrdquo he adds

It is the fascination for technology

combined with his determination that led

him to pursue his dream of completing his

studies in Aeronautical Engineering from

the Technical University of Kenya With a

first class honour Geoffrey graduated in

December 2016 and immediately after he

began his first job at Astral Aerial Solutions

(AES) a subsidiary of Astral Aviation a

dedicated cargo airline with a strong African

footprint His first project was to build a UTM

(UAV Traffic Management) concept that

will safely manage UAS (Unmanned Aerial

System) traffic and to operate Flyox the

indigenously made cargo drone

Flyox has a payload capability of up to

2000kg 1200 km range and flight time of up

to 26 hours It can land in unpaved airstrips

and on water It is designed to enable safe

civilian UAV operations by providing pilots

with information on altitude separation

restricted airspace and weather conditions

The project will lay the foundation for safe

secure and effective UAS operations and

integrate into existing airspace to ultimately

allow the expansion of air cargo in Africa It

can be deployed for aid and relief medical

supplies mining oil and gas agriculture and

e-commerce products

It is this project that made Geoffrey

win the top award at the IATA Air Cargo

Innovation Award for 2017

He received the award at the 11th World

Cargo Symposium (WCS) in Abu Dhabi

ldquoWe hope to be able to develop a

Geoffrey NyaGaAstrAl AeriAl solutions

I grew up watching military aircrafts fly above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and small aircrafts taking off and landing from Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody from my extended family attend college or anyone in our village working in aviation I was always determined to pursue my dreams

rejI joHn

Profile

Sanjeev Gadhia Astral Aviation

Drone technology has strong potential to boost the continentrsquos air connectivity and deliver goods and services to remote regions and more critical lifesaving products to those in need

pathway that will encourage regulators

operators and manufacturers to come

together and pave the way forward

for safe and efficient UAS use in the

continentrdquo says Geoffrey

Sanjeev Gadhia the founder and

CEO of Astral Aviation who presented

the project on behalf of Geoffrey was

delighted to have been recognized

for the project ldquoDrone technology has

strong potential to boost the continentrsquos

air connectivity and deliver goods and

services to remote regions and more

critical lifesaving products to those in

needrdquo says Gadhia

Astral Aerialrsquos project seeks to lay the

It is great to see a developing nation company helping to drive the innovation that is needed throughout the global air cargo industry

Glyn Hughes iAtA

foundation for safe secure and effective

UAS operations and integration into

existing airspace to ultimately allow the

expansion of air cargo in Africa

ldquoIt is great to see a developing nation

company helping to drive the innovation

that is needed throughout the global air

cargo industryrdquo says Glyn Hughes IATArsquos

Global Head of Cargo

Geoffrey is still overwhelmed by the

warm reception he received from IATA

delegates and the acceptance of his

project ldquoI was also impressed with the

industry-wide drive to use new

technologies and innovation to improve

customer experience This united voice

by the industry towards adopting

innovation gave me hope that the cargo

industry would be attractive to young

talent wanting to join the aviation

industryrdquo he adds

UTM CONCEPT

LEVEL 1 1500ft

LEVEL 2 4000 ft

LEVEL 3 8000 ft

LEVEL 4 15000 ft

Medical Supplies Precison Agriculture and crop spraying

Mining

Wind Turbine inspections

Geofence

Power lines and Telecommunications

Emmergency Response

oil and gas

Pipeline inspections Wildlife

Sport and recreational

Surveillance Mapping Security

CARGO DRONESLarge Payload Long Range

General Aviation

Commercial Jets and Airliners

Flyox cargo drone developed by Astral Aerial Solutions

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 13

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14 APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14

rePort | air carGo africa

Bigger betterstrongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

teAM StAt trAde tIMeS

With massive

participation

from industry

stakeholders and

leaders at the fourth edition of

Air Cargo Africa the three-day

conference-cum-exhibition

was a resounding success To

unearth the growth potential of

the African continent the global

air cargo community converged

at the Air Cargo Africa 2017 at

the Emperors Palace in City of

Ekurhuleni Johannesburg from

February 21-23

The event under the theme

ldquoAir freight in Africa Building

tomorrowrsquos market todayrdquo was

inaugurated by the guest of

honour Dr Ismail Vadi Gauteng

Member of Executive Council

for Roads and Transport and Dr

N Xhakaza Member of Mayoral

Committee Finance and

Economic Development City

if Ekurhuleni along with Tleli

Makhetha General Manager

South African Airways and RK

Patra Group Editor-in Chief

STAT Media Group

Welcoming the delegates

to the fourth edition of Air

Cargo Africa RK Patra Group

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15

Editor-in Chief STAT Media

Group spoke about the

revolutionary changes that

the aviation industry is going

through where drones and

unmanned aerial vehicles are

being employed to deliver

cargo and Hyperloop is a

proposed new way to move

people and freight at airline

speeds for the price of a bus

ticket Emphasizing on the

importance of cooperation

he said ldquoAt Air Cargo Africa

through the deliberations in the

next three days we intend to

become a facilitator for greater

cooperation and collaborations

to enhance trade across

bordersrdquo and thus set the ball

rolling for the proceedings over

the next three days

Making his inaugural

address Dr Ismail Vadi pointed

out that significant innovations

are compelling people to

ldquorethink the way they live

interact transport domestically

and internationallyrdquo They are

influencing people to rethink

about all the ldquowell established

norms and practicesrdquo

Musa Zwane CEO (Acting)

South African Airways in his

keynote address said ldquoFor

South African Airways the

air cargo is an important and

significant part of businessrdquo

He goes on to add ldquoWe are

singularly proud that our

country is playing host to this

event which seeks to highlight

and enhance the development

of the air cargo and the

opportunities in the African

region We are also excited

that for the first time this year

shippers and forwarders are

participating fully in the event

to both exhibit and deliberaterdquo

IMPortAnt tALKIng PoIntSPanel discussions over the

three days touched upon

topics ranging from unlocking

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

to dealing with overcapacity

and declining yields in a volatile

market to understanding trade

agreements in the African

context and bringing to the fore

innovations in cargo delivery

The first panel of the day

saw the likes of Glyn Hughes

Global Head of Cargo IATA

Graham Perkins Vice President

Sales and Marketing (EMEIA)

Atlas Air Inc Barry D Nassberg

Group Chief Operating Officer

Worldwide Flight Services

Rudolf Steiner Senior Vice

President Cargo Global

Accounts amp Commercial

Swissport International

Rainer Mueller Vice President

Commercial Saudia Cargo and

Jan de Vegt Chief Operating

Officer Kenya Airways discuss

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Mueller highlighted that

even though the infrastructure

is somewhat in place when it

comes to handling the import

shipments or the export

shipments at the African

airports there is need to

improve the ground transport

ldquoWhat I would be hoping is

we as an industry manage for

setting up an effective ground

transport product in addition

to what we are having as an air

cargo productrdquo

Steiner however said that

investments are being made to

improve the current scenario

ldquoWe invested in brand new

facilities in Africa We have

opted for facilities in Dar es

Salaam and Kenya It is an

absolute must to invest in Good

Distribution Practices (GDP) and

core facilities we have done

that Are we yet there Most

probably not but compared to

two years ago we took a big

step We have to work closer to

the producer in order to further

improve in the logistics chainrdquo

he said

According to Barry D

Nassberg a lot more can be

done and that airports need to

be a willing partner in looking at

how it would develop a policy

where it allows a necessary

investment to happen

Graham Perkins pointed

out that with regards to

the readiness supporting

e-commerce African people

are ready to take this on but

the question is whether Africa

is ready to take it on He said

that custom infrastructure is

a major issue as it does not

support e-commerce ldquoIn many

cases a lot of countries have

customs rules and regulations

that dates back decades

and they are being used

unfortunatelyrdquo he said

Another significant topic

was the Yamoussoukro

Declaration that is most likely to

be implemented by December

2017 It was adopted out of the

recognition that the restrictive

and protectionist intra-African

regulatory regime hampers the

expansion and improvement of

air transport on the continent

Commenting on Africarsquos

Yamoussoukro Declaration and

the debate on opening skies

Jan de Vegt said Africa needs

to take cautious steps and not

rush to open skies outside Africa

ldquoWe have to come to a situation

where Africa has an open sky

within Africa firstrdquo he said

The panel moderated by

Glyn Hughes concluded that

for all countries across Africa

harmonisation is critical

particularly as the continent has

got a growing population and

a young labour force which

would be able to become a

young workforce and then a

young consumer market

In the session on trade

agreements the moderator

Tom Crabtree Regional

Director Airline Market

Analysis Marketing amp Business

Development Boeing

Commercial Airplanes put forth

three important questions

before the panel Are trade

agreements drafted with any

particular mode in mind Can

trade agreements liberalise

market access by themselves

What can we as industry

stakeholders do to make our

voices heard

Crabtree was joined on the

panel by Glyn Hughes global

head of cargo IATA Tleli

Makhetha general manager

South African Airways and

Vladimir Zubkov secretary

general TIACA

Hughes responded to

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 7

Salex tax Octroi and Entry tax

Purchase tax Luxury tax and

Taxes on lottery betting and

gambling GST will be collected

at every stage of sale or

purchase of goods or services

based on input tax credit

method This simplification of

the taxation system would make

the inter-state transportation of

goods more efficient

IMPACt on SuPPLy CHAIn MAnAgeMentThe structure of the supply

chain is influenced by

differential taxes based on

geographical location By

eliminating multiple state taxes

the logistics companies are

encouraged to consolidate

their warehouses instead of

maintaining one in each state

to avoid central tax

This in effect brings the

overall cost of the product

down as the inventory cost

and inventory carrying cost is

down This directly affects the

final cost of the product bring

the selling price down The

cost saved by the companies

as a result of GST can be used

to invest further to improve

serviceability

One important highlight

that GSTrsquos implementation

will do is to reduce the time

taken at various check posts

while transporting goods

This in turn will reduce costs

for customers and logistics

companies making the latter

more efficient and profitable

Presently trucks are idle for

about 40 per cent of the total

travel time due to Central Sales

TaxOctroi payment

GST has the potential to

accelerate growth in the logistics

industry While industry pundits

still feel that many contentious

issues remain such as the clear

definition of supply supply

chain management through

warehouse engineering credit

allowance during the transition

phase etc there is general

consensus to welcome this new

tax regime

With GSTrsquos imminent

implementation the logistics

industry should start exploring

different supply chain models

with their clients and at the same

time develop a completely

synchronised ERP accounting

system to support inventory

supply management as required

under the GST regime

Nevertheless GST is still the

change the logistics industry is

eagerly awaiting as overall the

positive impact of GST far

outweighs the disadvantages for

this industry

Benefits for logistics industry post gSt implementation

Pre gSt PoSt gSt

Interstate tax burden

Currently each of Indiarsquos 29 states taxes goods that move across their borders at different rates apart from that Corporate state tax of 2 is levied for inter-state goods transfer

Not applicable Uniform taxation and no varying tax structures would be allowed across states

Nature of the industry

Current interstate taxation has resulted in a large number of unorganized players in this industry Resulting in fragmented industry

With the introduction of GST there is likely to be major consoli-dation in the industry It could see the emergence of major large players who can span the entire logistics chain

Logistic time Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Due to trade barriers such as entry taxes local body taxes OCTROI and other hurdles trucks lie idle for 30 to 40 as per industry estimates during their delivery schedule

Cost The existing interstate taxation system has forced the companies to create and maintain warehouses in each state Currently there are around 20-30 warehouses per company one in every state in addition to this 20-30 Carry amp Forwarding agents per state making the supply chain longer and inef-ficient

GST tax will be levied on transportation of goods and full credit will be available on interstate transactions Logistic costs are expected to be decreased by 15-200 of sales on account of optimization of warehouses leading to lower inventory costs which are set up across states to avoid paying 2 corporate sales tax and phasing out of interstate sales tax There is immense scope for optimization of costs

Sou

rce

Car

e Ra

ting

s

Critical business implications post gSt implementationSupply Chain reengineeringMany service providers have to revamp their supply chains realign their warehouses and logistics networks This gives tremendous opportunity to 3PL and 4PL logistics providers

transportationRe-organised manufacturing plants and warehouses would reduce the primary freight charges as they are located close to each other irrespective of which state they are in However secondary freight may increase because of the fewer warehouses

Consolidation and outsourcingWith the increase in the availability of organized and efficient players there is a possibility of consolidation Also this leads to the outsourcing of their logistics operations to logistics service providers

Skill set upgradation and service levelsThe need for optimally skilled and technically qualified workforce is likely to become a challenge Hence to cater to this need supply of skillful workforce should improve which in turn improves the service level of the company in its operations and meet the customer demands

AutomationBecause of the fewer warehouses the warehouses can be ramped up and equipped with state of the art technology to facilitate long term benefits Latest warehouse management systems (WMS) and modern robotics can be used for the effective and efficient warehouse management

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

India to surpass China incargo volumesWith the implementation of Vision 2025 Ethiopian Airlines is aiming to be the leading aviation company in the region It has also added a feather to its cap by completing 45 years of service to Indiarsquos business capital Mumbai The milestone was celebrated by adding the fifth cargo destination - Ahmedabad to its cargo network tadesse tilahun Regional Director India Sub Continent Ethiopian Airlines expressed optimism about Indian market On a tecircte-agrave-tecircte with rashmi Pradhan he vividly painted the strategy for India

interview | TadeSSe Tilahun

elaborate on the vision 2025 of

ethiopian Airlines

According to Ethiopiarsquos 15-year strategic

plan named Vision 2025 we aim to

become a leading and competitive

aviation group in Africa with seven

business centers Ethiopian Domestic and

Regional Airline Ethiopian International

Passenger Airline Ethiopian Cargo

Ethiopian MRO Ethiopian Aviation

Academy Ethiopian In-flight Catering

Services and Ethiopian Ground Service

Ethiopian is a multi-award winning airline

registering an average growth of 25

percent in the past seven years In fact

we have achieved most of the targets set

in Vision 2025 much in advance

tell us about the journey so far

between India and ethiopia

India is a growing aviation market and

very strategic for an airline like Ethiopian

Airlines The carrier started operations

from Delhi way back in 1960s However

we decided to terminate that service

and later in 1971 Ethiopian Airlines made

its debut flight to Mumbai one of its

oldest destinations in Asia Since then

we increased our airlift to 28 scheduled

weekly flights to both Mumbai and

New Delhi The 45 years of uninterrupted

service to Mumbai was a successful

journey but not a smooth ride There

were many challenges (like operational

cost political unrest in Africa etc) From

Mumbai we started with three flights a

day and then increased the frequency

to five flights Earlier it was a turnaround

flight at Bangkok As we witnessed

increase in passenger flow we started a

dedicated flight to Mumbai

How was the performance of

ethiopian Airlines last year

In the past three years we have made a

significant expansion in India Now we

have double daily flights from Mumbai and

New Delhi In terms of passenger traffic

we have registered double digit growth

We witnessed 15 percent year-on-year

growth from Mumbai and 10 percent

growth from New Delhi We have plans

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

EXCELLENCE IN MUMBAI

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 9

to expand our operations in India both in

passenger and cargo We are looking at

starting passenger service to a South India

destination (probably Chennai) this year

What prompted the company to

add the fifth cargo destination from

India

Ethiopian Airlines is the largest cargo

operator in Africa We already have

dedicated cargo operations from four

Indian cities namely Mumbai Delhi

Chennai and Bengaluru On March 28 we

added the fifth cargo gateway to India

Ahmedabad to our global cargo network

Ahmedabad Indiarsquos second oldest

stock exchange and largest producer of

cotton is a fast emerging industrial hub

Right now a good volume of shipment

is trucked from Ahmedabad to Mumbai

and then lifted through Mumbai airport

One more advantage we see is not many

carriers have dedicated freight service

from Ahmedabad

While operating in the major trade

lanes between Africa Europe Middle East

and Asia our cargo network is efficiently

linking the Indian sub-continent and

Africa farther with China and Hong

Kong providing the Indian market with

minimum weekly import capacity of

240 tonnes I believe our new services

to Ahmedabad will further strengthen

the existing trade and commercial ties

between the two fastest growing regions

of the world

Quantify the growth of cargo

volumes from India

Although the exports from India to Africa

have declined we have witnessed seven

percent year-on-year growth from India

in terms of cargo volumes Ethiopian

lifted an average of 1500 tonnes a

month from Mumbai Delhi was around

300 tonnes a month Chennai was 200-

250 tonnes a month whereas Bengaluru

was 100-150 tonnes a month We have

a dedicated freighter four times a week

from Mumbai twice a week each from

Chennai and Delhi and once a week from

Ahmedabad and Bengaluru

We are looking at increasing capacity

from Mumbai and upgrade from B787 to

B777 which will increase the capacity by 50

seats a day Also we plan to upgrade B767

to B787 that will further add 50 seats a day

As far Delhi is concerned we will upgrade

B737 to B767 which will give additional 160

seats per day

What is the target set for India

We would be looking at increasing the

number of destinations by adding more

Indian cities to our network Furthermore

we are looking at increasing the operational

frequency to all the existing airports

viz Chennai Mumbai New Delhi and

Bengaluru The wide range of experience in

operating in Africa Ethiopian would like to

capitalise on the same and widen our area

by more focus on lifting pharmaceuticals

and perishables

A state of the art warehouse is being built

at Addis Ababa airport with a capacity of

600 million tonnes per year in phase I and

will be ramped up to 600 million tonnes

in second phase Of the total capacity

40 percent will be dedicated to

perishables That means after the

completion of the said cargo

hub the capacity will touch

12 million tonnes We are

also looking at deploying

wide body aircraft in place of

narrow body wherever we

see an increase in demand

going forward what is

the expectation of Indian

cargo market

India is a major market for

Ethiopian network It is one of

the top five markets being US

at the top followed by China and

then India and UAE India is a

key market for us and

we have witnessed

continuous

passenger and

cargo growth

from India

Of the Brazil Russia India and China (BRIC)

nations India is the fastest growing country

Most of the African countries are importing

either from India or China It will not be

too far when India will overtake China in

capacity We expect the increase in export

volumes from India

Ethiopian is a Star Alliance member like

the national carrier of India Air India This

gives an advantage to both the airlines and

helps to exchange good volumes of

business We have a codeshare agreement

with Air India and this helps Air India to

reach out to more destinations in Africa

and Ethiopian to reach out to number of

destinations in India

interview | Paul J Kocheril

The first green-field airport in India built under the public-private partnership Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) registered a 178 percent growth in passenger traffic and 156 percent in cargo volumes in 2016 As the volume handled by the airport was on the rise recently a new international terminal was put into operations Over the last two decades Cochin Airport has become the hub of Middle East traffic (both passenger and cargo)

A civil engineer by profession Paul j Kocheril he was one of the first recruits at CIAL in 1994 Kocheril was instrumental in the construction of CIAL For the past 16 years he has been associated with the air cargo complex As the Deputy General Manager - Cargo Cochin International Airport Kocheril speaks to rashmi Pradhan on the growth of traffic and performance of CIAL

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom10

CIALThe new cargo hub

What are the key features of Cochin International

Airport

This is the first airport in the country built under

public-private partnership model and perhaps the first

airport in the world fully operated on solar power

Since its nception in 1999 CIAL has been trying to

integrate local and international technologies to

enhance effective operations We donrsquot compromise

on standards and always adhere to the inclusive

business model which encompass habitat around

when implementing infrastructure expansion

CIAL cargo facility has nearly 200000

square feet area (office and warehouse)

Of which nearly 132000 is dedicated for

warehouse To offer superior cargo services

to airlines forwarding agents shippers and

consignees we stick to the concept of fine

tuning our procedures to meet the ever-

changing demands and challenges of the

constantly evolving air cargo industry

elaborate on the performance of CIAL

in 2016

The total passenger traffic through the

airport in 2016 stood at 8736061 Of which

3764640 were domestic and 4971421

were international passengers In the cargo

front last year was a good year for CIAL

The cargo movement grew in double digit

registering a growth of 156 percent The

volume grew to 8533910 tonnes in 2016 as

against 7384920 tonnes in 2015 Of the total

cargo moved through the airport perishable

cargo share was 58261 tonnes

CIAL can easily accommodate long-haul

direct and non-stop internationaldomestic

crafts The biggest advantage CIAL has is

that it is well connected by road and rail

and rail network The NH 47 is connected

to CIAL by a four-kilometre four-lane road

The railway line cuts across the CIAL land

What is in the pipeline on the cargo

front

There is a full-fledged expansion plan in

place for cargo infrastructure expansion

As part of our vision we are in the process

of setting up a separate fully automated

new import and export section This facility

will have all the modern material handling

equipment and facilities The new import

warehouse will have a separate area for

courier baggage and commercial cargo In

addition to this the administrative offices

for customs and other related agencies also

will be integrated into the new premises

give details of the upcoming cargo

village concept

50 Acres has been earmarked for the cargo

village Once completed the cargo village

will offer separate sections for marine

products couriers express cargo valuables

and vulnerable cargo The logistic centre

along with the multi-modular operation of

the sea to air and air to sea transhipment

will be another attraction focusing on the

movements in Vallarpadam International

Container Terminal at Cochin Port

Also there are separate areas dedicated

to the storage and handling of domestic

(inbound outbound cargo including

courier) and international cargo including

the transhipment cargo

The entire International air cargo centre is

designated as a Customs Bonded area

It is equipped with the state of the art

automation tools and computers that

control the cargo terminals

We are also planning a separate import

warehouse which will be having separate

facilities for handling courier passenger

baggage and commercial cargo It will

also include administrative offices for

government agencies like customs PQ

PHO and other agencies associated with

cargo clearance

How do you ensure the smooth

functioning of cargo movement at

the airport

CIAL is the sole cargo handling agency

for all carrier operating from Cochin

International Airport Right from the

acceptance of cargo to the warehouse

to customs examination security

clearance stuffing documentation

including manifestation are all handled

by CIAL Since we are following a single

shop concept in cargo handling there

is practically very less interference and

coordination issues

What according to you makes Cochin

Airport the first choice of cargo

carriers

The addition of airline services to Cochin

Airport every year has led to increase in

passenger and cargo capacity Since it

started its operations CIAL has grown as the

hub of Middle East cargo traffic in South

India The accessibility the flying time etc

are the factors that determine the cargo

growth (especially fruits and vegetables to

the Middle East) of CIAL As over 80 percent

of export cargo at CIAL are perishables The

facilities like the centre for perishable cargo

a temperature controlled warehouse

exclusively for handling perishable has

fuelled the growth The airport adheres to

low-cost model with no compromise on the

quality of infrastructure and service

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 11

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom12

Take offThe perfect

Heres a story of a boy who was fascinated by aeroplanes in his childhood in a remote Kenyan village and pursued his dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer Last month Geoffrey Nyaga made his first plane journey of his life to Abu Dhabi as one of the five finalists of the IATA Air Cargo Innovation Awards He returned home with $20000 prize money and assurances of a promising future in the aviation industry

Geoffrey Nyaga is 25 years old He

is from Likii a small village on

the slopes of Mount Kenya near

Nanyuki town which is about

200km from Nairobi the capital city He

lives with his parents and his younger sister

His father owns a small retail shop while his

mother assists in running the shop He says

it was ldquojust enough to provide for our daily

basic needsrdquo

ldquoFrom as early as I can remember I have

always been fascinated by technology

specifically aeroplanesrdquo Geoffrey tells me

as he gets himself wired for the first ever

media interview of his life inside the majestic

National Exhibition Centre in Abu Dhabi

ldquoI grew up watching military aircrafts fly

above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and

small aircrafts taking off and landing from

Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody

from my extended family attend college or

anyone in our village working in aviation

I was always determined to pursue my

dreamsrdquo he adds

It is the fascination for technology

combined with his determination that led

him to pursue his dream of completing his

studies in Aeronautical Engineering from

the Technical University of Kenya With a

first class honour Geoffrey graduated in

December 2016 and immediately after he

began his first job at Astral Aerial Solutions

(AES) a subsidiary of Astral Aviation a

dedicated cargo airline with a strong African

footprint His first project was to build a UTM

(UAV Traffic Management) concept that

will safely manage UAS (Unmanned Aerial

System) traffic and to operate Flyox the

indigenously made cargo drone

Flyox has a payload capability of up to

2000kg 1200 km range and flight time of up

to 26 hours It can land in unpaved airstrips

and on water It is designed to enable safe

civilian UAV operations by providing pilots

with information on altitude separation

restricted airspace and weather conditions

The project will lay the foundation for safe

secure and effective UAS operations and

integrate into existing airspace to ultimately

allow the expansion of air cargo in Africa It

can be deployed for aid and relief medical

supplies mining oil and gas agriculture and

e-commerce products

It is this project that made Geoffrey

win the top award at the IATA Air Cargo

Innovation Award for 2017

He received the award at the 11th World

Cargo Symposium (WCS) in Abu Dhabi

ldquoWe hope to be able to develop a

Geoffrey NyaGaAstrAl AeriAl solutions

I grew up watching military aircrafts fly above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and small aircrafts taking off and landing from Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody from my extended family attend college or anyone in our village working in aviation I was always determined to pursue my dreams

rejI joHn

Profile

Sanjeev Gadhia Astral Aviation

Drone technology has strong potential to boost the continentrsquos air connectivity and deliver goods and services to remote regions and more critical lifesaving products to those in need

pathway that will encourage regulators

operators and manufacturers to come

together and pave the way forward

for safe and efficient UAS use in the

continentrdquo says Geoffrey

Sanjeev Gadhia the founder and

CEO of Astral Aviation who presented

the project on behalf of Geoffrey was

delighted to have been recognized

for the project ldquoDrone technology has

strong potential to boost the continentrsquos

air connectivity and deliver goods and

services to remote regions and more

critical lifesaving products to those in

needrdquo says Gadhia

Astral Aerialrsquos project seeks to lay the

It is great to see a developing nation company helping to drive the innovation that is needed throughout the global air cargo industry

Glyn Hughes iAtA

foundation for safe secure and effective

UAS operations and integration into

existing airspace to ultimately allow the

expansion of air cargo in Africa

ldquoIt is great to see a developing nation

company helping to drive the innovation

that is needed throughout the global air

cargo industryrdquo says Glyn Hughes IATArsquos

Global Head of Cargo

Geoffrey is still overwhelmed by the

warm reception he received from IATA

delegates and the acceptance of his

project ldquoI was also impressed with the

industry-wide drive to use new

technologies and innovation to improve

customer experience This united voice

by the industry towards adopting

innovation gave me hope that the cargo

industry would be attractive to young

talent wanting to join the aviation

industryrdquo he adds

UTM CONCEPT

LEVEL 1 1500ft

LEVEL 2 4000 ft

LEVEL 3 8000 ft

LEVEL 4 15000 ft

Medical Supplies Precison Agriculture and crop spraying

Mining

Wind Turbine inspections

Geofence

Power lines and Telecommunications

Emmergency Response

oil and gas

Pipeline inspections Wildlife

Sport and recreational

Surveillance Mapping Security

CARGO DRONESLarge Payload Long Range

General Aviation

Commercial Jets and Airliners

Flyox cargo drone developed by Astral Aerial Solutions

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 13

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14 APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14

rePort | air carGo africa

Bigger betterstrongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

teAM StAt trAde tIMeS

With massive

participation

from industry

stakeholders and

leaders at the fourth edition of

Air Cargo Africa the three-day

conference-cum-exhibition

was a resounding success To

unearth the growth potential of

the African continent the global

air cargo community converged

at the Air Cargo Africa 2017 at

the Emperors Palace in City of

Ekurhuleni Johannesburg from

February 21-23

The event under the theme

ldquoAir freight in Africa Building

tomorrowrsquos market todayrdquo was

inaugurated by the guest of

honour Dr Ismail Vadi Gauteng

Member of Executive Council

for Roads and Transport and Dr

N Xhakaza Member of Mayoral

Committee Finance and

Economic Development City

if Ekurhuleni along with Tleli

Makhetha General Manager

South African Airways and RK

Patra Group Editor-in Chief

STAT Media Group

Welcoming the delegates

to the fourth edition of Air

Cargo Africa RK Patra Group

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15

Editor-in Chief STAT Media

Group spoke about the

revolutionary changes that

the aviation industry is going

through where drones and

unmanned aerial vehicles are

being employed to deliver

cargo and Hyperloop is a

proposed new way to move

people and freight at airline

speeds for the price of a bus

ticket Emphasizing on the

importance of cooperation

he said ldquoAt Air Cargo Africa

through the deliberations in the

next three days we intend to

become a facilitator for greater

cooperation and collaborations

to enhance trade across

bordersrdquo and thus set the ball

rolling for the proceedings over

the next three days

Making his inaugural

address Dr Ismail Vadi pointed

out that significant innovations

are compelling people to

ldquorethink the way they live

interact transport domestically

and internationallyrdquo They are

influencing people to rethink

about all the ldquowell established

norms and practicesrdquo

Musa Zwane CEO (Acting)

South African Airways in his

keynote address said ldquoFor

South African Airways the

air cargo is an important and

significant part of businessrdquo

He goes on to add ldquoWe are

singularly proud that our

country is playing host to this

event which seeks to highlight

and enhance the development

of the air cargo and the

opportunities in the African

region We are also excited

that for the first time this year

shippers and forwarders are

participating fully in the event

to both exhibit and deliberaterdquo

IMPortAnt tALKIng PoIntSPanel discussions over the

three days touched upon

topics ranging from unlocking

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

to dealing with overcapacity

and declining yields in a volatile

market to understanding trade

agreements in the African

context and bringing to the fore

innovations in cargo delivery

The first panel of the day

saw the likes of Glyn Hughes

Global Head of Cargo IATA

Graham Perkins Vice President

Sales and Marketing (EMEIA)

Atlas Air Inc Barry D Nassberg

Group Chief Operating Officer

Worldwide Flight Services

Rudolf Steiner Senior Vice

President Cargo Global

Accounts amp Commercial

Swissport International

Rainer Mueller Vice President

Commercial Saudia Cargo and

Jan de Vegt Chief Operating

Officer Kenya Airways discuss

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Mueller highlighted that

even though the infrastructure

is somewhat in place when it

comes to handling the import

shipments or the export

shipments at the African

airports there is need to

improve the ground transport

ldquoWhat I would be hoping is

we as an industry manage for

setting up an effective ground

transport product in addition

to what we are having as an air

cargo productrdquo

Steiner however said that

investments are being made to

improve the current scenario

ldquoWe invested in brand new

facilities in Africa We have

opted for facilities in Dar es

Salaam and Kenya It is an

absolute must to invest in Good

Distribution Practices (GDP) and

core facilities we have done

that Are we yet there Most

probably not but compared to

two years ago we took a big

step We have to work closer to

the producer in order to further

improve in the logistics chainrdquo

he said

According to Barry D

Nassberg a lot more can be

done and that airports need to

be a willing partner in looking at

how it would develop a policy

where it allows a necessary

investment to happen

Graham Perkins pointed

out that with regards to

the readiness supporting

e-commerce African people

are ready to take this on but

the question is whether Africa

is ready to take it on He said

that custom infrastructure is

a major issue as it does not

support e-commerce ldquoIn many

cases a lot of countries have

customs rules and regulations

that dates back decades

and they are being used

unfortunatelyrdquo he said

Another significant topic

was the Yamoussoukro

Declaration that is most likely to

be implemented by December

2017 It was adopted out of the

recognition that the restrictive

and protectionist intra-African

regulatory regime hampers the

expansion and improvement of

air transport on the continent

Commenting on Africarsquos

Yamoussoukro Declaration and

the debate on opening skies

Jan de Vegt said Africa needs

to take cautious steps and not

rush to open skies outside Africa

ldquoWe have to come to a situation

where Africa has an open sky

within Africa firstrdquo he said

The panel moderated by

Glyn Hughes concluded that

for all countries across Africa

harmonisation is critical

particularly as the continent has

got a growing population and

a young labour force which

would be able to become a

young workforce and then a

young consumer market

In the session on trade

agreements the moderator

Tom Crabtree Regional

Director Airline Market

Analysis Marketing amp Business

Development Boeing

Commercial Airplanes put forth

three important questions

before the panel Are trade

agreements drafted with any

particular mode in mind Can

trade agreements liberalise

market access by themselves

What can we as industry

stakeholders do to make our

voices heard

Crabtree was joined on the

panel by Glyn Hughes global

head of cargo IATA Tleli

Makhetha general manager

South African Airways and

Vladimir Zubkov secretary

general TIACA

Hughes responded to

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

India to surpass China incargo volumesWith the implementation of Vision 2025 Ethiopian Airlines is aiming to be the leading aviation company in the region It has also added a feather to its cap by completing 45 years of service to Indiarsquos business capital Mumbai The milestone was celebrated by adding the fifth cargo destination - Ahmedabad to its cargo network tadesse tilahun Regional Director India Sub Continent Ethiopian Airlines expressed optimism about Indian market On a tecircte-agrave-tecircte with rashmi Pradhan he vividly painted the strategy for India

interview | TadeSSe Tilahun

elaborate on the vision 2025 of

ethiopian Airlines

According to Ethiopiarsquos 15-year strategic

plan named Vision 2025 we aim to

become a leading and competitive

aviation group in Africa with seven

business centers Ethiopian Domestic and

Regional Airline Ethiopian International

Passenger Airline Ethiopian Cargo

Ethiopian MRO Ethiopian Aviation

Academy Ethiopian In-flight Catering

Services and Ethiopian Ground Service

Ethiopian is a multi-award winning airline

registering an average growth of 25

percent in the past seven years In fact

we have achieved most of the targets set

in Vision 2025 much in advance

tell us about the journey so far

between India and ethiopia

India is a growing aviation market and

very strategic for an airline like Ethiopian

Airlines The carrier started operations

from Delhi way back in 1960s However

we decided to terminate that service

and later in 1971 Ethiopian Airlines made

its debut flight to Mumbai one of its

oldest destinations in Asia Since then

we increased our airlift to 28 scheduled

weekly flights to both Mumbai and

New Delhi The 45 years of uninterrupted

service to Mumbai was a successful

journey but not a smooth ride There

were many challenges (like operational

cost political unrest in Africa etc) From

Mumbai we started with three flights a

day and then increased the frequency

to five flights Earlier it was a turnaround

flight at Bangkok As we witnessed

increase in passenger flow we started a

dedicated flight to Mumbai

How was the performance of

ethiopian Airlines last year

In the past three years we have made a

significant expansion in India Now we

have double daily flights from Mumbai and

New Delhi In terms of passenger traffic

we have registered double digit growth

We witnessed 15 percent year-on-year

growth from Mumbai and 10 percent

growth from New Delhi We have plans

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom8

EXCELLENCE IN MUMBAI

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 9

to expand our operations in India both in

passenger and cargo We are looking at

starting passenger service to a South India

destination (probably Chennai) this year

What prompted the company to

add the fifth cargo destination from

India

Ethiopian Airlines is the largest cargo

operator in Africa We already have

dedicated cargo operations from four

Indian cities namely Mumbai Delhi

Chennai and Bengaluru On March 28 we

added the fifth cargo gateway to India

Ahmedabad to our global cargo network

Ahmedabad Indiarsquos second oldest

stock exchange and largest producer of

cotton is a fast emerging industrial hub

Right now a good volume of shipment

is trucked from Ahmedabad to Mumbai

and then lifted through Mumbai airport

One more advantage we see is not many

carriers have dedicated freight service

from Ahmedabad

While operating in the major trade

lanes between Africa Europe Middle East

and Asia our cargo network is efficiently

linking the Indian sub-continent and

Africa farther with China and Hong

Kong providing the Indian market with

minimum weekly import capacity of

240 tonnes I believe our new services

to Ahmedabad will further strengthen

the existing trade and commercial ties

between the two fastest growing regions

of the world

Quantify the growth of cargo

volumes from India

Although the exports from India to Africa

have declined we have witnessed seven

percent year-on-year growth from India

in terms of cargo volumes Ethiopian

lifted an average of 1500 tonnes a

month from Mumbai Delhi was around

300 tonnes a month Chennai was 200-

250 tonnes a month whereas Bengaluru

was 100-150 tonnes a month We have

a dedicated freighter four times a week

from Mumbai twice a week each from

Chennai and Delhi and once a week from

Ahmedabad and Bengaluru

We are looking at increasing capacity

from Mumbai and upgrade from B787 to

B777 which will increase the capacity by 50

seats a day Also we plan to upgrade B767

to B787 that will further add 50 seats a day

As far Delhi is concerned we will upgrade

B737 to B767 which will give additional 160

seats per day

What is the target set for India

We would be looking at increasing the

number of destinations by adding more

Indian cities to our network Furthermore

we are looking at increasing the operational

frequency to all the existing airports

viz Chennai Mumbai New Delhi and

Bengaluru The wide range of experience in

operating in Africa Ethiopian would like to

capitalise on the same and widen our area

by more focus on lifting pharmaceuticals

and perishables

A state of the art warehouse is being built

at Addis Ababa airport with a capacity of

600 million tonnes per year in phase I and

will be ramped up to 600 million tonnes

in second phase Of the total capacity

40 percent will be dedicated to

perishables That means after the

completion of the said cargo

hub the capacity will touch

12 million tonnes We are

also looking at deploying

wide body aircraft in place of

narrow body wherever we

see an increase in demand

going forward what is

the expectation of Indian

cargo market

India is a major market for

Ethiopian network It is one of

the top five markets being US

at the top followed by China and

then India and UAE India is a

key market for us and

we have witnessed

continuous

passenger and

cargo growth

from India

Of the Brazil Russia India and China (BRIC)

nations India is the fastest growing country

Most of the African countries are importing

either from India or China It will not be

too far when India will overtake China in

capacity We expect the increase in export

volumes from India

Ethiopian is a Star Alliance member like

the national carrier of India Air India This

gives an advantage to both the airlines and

helps to exchange good volumes of

business We have a codeshare agreement

with Air India and this helps Air India to

reach out to more destinations in Africa

and Ethiopian to reach out to number of

destinations in India

interview | Paul J Kocheril

The first green-field airport in India built under the public-private partnership Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) registered a 178 percent growth in passenger traffic and 156 percent in cargo volumes in 2016 As the volume handled by the airport was on the rise recently a new international terminal was put into operations Over the last two decades Cochin Airport has become the hub of Middle East traffic (both passenger and cargo)

A civil engineer by profession Paul j Kocheril he was one of the first recruits at CIAL in 1994 Kocheril was instrumental in the construction of CIAL For the past 16 years he has been associated with the air cargo complex As the Deputy General Manager - Cargo Cochin International Airport Kocheril speaks to rashmi Pradhan on the growth of traffic and performance of CIAL

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom10

CIALThe new cargo hub

What are the key features of Cochin International

Airport

This is the first airport in the country built under

public-private partnership model and perhaps the first

airport in the world fully operated on solar power

Since its nception in 1999 CIAL has been trying to

integrate local and international technologies to

enhance effective operations We donrsquot compromise

on standards and always adhere to the inclusive

business model which encompass habitat around

when implementing infrastructure expansion

CIAL cargo facility has nearly 200000

square feet area (office and warehouse)

Of which nearly 132000 is dedicated for

warehouse To offer superior cargo services

to airlines forwarding agents shippers and

consignees we stick to the concept of fine

tuning our procedures to meet the ever-

changing demands and challenges of the

constantly evolving air cargo industry

elaborate on the performance of CIAL

in 2016

The total passenger traffic through the

airport in 2016 stood at 8736061 Of which

3764640 were domestic and 4971421

were international passengers In the cargo

front last year was a good year for CIAL

The cargo movement grew in double digit

registering a growth of 156 percent The

volume grew to 8533910 tonnes in 2016 as

against 7384920 tonnes in 2015 Of the total

cargo moved through the airport perishable

cargo share was 58261 tonnes

CIAL can easily accommodate long-haul

direct and non-stop internationaldomestic

crafts The biggest advantage CIAL has is

that it is well connected by road and rail

and rail network The NH 47 is connected

to CIAL by a four-kilometre four-lane road

The railway line cuts across the CIAL land

What is in the pipeline on the cargo

front

There is a full-fledged expansion plan in

place for cargo infrastructure expansion

As part of our vision we are in the process

of setting up a separate fully automated

new import and export section This facility

will have all the modern material handling

equipment and facilities The new import

warehouse will have a separate area for

courier baggage and commercial cargo In

addition to this the administrative offices

for customs and other related agencies also

will be integrated into the new premises

give details of the upcoming cargo

village concept

50 Acres has been earmarked for the cargo

village Once completed the cargo village

will offer separate sections for marine

products couriers express cargo valuables

and vulnerable cargo The logistic centre

along with the multi-modular operation of

the sea to air and air to sea transhipment

will be another attraction focusing on the

movements in Vallarpadam International

Container Terminal at Cochin Port

Also there are separate areas dedicated

to the storage and handling of domestic

(inbound outbound cargo including

courier) and international cargo including

the transhipment cargo

The entire International air cargo centre is

designated as a Customs Bonded area

It is equipped with the state of the art

automation tools and computers that

control the cargo terminals

We are also planning a separate import

warehouse which will be having separate

facilities for handling courier passenger

baggage and commercial cargo It will

also include administrative offices for

government agencies like customs PQ

PHO and other agencies associated with

cargo clearance

How do you ensure the smooth

functioning of cargo movement at

the airport

CIAL is the sole cargo handling agency

for all carrier operating from Cochin

International Airport Right from the

acceptance of cargo to the warehouse

to customs examination security

clearance stuffing documentation

including manifestation are all handled

by CIAL Since we are following a single

shop concept in cargo handling there

is practically very less interference and

coordination issues

What according to you makes Cochin

Airport the first choice of cargo

carriers

The addition of airline services to Cochin

Airport every year has led to increase in

passenger and cargo capacity Since it

started its operations CIAL has grown as the

hub of Middle East cargo traffic in South

India The accessibility the flying time etc

are the factors that determine the cargo

growth (especially fruits and vegetables to

the Middle East) of CIAL As over 80 percent

of export cargo at CIAL are perishables The

facilities like the centre for perishable cargo

a temperature controlled warehouse

exclusively for handling perishable has

fuelled the growth The airport adheres to

low-cost model with no compromise on the

quality of infrastructure and service

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 11

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom12

Take offThe perfect

Heres a story of a boy who was fascinated by aeroplanes in his childhood in a remote Kenyan village and pursued his dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer Last month Geoffrey Nyaga made his first plane journey of his life to Abu Dhabi as one of the five finalists of the IATA Air Cargo Innovation Awards He returned home with $20000 prize money and assurances of a promising future in the aviation industry

Geoffrey Nyaga is 25 years old He

is from Likii a small village on

the slopes of Mount Kenya near

Nanyuki town which is about

200km from Nairobi the capital city He

lives with his parents and his younger sister

His father owns a small retail shop while his

mother assists in running the shop He says

it was ldquojust enough to provide for our daily

basic needsrdquo

ldquoFrom as early as I can remember I have

always been fascinated by technology

specifically aeroplanesrdquo Geoffrey tells me

as he gets himself wired for the first ever

media interview of his life inside the majestic

National Exhibition Centre in Abu Dhabi

ldquoI grew up watching military aircrafts fly

above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and

small aircrafts taking off and landing from

Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody

from my extended family attend college or

anyone in our village working in aviation

I was always determined to pursue my

dreamsrdquo he adds

It is the fascination for technology

combined with his determination that led

him to pursue his dream of completing his

studies in Aeronautical Engineering from

the Technical University of Kenya With a

first class honour Geoffrey graduated in

December 2016 and immediately after he

began his first job at Astral Aerial Solutions

(AES) a subsidiary of Astral Aviation a

dedicated cargo airline with a strong African

footprint His first project was to build a UTM

(UAV Traffic Management) concept that

will safely manage UAS (Unmanned Aerial

System) traffic and to operate Flyox the

indigenously made cargo drone

Flyox has a payload capability of up to

2000kg 1200 km range and flight time of up

to 26 hours It can land in unpaved airstrips

and on water It is designed to enable safe

civilian UAV operations by providing pilots

with information on altitude separation

restricted airspace and weather conditions

The project will lay the foundation for safe

secure and effective UAS operations and

integrate into existing airspace to ultimately

allow the expansion of air cargo in Africa It

can be deployed for aid and relief medical

supplies mining oil and gas agriculture and

e-commerce products

It is this project that made Geoffrey

win the top award at the IATA Air Cargo

Innovation Award for 2017

He received the award at the 11th World

Cargo Symposium (WCS) in Abu Dhabi

ldquoWe hope to be able to develop a

Geoffrey NyaGaAstrAl AeriAl solutions

I grew up watching military aircrafts fly above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and small aircrafts taking off and landing from Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody from my extended family attend college or anyone in our village working in aviation I was always determined to pursue my dreams

rejI joHn

Profile

Sanjeev Gadhia Astral Aviation

Drone technology has strong potential to boost the continentrsquos air connectivity and deliver goods and services to remote regions and more critical lifesaving products to those in need

pathway that will encourage regulators

operators and manufacturers to come

together and pave the way forward

for safe and efficient UAS use in the

continentrdquo says Geoffrey

Sanjeev Gadhia the founder and

CEO of Astral Aviation who presented

the project on behalf of Geoffrey was

delighted to have been recognized

for the project ldquoDrone technology has

strong potential to boost the continentrsquos

air connectivity and deliver goods and

services to remote regions and more

critical lifesaving products to those in

needrdquo says Gadhia

Astral Aerialrsquos project seeks to lay the

It is great to see a developing nation company helping to drive the innovation that is needed throughout the global air cargo industry

Glyn Hughes iAtA

foundation for safe secure and effective

UAS operations and integration into

existing airspace to ultimately allow the

expansion of air cargo in Africa

ldquoIt is great to see a developing nation

company helping to drive the innovation

that is needed throughout the global air

cargo industryrdquo says Glyn Hughes IATArsquos

Global Head of Cargo

Geoffrey is still overwhelmed by the

warm reception he received from IATA

delegates and the acceptance of his

project ldquoI was also impressed with the

industry-wide drive to use new

technologies and innovation to improve

customer experience This united voice

by the industry towards adopting

innovation gave me hope that the cargo

industry would be attractive to young

talent wanting to join the aviation

industryrdquo he adds

UTM CONCEPT

LEVEL 1 1500ft

LEVEL 2 4000 ft

LEVEL 3 8000 ft

LEVEL 4 15000 ft

Medical Supplies Precison Agriculture and crop spraying

Mining

Wind Turbine inspections

Geofence

Power lines and Telecommunications

Emmergency Response

oil and gas

Pipeline inspections Wildlife

Sport and recreational

Surveillance Mapping Security

CARGO DRONESLarge Payload Long Range

General Aviation

Commercial Jets and Airliners

Flyox cargo drone developed by Astral Aerial Solutions

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 13

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14 APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14

rePort | air carGo africa

Bigger betterstrongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

teAM StAt trAde tIMeS

With massive

participation

from industry

stakeholders and

leaders at the fourth edition of

Air Cargo Africa the three-day

conference-cum-exhibition

was a resounding success To

unearth the growth potential of

the African continent the global

air cargo community converged

at the Air Cargo Africa 2017 at

the Emperors Palace in City of

Ekurhuleni Johannesburg from

February 21-23

The event under the theme

ldquoAir freight in Africa Building

tomorrowrsquos market todayrdquo was

inaugurated by the guest of

honour Dr Ismail Vadi Gauteng

Member of Executive Council

for Roads and Transport and Dr

N Xhakaza Member of Mayoral

Committee Finance and

Economic Development City

if Ekurhuleni along with Tleli

Makhetha General Manager

South African Airways and RK

Patra Group Editor-in Chief

STAT Media Group

Welcoming the delegates

to the fourth edition of Air

Cargo Africa RK Patra Group

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15

Editor-in Chief STAT Media

Group spoke about the

revolutionary changes that

the aviation industry is going

through where drones and

unmanned aerial vehicles are

being employed to deliver

cargo and Hyperloop is a

proposed new way to move

people and freight at airline

speeds for the price of a bus

ticket Emphasizing on the

importance of cooperation

he said ldquoAt Air Cargo Africa

through the deliberations in the

next three days we intend to

become a facilitator for greater

cooperation and collaborations

to enhance trade across

bordersrdquo and thus set the ball

rolling for the proceedings over

the next three days

Making his inaugural

address Dr Ismail Vadi pointed

out that significant innovations

are compelling people to

ldquorethink the way they live

interact transport domestically

and internationallyrdquo They are

influencing people to rethink

about all the ldquowell established

norms and practicesrdquo

Musa Zwane CEO (Acting)

South African Airways in his

keynote address said ldquoFor

South African Airways the

air cargo is an important and

significant part of businessrdquo

He goes on to add ldquoWe are

singularly proud that our

country is playing host to this

event which seeks to highlight

and enhance the development

of the air cargo and the

opportunities in the African

region We are also excited

that for the first time this year

shippers and forwarders are

participating fully in the event

to both exhibit and deliberaterdquo

IMPortAnt tALKIng PoIntSPanel discussions over the

three days touched upon

topics ranging from unlocking

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

to dealing with overcapacity

and declining yields in a volatile

market to understanding trade

agreements in the African

context and bringing to the fore

innovations in cargo delivery

The first panel of the day

saw the likes of Glyn Hughes

Global Head of Cargo IATA

Graham Perkins Vice President

Sales and Marketing (EMEIA)

Atlas Air Inc Barry D Nassberg

Group Chief Operating Officer

Worldwide Flight Services

Rudolf Steiner Senior Vice

President Cargo Global

Accounts amp Commercial

Swissport International

Rainer Mueller Vice President

Commercial Saudia Cargo and

Jan de Vegt Chief Operating

Officer Kenya Airways discuss

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Mueller highlighted that

even though the infrastructure

is somewhat in place when it

comes to handling the import

shipments or the export

shipments at the African

airports there is need to

improve the ground transport

ldquoWhat I would be hoping is

we as an industry manage for

setting up an effective ground

transport product in addition

to what we are having as an air

cargo productrdquo

Steiner however said that

investments are being made to

improve the current scenario

ldquoWe invested in brand new

facilities in Africa We have

opted for facilities in Dar es

Salaam and Kenya It is an

absolute must to invest in Good

Distribution Practices (GDP) and

core facilities we have done

that Are we yet there Most

probably not but compared to

two years ago we took a big

step We have to work closer to

the producer in order to further

improve in the logistics chainrdquo

he said

According to Barry D

Nassberg a lot more can be

done and that airports need to

be a willing partner in looking at

how it would develop a policy

where it allows a necessary

investment to happen

Graham Perkins pointed

out that with regards to

the readiness supporting

e-commerce African people

are ready to take this on but

the question is whether Africa

is ready to take it on He said

that custom infrastructure is

a major issue as it does not

support e-commerce ldquoIn many

cases a lot of countries have

customs rules and regulations

that dates back decades

and they are being used

unfortunatelyrdquo he said

Another significant topic

was the Yamoussoukro

Declaration that is most likely to

be implemented by December

2017 It was adopted out of the

recognition that the restrictive

and protectionist intra-African

regulatory regime hampers the

expansion and improvement of

air transport on the continent

Commenting on Africarsquos

Yamoussoukro Declaration and

the debate on opening skies

Jan de Vegt said Africa needs

to take cautious steps and not

rush to open skies outside Africa

ldquoWe have to come to a situation

where Africa has an open sky

within Africa firstrdquo he said

The panel moderated by

Glyn Hughes concluded that

for all countries across Africa

harmonisation is critical

particularly as the continent has

got a growing population and

a young labour force which

would be able to become a

young workforce and then a

young consumer market

In the session on trade

agreements the moderator

Tom Crabtree Regional

Director Airline Market

Analysis Marketing amp Business

Development Boeing

Commercial Airplanes put forth

three important questions

before the panel Are trade

agreements drafted with any

particular mode in mind Can

trade agreements liberalise

market access by themselves

What can we as industry

stakeholders do to make our

voices heard

Crabtree was joined on the

panel by Glyn Hughes global

head of cargo IATA Tleli

Makhetha general manager

South African Airways and

Vladimir Zubkov secretary

general TIACA

Hughes responded to

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 9

to expand our operations in India both in

passenger and cargo We are looking at

starting passenger service to a South India

destination (probably Chennai) this year

What prompted the company to

add the fifth cargo destination from

India

Ethiopian Airlines is the largest cargo

operator in Africa We already have

dedicated cargo operations from four

Indian cities namely Mumbai Delhi

Chennai and Bengaluru On March 28 we

added the fifth cargo gateway to India

Ahmedabad to our global cargo network

Ahmedabad Indiarsquos second oldest

stock exchange and largest producer of

cotton is a fast emerging industrial hub

Right now a good volume of shipment

is trucked from Ahmedabad to Mumbai

and then lifted through Mumbai airport

One more advantage we see is not many

carriers have dedicated freight service

from Ahmedabad

While operating in the major trade

lanes between Africa Europe Middle East

and Asia our cargo network is efficiently

linking the Indian sub-continent and

Africa farther with China and Hong

Kong providing the Indian market with

minimum weekly import capacity of

240 tonnes I believe our new services

to Ahmedabad will further strengthen

the existing trade and commercial ties

between the two fastest growing regions

of the world

Quantify the growth of cargo

volumes from India

Although the exports from India to Africa

have declined we have witnessed seven

percent year-on-year growth from India

in terms of cargo volumes Ethiopian

lifted an average of 1500 tonnes a

month from Mumbai Delhi was around

300 tonnes a month Chennai was 200-

250 tonnes a month whereas Bengaluru

was 100-150 tonnes a month We have

a dedicated freighter four times a week

from Mumbai twice a week each from

Chennai and Delhi and once a week from

Ahmedabad and Bengaluru

We are looking at increasing capacity

from Mumbai and upgrade from B787 to

B777 which will increase the capacity by 50

seats a day Also we plan to upgrade B767

to B787 that will further add 50 seats a day

As far Delhi is concerned we will upgrade

B737 to B767 which will give additional 160

seats per day

What is the target set for India

We would be looking at increasing the

number of destinations by adding more

Indian cities to our network Furthermore

we are looking at increasing the operational

frequency to all the existing airports

viz Chennai Mumbai New Delhi and

Bengaluru The wide range of experience in

operating in Africa Ethiopian would like to

capitalise on the same and widen our area

by more focus on lifting pharmaceuticals

and perishables

A state of the art warehouse is being built

at Addis Ababa airport with a capacity of

600 million tonnes per year in phase I and

will be ramped up to 600 million tonnes

in second phase Of the total capacity

40 percent will be dedicated to

perishables That means after the

completion of the said cargo

hub the capacity will touch

12 million tonnes We are

also looking at deploying

wide body aircraft in place of

narrow body wherever we

see an increase in demand

going forward what is

the expectation of Indian

cargo market

India is a major market for

Ethiopian network It is one of

the top five markets being US

at the top followed by China and

then India and UAE India is a

key market for us and

we have witnessed

continuous

passenger and

cargo growth

from India

Of the Brazil Russia India and China (BRIC)

nations India is the fastest growing country

Most of the African countries are importing

either from India or China It will not be

too far when India will overtake China in

capacity We expect the increase in export

volumes from India

Ethiopian is a Star Alliance member like

the national carrier of India Air India This

gives an advantage to both the airlines and

helps to exchange good volumes of

business We have a codeshare agreement

with Air India and this helps Air India to

reach out to more destinations in Africa

and Ethiopian to reach out to number of

destinations in India

interview | Paul J Kocheril

The first green-field airport in India built under the public-private partnership Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) registered a 178 percent growth in passenger traffic and 156 percent in cargo volumes in 2016 As the volume handled by the airport was on the rise recently a new international terminal was put into operations Over the last two decades Cochin Airport has become the hub of Middle East traffic (both passenger and cargo)

A civil engineer by profession Paul j Kocheril he was one of the first recruits at CIAL in 1994 Kocheril was instrumental in the construction of CIAL For the past 16 years he has been associated with the air cargo complex As the Deputy General Manager - Cargo Cochin International Airport Kocheril speaks to rashmi Pradhan on the growth of traffic and performance of CIAL

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom10

CIALThe new cargo hub

What are the key features of Cochin International

Airport

This is the first airport in the country built under

public-private partnership model and perhaps the first

airport in the world fully operated on solar power

Since its nception in 1999 CIAL has been trying to

integrate local and international technologies to

enhance effective operations We donrsquot compromise

on standards and always adhere to the inclusive

business model which encompass habitat around

when implementing infrastructure expansion

CIAL cargo facility has nearly 200000

square feet area (office and warehouse)

Of which nearly 132000 is dedicated for

warehouse To offer superior cargo services

to airlines forwarding agents shippers and

consignees we stick to the concept of fine

tuning our procedures to meet the ever-

changing demands and challenges of the

constantly evolving air cargo industry

elaborate on the performance of CIAL

in 2016

The total passenger traffic through the

airport in 2016 stood at 8736061 Of which

3764640 were domestic and 4971421

were international passengers In the cargo

front last year was a good year for CIAL

The cargo movement grew in double digit

registering a growth of 156 percent The

volume grew to 8533910 tonnes in 2016 as

against 7384920 tonnes in 2015 Of the total

cargo moved through the airport perishable

cargo share was 58261 tonnes

CIAL can easily accommodate long-haul

direct and non-stop internationaldomestic

crafts The biggest advantage CIAL has is

that it is well connected by road and rail

and rail network The NH 47 is connected

to CIAL by a four-kilometre four-lane road

The railway line cuts across the CIAL land

What is in the pipeline on the cargo

front

There is a full-fledged expansion plan in

place for cargo infrastructure expansion

As part of our vision we are in the process

of setting up a separate fully automated

new import and export section This facility

will have all the modern material handling

equipment and facilities The new import

warehouse will have a separate area for

courier baggage and commercial cargo In

addition to this the administrative offices

for customs and other related agencies also

will be integrated into the new premises

give details of the upcoming cargo

village concept

50 Acres has been earmarked for the cargo

village Once completed the cargo village

will offer separate sections for marine

products couriers express cargo valuables

and vulnerable cargo The logistic centre

along with the multi-modular operation of

the sea to air and air to sea transhipment

will be another attraction focusing on the

movements in Vallarpadam International

Container Terminal at Cochin Port

Also there are separate areas dedicated

to the storage and handling of domestic

(inbound outbound cargo including

courier) and international cargo including

the transhipment cargo

The entire International air cargo centre is

designated as a Customs Bonded area

It is equipped with the state of the art

automation tools and computers that

control the cargo terminals

We are also planning a separate import

warehouse which will be having separate

facilities for handling courier passenger

baggage and commercial cargo It will

also include administrative offices for

government agencies like customs PQ

PHO and other agencies associated with

cargo clearance

How do you ensure the smooth

functioning of cargo movement at

the airport

CIAL is the sole cargo handling agency

for all carrier operating from Cochin

International Airport Right from the

acceptance of cargo to the warehouse

to customs examination security

clearance stuffing documentation

including manifestation are all handled

by CIAL Since we are following a single

shop concept in cargo handling there

is practically very less interference and

coordination issues

What according to you makes Cochin

Airport the first choice of cargo

carriers

The addition of airline services to Cochin

Airport every year has led to increase in

passenger and cargo capacity Since it

started its operations CIAL has grown as the

hub of Middle East cargo traffic in South

India The accessibility the flying time etc

are the factors that determine the cargo

growth (especially fruits and vegetables to

the Middle East) of CIAL As over 80 percent

of export cargo at CIAL are perishables The

facilities like the centre for perishable cargo

a temperature controlled warehouse

exclusively for handling perishable has

fuelled the growth The airport adheres to

low-cost model with no compromise on the

quality of infrastructure and service

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 11

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom12

Take offThe perfect

Heres a story of a boy who was fascinated by aeroplanes in his childhood in a remote Kenyan village and pursued his dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer Last month Geoffrey Nyaga made his first plane journey of his life to Abu Dhabi as one of the five finalists of the IATA Air Cargo Innovation Awards He returned home with $20000 prize money and assurances of a promising future in the aviation industry

Geoffrey Nyaga is 25 years old He

is from Likii a small village on

the slopes of Mount Kenya near

Nanyuki town which is about

200km from Nairobi the capital city He

lives with his parents and his younger sister

His father owns a small retail shop while his

mother assists in running the shop He says

it was ldquojust enough to provide for our daily

basic needsrdquo

ldquoFrom as early as I can remember I have

always been fascinated by technology

specifically aeroplanesrdquo Geoffrey tells me

as he gets himself wired for the first ever

media interview of his life inside the majestic

National Exhibition Centre in Abu Dhabi

ldquoI grew up watching military aircrafts fly

above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and

small aircrafts taking off and landing from

Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody

from my extended family attend college or

anyone in our village working in aviation

I was always determined to pursue my

dreamsrdquo he adds

It is the fascination for technology

combined with his determination that led

him to pursue his dream of completing his

studies in Aeronautical Engineering from

the Technical University of Kenya With a

first class honour Geoffrey graduated in

December 2016 and immediately after he

began his first job at Astral Aerial Solutions

(AES) a subsidiary of Astral Aviation a

dedicated cargo airline with a strong African

footprint His first project was to build a UTM

(UAV Traffic Management) concept that

will safely manage UAS (Unmanned Aerial

System) traffic and to operate Flyox the

indigenously made cargo drone

Flyox has a payload capability of up to

2000kg 1200 km range and flight time of up

to 26 hours It can land in unpaved airstrips

and on water It is designed to enable safe

civilian UAV operations by providing pilots

with information on altitude separation

restricted airspace and weather conditions

The project will lay the foundation for safe

secure and effective UAS operations and

integrate into existing airspace to ultimately

allow the expansion of air cargo in Africa It

can be deployed for aid and relief medical

supplies mining oil and gas agriculture and

e-commerce products

It is this project that made Geoffrey

win the top award at the IATA Air Cargo

Innovation Award for 2017

He received the award at the 11th World

Cargo Symposium (WCS) in Abu Dhabi

ldquoWe hope to be able to develop a

Geoffrey NyaGaAstrAl AeriAl solutions

I grew up watching military aircrafts fly above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and small aircrafts taking off and landing from Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody from my extended family attend college or anyone in our village working in aviation I was always determined to pursue my dreams

rejI joHn

Profile

Sanjeev Gadhia Astral Aviation

Drone technology has strong potential to boost the continentrsquos air connectivity and deliver goods and services to remote regions and more critical lifesaving products to those in need

pathway that will encourage regulators

operators and manufacturers to come

together and pave the way forward

for safe and efficient UAS use in the

continentrdquo says Geoffrey

Sanjeev Gadhia the founder and

CEO of Astral Aviation who presented

the project on behalf of Geoffrey was

delighted to have been recognized

for the project ldquoDrone technology has

strong potential to boost the continentrsquos

air connectivity and deliver goods and

services to remote regions and more

critical lifesaving products to those in

needrdquo says Gadhia

Astral Aerialrsquos project seeks to lay the

It is great to see a developing nation company helping to drive the innovation that is needed throughout the global air cargo industry

Glyn Hughes iAtA

foundation for safe secure and effective

UAS operations and integration into

existing airspace to ultimately allow the

expansion of air cargo in Africa

ldquoIt is great to see a developing nation

company helping to drive the innovation

that is needed throughout the global air

cargo industryrdquo says Glyn Hughes IATArsquos

Global Head of Cargo

Geoffrey is still overwhelmed by the

warm reception he received from IATA

delegates and the acceptance of his

project ldquoI was also impressed with the

industry-wide drive to use new

technologies and innovation to improve

customer experience This united voice

by the industry towards adopting

innovation gave me hope that the cargo

industry would be attractive to young

talent wanting to join the aviation

industryrdquo he adds

UTM CONCEPT

LEVEL 1 1500ft

LEVEL 2 4000 ft

LEVEL 3 8000 ft

LEVEL 4 15000 ft

Medical Supplies Precison Agriculture and crop spraying

Mining

Wind Turbine inspections

Geofence

Power lines and Telecommunications

Emmergency Response

oil and gas

Pipeline inspections Wildlife

Sport and recreational

Surveillance Mapping Security

CARGO DRONESLarge Payload Long Range

General Aviation

Commercial Jets and Airliners

Flyox cargo drone developed by Astral Aerial Solutions

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 13

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14 APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14

rePort | air carGo africa

Bigger betterstrongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

teAM StAt trAde tIMeS

With massive

participation

from industry

stakeholders and

leaders at the fourth edition of

Air Cargo Africa the three-day

conference-cum-exhibition

was a resounding success To

unearth the growth potential of

the African continent the global

air cargo community converged

at the Air Cargo Africa 2017 at

the Emperors Palace in City of

Ekurhuleni Johannesburg from

February 21-23

The event under the theme

ldquoAir freight in Africa Building

tomorrowrsquos market todayrdquo was

inaugurated by the guest of

honour Dr Ismail Vadi Gauteng

Member of Executive Council

for Roads and Transport and Dr

N Xhakaza Member of Mayoral

Committee Finance and

Economic Development City

if Ekurhuleni along with Tleli

Makhetha General Manager

South African Airways and RK

Patra Group Editor-in Chief

STAT Media Group

Welcoming the delegates

to the fourth edition of Air

Cargo Africa RK Patra Group

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15

Editor-in Chief STAT Media

Group spoke about the

revolutionary changes that

the aviation industry is going

through where drones and

unmanned aerial vehicles are

being employed to deliver

cargo and Hyperloop is a

proposed new way to move

people and freight at airline

speeds for the price of a bus

ticket Emphasizing on the

importance of cooperation

he said ldquoAt Air Cargo Africa

through the deliberations in the

next three days we intend to

become a facilitator for greater

cooperation and collaborations

to enhance trade across

bordersrdquo and thus set the ball

rolling for the proceedings over

the next three days

Making his inaugural

address Dr Ismail Vadi pointed

out that significant innovations

are compelling people to

ldquorethink the way they live

interact transport domestically

and internationallyrdquo They are

influencing people to rethink

about all the ldquowell established

norms and practicesrdquo

Musa Zwane CEO (Acting)

South African Airways in his

keynote address said ldquoFor

South African Airways the

air cargo is an important and

significant part of businessrdquo

He goes on to add ldquoWe are

singularly proud that our

country is playing host to this

event which seeks to highlight

and enhance the development

of the air cargo and the

opportunities in the African

region We are also excited

that for the first time this year

shippers and forwarders are

participating fully in the event

to both exhibit and deliberaterdquo

IMPortAnt tALKIng PoIntSPanel discussions over the

three days touched upon

topics ranging from unlocking

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

to dealing with overcapacity

and declining yields in a volatile

market to understanding trade

agreements in the African

context and bringing to the fore

innovations in cargo delivery

The first panel of the day

saw the likes of Glyn Hughes

Global Head of Cargo IATA

Graham Perkins Vice President

Sales and Marketing (EMEIA)

Atlas Air Inc Barry D Nassberg

Group Chief Operating Officer

Worldwide Flight Services

Rudolf Steiner Senior Vice

President Cargo Global

Accounts amp Commercial

Swissport International

Rainer Mueller Vice President

Commercial Saudia Cargo and

Jan de Vegt Chief Operating

Officer Kenya Airways discuss

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Mueller highlighted that

even though the infrastructure

is somewhat in place when it

comes to handling the import

shipments or the export

shipments at the African

airports there is need to

improve the ground transport

ldquoWhat I would be hoping is

we as an industry manage for

setting up an effective ground

transport product in addition

to what we are having as an air

cargo productrdquo

Steiner however said that

investments are being made to

improve the current scenario

ldquoWe invested in brand new

facilities in Africa We have

opted for facilities in Dar es

Salaam and Kenya It is an

absolute must to invest in Good

Distribution Practices (GDP) and

core facilities we have done

that Are we yet there Most

probably not but compared to

two years ago we took a big

step We have to work closer to

the producer in order to further

improve in the logistics chainrdquo

he said

According to Barry D

Nassberg a lot more can be

done and that airports need to

be a willing partner in looking at

how it would develop a policy

where it allows a necessary

investment to happen

Graham Perkins pointed

out that with regards to

the readiness supporting

e-commerce African people

are ready to take this on but

the question is whether Africa

is ready to take it on He said

that custom infrastructure is

a major issue as it does not

support e-commerce ldquoIn many

cases a lot of countries have

customs rules and regulations

that dates back decades

and they are being used

unfortunatelyrdquo he said

Another significant topic

was the Yamoussoukro

Declaration that is most likely to

be implemented by December

2017 It was adopted out of the

recognition that the restrictive

and protectionist intra-African

regulatory regime hampers the

expansion and improvement of

air transport on the continent

Commenting on Africarsquos

Yamoussoukro Declaration and

the debate on opening skies

Jan de Vegt said Africa needs

to take cautious steps and not

rush to open skies outside Africa

ldquoWe have to come to a situation

where Africa has an open sky

within Africa firstrdquo he said

The panel moderated by

Glyn Hughes concluded that

for all countries across Africa

harmonisation is critical

particularly as the continent has

got a growing population and

a young labour force which

would be able to become a

young workforce and then a

young consumer market

In the session on trade

agreements the moderator

Tom Crabtree Regional

Director Airline Market

Analysis Marketing amp Business

Development Boeing

Commercial Airplanes put forth

three important questions

before the panel Are trade

agreements drafted with any

particular mode in mind Can

trade agreements liberalise

market access by themselves

What can we as industry

stakeholders do to make our

voices heard

Crabtree was joined on the

panel by Glyn Hughes global

head of cargo IATA Tleli

Makhetha general manager

South African Airways and

Vladimir Zubkov secretary

general TIACA

Hughes responded to

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

interview | Paul J Kocheril

The first green-field airport in India built under the public-private partnership Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) registered a 178 percent growth in passenger traffic and 156 percent in cargo volumes in 2016 As the volume handled by the airport was on the rise recently a new international terminal was put into operations Over the last two decades Cochin Airport has become the hub of Middle East traffic (both passenger and cargo)

A civil engineer by profession Paul j Kocheril he was one of the first recruits at CIAL in 1994 Kocheril was instrumental in the construction of CIAL For the past 16 years he has been associated with the air cargo complex As the Deputy General Manager - Cargo Cochin International Airport Kocheril speaks to rashmi Pradhan on the growth of traffic and performance of CIAL

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom10

CIALThe new cargo hub

What are the key features of Cochin International

Airport

This is the first airport in the country built under

public-private partnership model and perhaps the first

airport in the world fully operated on solar power

Since its nception in 1999 CIAL has been trying to

integrate local and international technologies to

enhance effective operations We donrsquot compromise

on standards and always adhere to the inclusive

business model which encompass habitat around

when implementing infrastructure expansion

CIAL cargo facility has nearly 200000

square feet area (office and warehouse)

Of which nearly 132000 is dedicated for

warehouse To offer superior cargo services

to airlines forwarding agents shippers and

consignees we stick to the concept of fine

tuning our procedures to meet the ever-

changing demands and challenges of the

constantly evolving air cargo industry

elaborate on the performance of CIAL

in 2016

The total passenger traffic through the

airport in 2016 stood at 8736061 Of which

3764640 were domestic and 4971421

were international passengers In the cargo

front last year was a good year for CIAL

The cargo movement grew in double digit

registering a growth of 156 percent The

volume grew to 8533910 tonnes in 2016 as

against 7384920 tonnes in 2015 Of the total

cargo moved through the airport perishable

cargo share was 58261 tonnes

CIAL can easily accommodate long-haul

direct and non-stop internationaldomestic

crafts The biggest advantage CIAL has is

that it is well connected by road and rail

and rail network The NH 47 is connected

to CIAL by a four-kilometre four-lane road

The railway line cuts across the CIAL land

What is in the pipeline on the cargo

front

There is a full-fledged expansion plan in

place for cargo infrastructure expansion

As part of our vision we are in the process

of setting up a separate fully automated

new import and export section This facility

will have all the modern material handling

equipment and facilities The new import

warehouse will have a separate area for

courier baggage and commercial cargo In

addition to this the administrative offices

for customs and other related agencies also

will be integrated into the new premises

give details of the upcoming cargo

village concept

50 Acres has been earmarked for the cargo

village Once completed the cargo village

will offer separate sections for marine

products couriers express cargo valuables

and vulnerable cargo The logistic centre

along with the multi-modular operation of

the sea to air and air to sea transhipment

will be another attraction focusing on the

movements in Vallarpadam International

Container Terminal at Cochin Port

Also there are separate areas dedicated

to the storage and handling of domestic

(inbound outbound cargo including

courier) and international cargo including

the transhipment cargo

The entire International air cargo centre is

designated as a Customs Bonded area

It is equipped with the state of the art

automation tools and computers that

control the cargo terminals

We are also planning a separate import

warehouse which will be having separate

facilities for handling courier passenger

baggage and commercial cargo It will

also include administrative offices for

government agencies like customs PQ

PHO and other agencies associated with

cargo clearance

How do you ensure the smooth

functioning of cargo movement at

the airport

CIAL is the sole cargo handling agency

for all carrier operating from Cochin

International Airport Right from the

acceptance of cargo to the warehouse

to customs examination security

clearance stuffing documentation

including manifestation are all handled

by CIAL Since we are following a single

shop concept in cargo handling there

is practically very less interference and

coordination issues

What according to you makes Cochin

Airport the first choice of cargo

carriers

The addition of airline services to Cochin

Airport every year has led to increase in

passenger and cargo capacity Since it

started its operations CIAL has grown as the

hub of Middle East cargo traffic in South

India The accessibility the flying time etc

are the factors that determine the cargo

growth (especially fruits and vegetables to

the Middle East) of CIAL As over 80 percent

of export cargo at CIAL are perishables The

facilities like the centre for perishable cargo

a temperature controlled warehouse

exclusively for handling perishable has

fuelled the growth The airport adheres to

low-cost model with no compromise on the

quality of infrastructure and service

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 11

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom12

Take offThe perfect

Heres a story of a boy who was fascinated by aeroplanes in his childhood in a remote Kenyan village and pursued his dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer Last month Geoffrey Nyaga made his first plane journey of his life to Abu Dhabi as one of the five finalists of the IATA Air Cargo Innovation Awards He returned home with $20000 prize money and assurances of a promising future in the aviation industry

Geoffrey Nyaga is 25 years old He

is from Likii a small village on

the slopes of Mount Kenya near

Nanyuki town which is about

200km from Nairobi the capital city He

lives with his parents and his younger sister

His father owns a small retail shop while his

mother assists in running the shop He says

it was ldquojust enough to provide for our daily

basic needsrdquo

ldquoFrom as early as I can remember I have

always been fascinated by technology

specifically aeroplanesrdquo Geoffrey tells me

as he gets himself wired for the first ever

media interview of his life inside the majestic

National Exhibition Centre in Abu Dhabi

ldquoI grew up watching military aircrafts fly

above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and

small aircrafts taking off and landing from

Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody

from my extended family attend college or

anyone in our village working in aviation

I was always determined to pursue my

dreamsrdquo he adds

It is the fascination for technology

combined with his determination that led

him to pursue his dream of completing his

studies in Aeronautical Engineering from

the Technical University of Kenya With a

first class honour Geoffrey graduated in

December 2016 and immediately after he

began his first job at Astral Aerial Solutions

(AES) a subsidiary of Astral Aviation a

dedicated cargo airline with a strong African

footprint His first project was to build a UTM

(UAV Traffic Management) concept that

will safely manage UAS (Unmanned Aerial

System) traffic and to operate Flyox the

indigenously made cargo drone

Flyox has a payload capability of up to

2000kg 1200 km range and flight time of up

to 26 hours It can land in unpaved airstrips

and on water It is designed to enable safe

civilian UAV operations by providing pilots

with information on altitude separation

restricted airspace and weather conditions

The project will lay the foundation for safe

secure and effective UAS operations and

integrate into existing airspace to ultimately

allow the expansion of air cargo in Africa It

can be deployed for aid and relief medical

supplies mining oil and gas agriculture and

e-commerce products

It is this project that made Geoffrey

win the top award at the IATA Air Cargo

Innovation Award for 2017

He received the award at the 11th World

Cargo Symposium (WCS) in Abu Dhabi

ldquoWe hope to be able to develop a

Geoffrey NyaGaAstrAl AeriAl solutions

I grew up watching military aircrafts fly above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and small aircrafts taking off and landing from Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody from my extended family attend college or anyone in our village working in aviation I was always determined to pursue my dreams

rejI joHn

Profile

Sanjeev Gadhia Astral Aviation

Drone technology has strong potential to boost the continentrsquos air connectivity and deliver goods and services to remote regions and more critical lifesaving products to those in need

pathway that will encourage regulators

operators and manufacturers to come

together and pave the way forward

for safe and efficient UAS use in the

continentrdquo says Geoffrey

Sanjeev Gadhia the founder and

CEO of Astral Aviation who presented

the project on behalf of Geoffrey was

delighted to have been recognized

for the project ldquoDrone technology has

strong potential to boost the continentrsquos

air connectivity and deliver goods and

services to remote regions and more

critical lifesaving products to those in

needrdquo says Gadhia

Astral Aerialrsquos project seeks to lay the

It is great to see a developing nation company helping to drive the innovation that is needed throughout the global air cargo industry

Glyn Hughes iAtA

foundation for safe secure and effective

UAS operations and integration into

existing airspace to ultimately allow the

expansion of air cargo in Africa

ldquoIt is great to see a developing nation

company helping to drive the innovation

that is needed throughout the global air

cargo industryrdquo says Glyn Hughes IATArsquos

Global Head of Cargo

Geoffrey is still overwhelmed by the

warm reception he received from IATA

delegates and the acceptance of his

project ldquoI was also impressed with the

industry-wide drive to use new

technologies and innovation to improve

customer experience This united voice

by the industry towards adopting

innovation gave me hope that the cargo

industry would be attractive to young

talent wanting to join the aviation

industryrdquo he adds

UTM CONCEPT

LEVEL 1 1500ft

LEVEL 2 4000 ft

LEVEL 3 8000 ft

LEVEL 4 15000 ft

Medical Supplies Precison Agriculture and crop spraying

Mining

Wind Turbine inspections

Geofence

Power lines and Telecommunications

Emmergency Response

oil and gas

Pipeline inspections Wildlife

Sport and recreational

Surveillance Mapping Security

CARGO DRONESLarge Payload Long Range

General Aviation

Commercial Jets and Airliners

Flyox cargo drone developed by Astral Aerial Solutions

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 13

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14 APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14

rePort | air carGo africa

Bigger betterstrongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

teAM StAt trAde tIMeS

With massive

participation

from industry

stakeholders and

leaders at the fourth edition of

Air Cargo Africa the three-day

conference-cum-exhibition

was a resounding success To

unearth the growth potential of

the African continent the global

air cargo community converged

at the Air Cargo Africa 2017 at

the Emperors Palace in City of

Ekurhuleni Johannesburg from

February 21-23

The event under the theme

ldquoAir freight in Africa Building

tomorrowrsquos market todayrdquo was

inaugurated by the guest of

honour Dr Ismail Vadi Gauteng

Member of Executive Council

for Roads and Transport and Dr

N Xhakaza Member of Mayoral

Committee Finance and

Economic Development City

if Ekurhuleni along with Tleli

Makhetha General Manager

South African Airways and RK

Patra Group Editor-in Chief

STAT Media Group

Welcoming the delegates

to the fourth edition of Air

Cargo Africa RK Patra Group

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15

Editor-in Chief STAT Media

Group spoke about the

revolutionary changes that

the aviation industry is going

through where drones and

unmanned aerial vehicles are

being employed to deliver

cargo and Hyperloop is a

proposed new way to move

people and freight at airline

speeds for the price of a bus

ticket Emphasizing on the

importance of cooperation

he said ldquoAt Air Cargo Africa

through the deliberations in the

next three days we intend to

become a facilitator for greater

cooperation and collaborations

to enhance trade across

bordersrdquo and thus set the ball

rolling for the proceedings over

the next three days

Making his inaugural

address Dr Ismail Vadi pointed

out that significant innovations

are compelling people to

ldquorethink the way they live

interact transport domestically

and internationallyrdquo They are

influencing people to rethink

about all the ldquowell established

norms and practicesrdquo

Musa Zwane CEO (Acting)

South African Airways in his

keynote address said ldquoFor

South African Airways the

air cargo is an important and

significant part of businessrdquo

He goes on to add ldquoWe are

singularly proud that our

country is playing host to this

event which seeks to highlight

and enhance the development

of the air cargo and the

opportunities in the African

region We are also excited

that for the first time this year

shippers and forwarders are

participating fully in the event

to both exhibit and deliberaterdquo

IMPortAnt tALKIng PoIntSPanel discussions over the

three days touched upon

topics ranging from unlocking

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

to dealing with overcapacity

and declining yields in a volatile

market to understanding trade

agreements in the African

context and bringing to the fore

innovations in cargo delivery

The first panel of the day

saw the likes of Glyn Hughes

Global Head of Cargo IATA

Graham Perkins Vice President

Sales and Marketing (EMEIA)

Atlas Air Inc Barry D Nassberg

Group Chief Operating Officer

Worldwide Flight Services

Rudolf Steiner Senior Vice

President Cargo Global

Accounts amp Commercial

Swissport International

Rainer Mueller Vice President

Commercial Saudia Cargo and

Jan de Vegt Chief Operating

Officer Kenya Airways discuss

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Mueller highlighted that

even though the infrastructure

is somewhat in place when it

comes to handling the import

shipments or the export

shipments at the African

airports there is need to

improve the ground transport

ldquoWhat I would be hoping is

we as an industry manage for

setting up an effective ground

transport product in addition

to what we are having as an air

cargo productrdquo

Steiner however said that

investments are being made to

improve the current scenario

ldquoWe invested in brand new

facilities in Africa We have

opted for facilities in Dar es

Salaam and Kenya It is an

absolute must to invest in Good

Distribution Practices (GDP) and

core facilities we have done

that Are we yet there Most

probably not but compared to

two years ago we took a big

step We have to work closer to

the producer in order to further

improve in the logistics chainrdquo

he said

According to Barry D

Nassberg a lot more can be

done and that airports need to

be a willing partner in looking at

how it would develop a policy

where it allows a necessary

investment to happen

Graham Perkins pointed

out that with regards to

the readiness supporting

e-commerce African people

are ready to take this on but

the question is whether Africa

is ready to take it on He said

that custom infrastructure is

a major issue as it does not

support e-commerce ldquoIn many

cases a lot of countries have

customs rules and regulations

that dates back decades

and they are being used

unfortunatelyrdquo he said

Another significant topic

was the Yamoussoukro

Declaration that is most likely to

be implemented by December

2017 It was adopted out of the

recognition that the restrictive

and protectionist intra-African

regulatory regime hampers the

expansion and improvement of

air transport on the continent

Commenting on Africarsquos

Yamoussoukro Declaration and

the debate on opening skies

Jan de Vegt said Africa needs

to take cautious steps and not

rush to open skies outside Africa

ldquoWe have to come to a situation

where Africa has an open sky

within Africa firstrdquo he said

The panel moderated by

Glyn Hughes concluded that

for all countries across Africa

harmonisation is critical

particularly as the continent has

got a growing population and

a young labour force which

would be able to become a

young workforce and then a

young consumer market

In the session on trade

agreements the moderator

Tom Crabtree Regional

Director Airline Market

Analysis Marketing amp Business

Development Boeing

Commercial Airplanes put forth

three important questions

before the panel Are trade

agreements drafted with any

particular mode in mind Can

trade agreements liberalise

market access by themselves

What can we as industry

stakeholders do to make our

voices heard

Crabtree was joined on the

panel by Glyn Hughes global

head of cargo IATA Tleli

Makhetha general manager

South African Airways and

Vladimir Zubkov secretary

general TIACA

Hughes responded to

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

CIAL cargo facility has nearly 200000

square feet area (office and warehouse)

Of which nearly 132000 is dedicated for

warehouse To offer superior cargo services

to airlines forwarding agents shippers and

consignees we stick to the concept of fine

tuning our procedures to meet the ever-

changing demands and challenges of the

constantly evolving air cargo industry

elaborate on the performance of CIAL

in 2016

The total passenger traffic through the

airport in 2016 stood at 8736061 Of which

3764640 were domestic and 4971421

were international passengers In the cargo

front last year was a good year for CIAL

The cargo movement grew in double digit

registering a growth of 156 percent The

volume grew to 8533910 tonnes in 2016 as

against 7384920 tonnes in 2015 Of the total

cargo moved through the airport perishable

cargo share was 58261 tonnes

CIAL can easily accommodate long-haul

direct and non-stop internationaldomestic

crafts The biggest advantage CIAL has is

that it is well connected by road and rail

and rail network The NH 47 is connected

to CIAL by a four-kilometre four-lane road

The railway line cuts across the CIAL land

What is in the pipeline on the cargo

front

There is a full-fledged expansion plan in

place for cargo infrastructure expansion

As part of our vision we are in the process

of setting up a separate fully automated

new import and export section This facility

will have all the modern material handling

equipment and facilities The new import

warehouse will have a separate area for

courier baggage and commercial cargo In

addition to this the administrative offices

for customs and other related agencies also

will be integrated into the new premises

give details of the upcoming cargo

village concept

50 Acres has been earmarked for the cargo

village Once completed the cargo village

will offer separate sections for marine

products couriers express cargo valuables

and vulnerable cargo The logistic centre

along with the multi-modular operation of

the sea to air and air to sea transhipment

will be another attraction focusing on the

movements in Vallarpadam International

Container Terminal at Cochin Port

Also there are separate areas dedicated

to the storage and handling of domestic

(inbound outbound cargo including

courier) and international cargo including

the transhipment cargo

The entire International air cargo centre is

designated as a Customs Bonded area

It is equipped with the state of the art

automation tools and computers that

control the cargo terminals

We are also planning a separate import

warehouse which will be having separate

facilities for handling courier passenger

baggage and commercial cargo It will

also include administrative offices for

government agencies like customs PQ

PHO and other agencies associated with

cargo clearance

How do you ensure the smooth

functioning of cargo movement at

the airport

CIAL is the sole cargo handling agency

for all carrier operating from Cochin

International Airport Right from the

acceptance of cargo to the warehouse

to customs examination security

clearance stuffing documentation

including manifestation are all handled

by CIAL Since we are following a single

shop concept in cargo handling there

is practically very less interference and

coordination issues

What according to you makes Cochin

Airport the first choice of cargo

carriers

The addition of airline services to Cochin

Airport every year has led to increase in

passenger and cargo capacity Since it

started its operations CIAL has grown as the

hub of Middle East cargo traffic in South

India The accessibility the flying time etc

are the factors that determine the cargo

growth (especially fruits and vegetables to

the Middle East) of CIAL As over 80 percent

of export cargo at CIAL are perishables The

facilities like the centre for perishable cargo

a temperature controlled warehouse

exclusively for handling perishable has

fuelled the growth The airport adheres to

low-cost model with no compromise on the

quality of infrastructure and service

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 11

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom12

Take offThe perfect

Heres a story of a boy who was fascinated by aeroplanes in his childhood in a remote Kenyan village and pursued his dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer Last month Geoffrey Nyaga made his first plane journey of his life to Abu Dhabi as one of the five finalists of the IATA Air Cargo Innovation Awards He returned home with $20000 prize money and assurances of a promising future in the aviation industry

Geoffrey Nyaga is 25 years old He

is from Likii a small village on

the slopes of Mount Kenya near

Nanyuki town which is about

200km from Nairobi the capital city He

lives with his parents and his younger sister

His father owns a small retail shop while his

mother assists in running the shop He says

it was ldquojust enough to provide for our daily

basic needsrdquo

ldquoFrom as early as I can remember I have

always been fascinated by technology

specifically aeroplanesrdquo Geoffrey tells me

as he gets himself wired for the first ever

media interview of his life inside the majestic

National Exhibition Centre in Abu Dhabi

ldquoI grew up watching military aircrafts fly

above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and

small aircrafts taking off and landing from

Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody

from my extended family attend college or

anyone in our village working in aviation

I was always determined to pursue my

dreamsrdquo he adds

It is the fascination for technology

combined with his determination that led

him to pursue his dream of completing his

studies in Aeronautical Engineering from

the Technical University of Kenya With a

first class honour Geoffrey graduated in

December 2016 and immediately after he

began his first job at Astral Aerial Solutions

(AES) a subsidiary of Astral Aviation a

dedicated cargo airline with a strong African

footprint His first project was to build a UTM

(UAV Traffic Management) concept that

will safely manage UAS (Unmanned Aerial

System) traffic and to operate Flyox the

indigenously made cargo drone

Flyox has a payload capability of up to

2000kg 1200 km range and flight time of up

to 26 hours It can land in unpaved airstrips

and on water It is designed to enable safe

civilian UAV operations by providing pilots

with information on altitude separation

restricted airspace and weather conditions

The project will lay the foundation for safe

secure and effective UAS operations and

integrate into existing airspace to ultimately

allow the expansion of air cargo in Africa It

can be deployed for aid and relief medical

supplies mining oil and gas agriculture and

e-commerce products

It is this project that made Geoffrey

win the top award at the IATA Air Cargo

Innovation Award for 2017

He received the award at the 11th World

Cargo Symposium (WCS) in Abu Dhabi

ldquoWe hope to be able to develop a

Geoffrey NyaGaAstrAl AeriAl solutions

I grew up watching military aircrafts fly above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and small aircrafts taking off and landing from Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody from my extended family attend college or anyone in our village working in aviation I was always determined to pursue my dreams

rejI joHn

Profile

Sanjeev Gadhia Astral Aviation

Drone technology has strong potential to boost the continentrsquos air connectivity and deliver goods and services to remote regions and more critical lifesaving products to those in need

pathway that will encourage regulators

operators and manufacturers to come

together and pave the way forward

for safe and efficient UAS use in the

continentrdquo says Geoffrey

Sanjeev Gadhia the founder and

CEO of Astral Aviation who presented

the project on behalf of Geoffrey was

delighted to have been recognized

for the project ldquoDrone technology has

strong potential to boost the continentrsquos

air connectivity and deliver goods and

services to remote regions and more

critical lifesaving products to those in

needrdquo says Gadhia

Astral Aerialrsquos project seeks to lay the

It is great to see a developing nation company helping to drive the innovation that is needed throughout the global air cargo industry

Glyn Hughes iAtA

foundation for safe secure and effective

UAS operations and integration into

existing airspace to ultimately allow the

expansion of air cargo in Africa

ldquoIt is great to see a developing nation

company helping to drive the innovation

that is needed throughout the global air

cargo industryrdquo says Glyn Hughes IATArsquos

Global Head of Cargo

Geoffrey is still overwhelmed by the

warm reception he received from IATA

delegates and the acceptance of his

project ldquoI was also impressed with the

industry-wide drive to use new

technologies and innovation to improve

customer experience This united voice

by the industry towards adopting

innovation gave me hope that the cargo

industry would be attractive to young

talent wanting to join the aviation

industryrdquo he adds

UTM CONCEPT

LEVEL 1 1500ft

LEVEL 2 4000 ft

LEVEL 3 8000 ft

LEVEL 4 15000 ft

Medical Supplies Precison Agriculture and crop spraying

Mining

Wind Turbine inspections

Geofence

Power lines and Telecommunications

Emmergency Response

oil and gas

Pipeline inspections Wildlife

Sport and recreational

Surveillance Mapping Security

CARGO DRONESLarge Payload Long Range

General Aviation

Commercial Jets and Airliners

Flyox cargo drone developed by Astral Aerial Solutions

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 13

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14 APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14

rePort | air carGo africa

Bigger betterstrongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

teAM StAt trAde tIMeS

With massive

participation

from industry

stakeholders and

leaders at the fourth edition of

Air Cargo Africa the three-day

conference-cum-exhibition

was a resounding success To

unearth the growth potential of

the African continent the global

air cargo community converged

at the Air Cargo Africa 2017 at

the Emperors Palace in City of

Ekurhuleni Johannesburg from

February 21-23

The event under the theme

ldquoAir freight in Africa Building

tomorrowrsquos market todayrdquo was

inaugurated by the guest of

honour Dr Ismail Vadi Gauteng

Member of Executive Council

for Roads and Transport and Dr

N Xhakaza Member of Mayoral

Committee Finance and

Economic Development City

if Ekurhuleni along with Tleli

Makhetha General Manager

South African Airways and RK

Patra Group Editor-in Chief

STAT Media Group

Welcoming the delegates

to the fourth edition of Air

Cargo Africa RK Patra Group

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15

Editor-in Chief STAT Media

Group spoke about the

revolutionary changes that

the aviation industry is going

through where drones and

unmanned aerial vehicles are

being employed to deliver

cargo and Hyperloop is a

proposed new way to move

people and freight at airline

speeds for the price of a bus

ticket Emphasizing on the

importance of cooperation

he said ldquoAt Air Cargo Africa

through the deliberations in the

next three days we intend to

become a facilitator for greater

cooperation and collaborations

to enhance trade across

bordersrdquo and thus set the ball

rolling for the proceedings over

the next three days

Making his inaugural

address Dr Ismail Vadi pointed

out that significant innovations

are compelling people to

ldquorethink the way they live

interact transport domestically

and internationallyrdquo They are

influencing people to rethink

about all the ldquowell established

norms and practicesrdquo

Musa Zwane CEO (Acting)

South African Airways in his

keynote address said ldquoFor

South African Airways the

air cargo is an important and

significant part of businessrdquo

He goes on to add ldquoWe are

singularly proud that our

country is playing host to this

event which seeks to highlight

and enhance the development

of the air cargo and the

opportunities in the African

region We are also excited

that for the first time this year

shippers and forwarders are

participating fully in the event

to both exhibit and deliberaterdquo

IMPortAnt tALKIng PoIntSPanel discussions over the

three days touched upon

topics ranging from unlocking

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

to dealing with overcapacity

and declining yields in a volatile

market to understanding trade

agreements in the African

context and bringing to the fore

innovations in cargo delivery

The first panel of the day

saw the likes of Glyn Hughes

Global Head of Cargo IATA

Graham Perkins Vice President

Sales and Marketing (EMEIA)

Atlas Air Inc Barry D Nassberg

Group Chief Operating Officer

Worldwide Flight Services

Rudolf Steiner Senior Vice

President Cargo Global

Accounts amp Commercial

Swissport International

Rainer Mueller Vice President

Commercial Saudia Cargo and

Jan de Vegt Chief Operating

Officer Kenya Airways discuss

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Mueller highlighted that

even though the infrastructure

is somewhat in place when it

comes to handling the import

shipments or the export

shipments at the African

airports there is need to

improve the ground transport

ldquoWhat I would be hoping is

we as an industry manage for

setting up an effective ground

transport product in addition

to what we are having as an air

cargo productrdquo

Steiner however said that

investments are being made to

improve the current scenario

ldquoWe invested in brand new

facilities in Africa We have

opted for facilities in Dar es

Salaam and Kenya It is an

absolute must to invest in Good

Distribution Practices (GDP) and

core facilities we have done

that Are we yet there Most

probably not but compared to

two years ago we took a big

step We have to work closer to

the producer in order to further

improve in the logistics chainrdquo

he said

According to Barry D

Nassberg a lot more can be

done and that airports need to

be a willing partner in looking at

how it would develop a policy

where it allows a necessary

investment to happen

Graham Perkins pointed

out that with regards to

the readiness supporting

e-commerce African people

are ready to take this on but

the question is whether Africa

is ready to take it on He said

that custom infrastructure is

a major issue as it does not

support e-commerce ldquoIn many

cases a lot of countries have

customs rules and regulations

that dates back decades

and they are being used

unfortunatelyrdquo he said

Another significant topic

was the Yamoussoukro

Declaration that is most likely to

be implemented by December

2017 It was adopted out of the

recognition that the restrictive

and protectionist intra-African

regulatory regime hampers the

expansion and improvement of

air transport on the continent

Commenting on Africarsquos

Yamoussoukro Declaration and

the debate on opening skies

Jan de Vegt said Africa needs

to take cautious steps and not

rush to open skies outside Africa

ldquoWe have to come to a situation

where Africa has an open sky

within Africa firstrdquo he said

The panel moderated by

Glyn Hughes concluded that

for all countries across Africa

harmonisation is critical

particularly as the continent has

got a growing population and

a young labour force which

would be able to become a

young workforce and then a

young consumer market

In the session on trade

agreements the moderator

Tom Crabtree Regional

Director Airline Market

Analysis Marketing amp Business

Development Boeing

Commercial Airplanes put forth

three important questions

before the panel Are trade

agreements drafted with any

particular mode in mind Can

trade agreements liberalise

market access by themselves

What can we as industry

stakeholders do to make our

voices heard

Crabtree was joined on the

panel by Glyn Hughes global

head of cargo IATA Tleli

Makhetha general manager

South African Airways and

Vladimir Zubkov secretary

general TIACA

Hughes responded to

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom12

Take offThe perfect

Heres a story of a boy who was fascinated by aeroplanes in his childhood in a remote Kenyan village and pursued his dream of becoming an aeronautical engineer Last month Geoffrey Nyaga made his first plane journey of his life to Abu Dhabi as one of the five finalists of the IATA Air Cargo Innovation Awards He returned home with $20000 prize money and assurances of a promising future in the aviation industry

Geoffrey Nyaga is 25 years old He

is from Likii a small village on

the slopes of Mount Kenya near

Nanyuki town which is about

200km from Nairobi the capital city He

lives with his parents and his younger sister

His father owns a small retail shop while his

mother assists in running the shop He says

it was ldquojust enough to provide for our daily

basic needsrdquo

ldquoFrom as early as I can remember I have

always been fascinated by technology

specifically aeroplanesrdquo Geoffrey tells me

as he gets himself wired for the first ever

media interview of his life inside the majestic

National Exhibition Centre in Abu Dhabi

ldquoI grew up watching military aircrafts fly

above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and

small aircrafts taking off and landing from

Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody

from my extended family attend college or

anyone in our village working in aviation

I was always determined to pursue my

dreamsrdquo he adds

It is the fascination for technology

combined with his determination that led

him to pursue his dream of completing his

studies in Aeronautical Engineering from

the Technical University of Kenya With a

first class honour Geoffrey graduated in

December 2016 and immediately after he

began his first job at Astral Aerial Solutions

(AES) a subsidiary of Astral Aviation a

dedicated cargo airline with a strong African

footprint His first project was to build a UTM

(UAV Traffic Management) concept that

will safely manage UAS (Unmanned Aerial

System) traffic and to operate Flyox the

indigenously made cargo drone

Flyox has a payload capability of up to

2000kg 1200 km range and flight time of up

to 26 hours It can land in unpaved airstrips

and on water It is designed to enable safe

civilian UAV operations by providing pilots

with information on altitude separation

restricted airspace and weather conditions

The project will lay the foundation for safe

secure and effective UAS operations and

integrate into existing airspace to ultimately

allow the expansion of air cargo in Africa It

can be deployed for aid and relief medical

supplies mining oil and gas agriculture and

e-commerce products

It is this project that made Geoffrey

win the top award at the IATA Air Cargo

Innovation Award for 2017

He received the award at the 11th World

Cargo Symposium (WCS) in Abu Dhabi

ldquoWe hope to be able to develop a

Geoffrey NyaGaAstrAl AeriAl solutions

I grew up watching military aircrafts fly above our village from Nanyuki Airbase and small aircrafts taking off and landing from Nanyuki airstrip Despite having nobody from my extended family attend college or anyone in our village working in aviation I was always determined to pursue my dreams

rejI joHn

Profile

Sanjeev Gadhia Astral Aviation

Drone technology has strong potential to boost the continentrsquos air connectivity and deliver goods and services to remote regions and more critical lifesaving products to those in need

pathway that will encourage regulators

operators and manufacturers to come

together and pave the way forward

for safe and efficient UAS use in the

continentrdquo says Geoffrey

Sanjeev Gadhia the founder and

CEO of Astral Aviation who presented

the project on behalf of Geoffrey was

delighted to have been recognized

for the project ldquoDrone technology has

strong potential to boost the continentrsquos

air connectivity and deliver goods and

services to remote regions and more

critical lifesaving products to those in

needrdquo says Gadhia

Astral Aerialrsquos project seeks to lay the

It is great to see a developing nation company helping to drive the innovation that is needed throughout the global air cargo industry

Glyn Hughes iAtA

foundation for safe secure and effective

UAS operations and integration into

existing airspace to ultimately allow the

expansion of air cargo in Africa

ldquoIt is great to see a developing nation

company helping to drive the innovation

that is needed throughout the global air

cargo industryrdquo says Glyn Hughes IATArsquos

Global Head of Cargo

Geoffrey is still overwhelmed by the

warm reception he received from IATA

delegates and the acceptance of his

project ldquoI was also impressed with the

industry-wide drive to use new

technologies and innovation to improve

customer experience This united voice

by the industry towards adopting

innovation gave me hope that the cargo

industry would be attractive to young

talent wanting to join the aviation

industryrdquo he adds

UTM CONCEPT

LEVEL 1 1500ft

LEVEL 2 4000 ft

LEVEL 3 8000 ft

LEVEL 4 15000 ft

Medical Supplies Precison Agriculture and crop spraying

Mining

Wind Turbine inspections

Geofence

Power lines and Telecommunications

Emmergency Response

oil and gas

Pipeline inspections Wildlife

Sport and recreational

Surveillance Mapping Security

CARGO DRONESLarge Payload Long Range

General Aviation

Commercial Jets and Airliners

Flyox cargo drone developed by Astral Aerial Solutions

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 13

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14 APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14

rePort | air carGo africa

Bigger betterstrongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

teAM StAt trAde tIMeS

With massive

participation

from industry

stakeholders and

leaders at the fourth edition of

Air Cargo Africa the three-day

conference-cum-exhibition

was a resounding success To

unearth the growth potential of

the African continent the global

air cargo community converged

at the Air Cargo Africa 2017 at

the Emperors Palace in City of

Ekurhuleni Johannesburg from

February 21-23

The event under the theme

ldquoAir freight in Africa Building

tomorrowrsquos market todayrdquo was

inaugurated by the guest of

honour Dr Ismail Vadi Gauteng

Member of Executive Council

for Roads and Transport and Dr

N Xhakaza Member of Mayoral

Committee Finance and

Economic Development City

if Ekurhuleni along with Tleli

Makhetha General Manager

South African Airways and RK

Patra Group Editor-in Chief

STAT Media Group

Welcoming the delegates

to the fourth edition of Air

Cargo Africa RK Patra Group

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15

Editor-in Chief STAT Media

Group spoke about the

revolutionary changes that

the aviation industry is going

through where drones and

unmanned aerial vehicles are

being employed to deliver

cargo and Hyperloop is a

proposed new way to move

people and freight at airline

speeds for the price of a bus

ticket Emphasizing on the

importance of cooperation

he said ldquoAt Air Cargo Africa

through the deliberations in the

next three days we intend to

become a facilitator for greater

cooperation and collaborations

to enhance trade across

bordersrdquo and thus set the ball

rolling for the proceedings over

the next three days

Making his inaugural

address Dr Ismail Vadi pointed

out that significant innovations

are compelling people to

ldquorethink the way they live

interact transport domestically

and internationallyrdquo They are

influencing people to rethink

about all the ldquowell established

norms and practicesrdquo

Musa Zwane CEO (Acting)

South African Airways in his

keynote address said ldquoFor

South African Airways the

air cargo is an important and

significant part of businessrdquo

He goes on to add ldquoWe are

singularly proud that our

country is playing host to this

event which seeks to highlight

and enhance the development

of the air cargo and the

opportunities in the African

region We are also excited

that for the first time this year

shippers and forwarders are

participating fully in the event

to both exhibit and deliberaterdquo

IMPortAnt tALKIng PoIntSPanel discussions over the

three days touched upon

topics ranging from unlocking

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

to dealing with overcapacity

and declining yields in a volatile

market to understanding trade

agreements in the African

context and bringing to the fore

innovations in cargo delivery

The first panel of the day

saw the likes of Glyn Hughes

Global Head of Cargo IATA

Graham Perkins Vice President

Sales and Marketing (EMEIA)

Atlas Air Inc Barry D Nassberg

Group Chief Operating Officer

Worldwide Flight Services

Rudolf Steiner Senior Vice

President Cargo Global

Accounts amp Commercial

Swissport International

Rainer Mueller Vice President

Commercial Saudia Cargo and

Jan de Vegt Chief Operating

Officer Kenya Airways discuss

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Mueller highlighted that

even though the infrastructure

is somewhat in place when it

comes to handling the import

shipments or the export

shipments at the African

airports there is need to

improve the ground transport

ldquoWhat I would be hoping is

we as an industry manage for

setting up an effective ground

transport product in addition

to what we are having as an air

cargo productrdquo

Steiner however said that

investments are being made to

improve the current scenario

ldquoWe invested in brand new

facilities in Africa We have

opted for facilities in Dar es

Salaam and Kenya It is an

absolute must to invest in Good

Distribution Practices (GDP) and

core facilities we have done

that Are we yet there Most

probably not but compared to

two years ago we took a big

step We have to work closer to

the producer in order to further

improve in the logistics chainrdquo

he said

According to Barry D

Nassberg a lot more can be

done and that airports need to

be a willing partner in looking at

how it would develop a policy

where it allows a necessary

investment to happen

Graham Perkins pointed

out that with regards to

the readiness supporting

e-commerce African people

are ready to take this on but

the question is whether Africa

is ready to take it on He said

that custom infrastructure is

a major issue as it does not

support e-commerce ldquoIn many

cases a lot of countries have

customs rules and regulations

that dates back decades

and they are being used

unfortunatelyrdquo he said

Another significant topic

was the Yamoussoukro

Declaration that is most likely to

be implemented by December

2017 It was adopted out of the

recognition that the restrictive

and protectionist intra-African

regulatory regime hampers the

expansion and improvement of

air transport on the continent

Commenting on Africarsquos

Yamoussoukro Declaration and

the debate on opening skies

Jan de Vegt said Africa needs

to take cautious steps and not

rush to open skies outside Africa

ldquoWe have to come to a situation

where Africa has an open sky

within Africa firstrdquo he said

The panel moderated by

Glyn Hughes concluded that

for all countries across Africa

harmonisation is critical

particularly as the continent has

got a growing population and

a young labour force which

would be able to become a

young workforce and then a

young consumer market

In the session on trade

agreements the moderator

Tom Crabtree Regional

Director Airline Market

Analysis Marketing amp Business

Development Boeing

Commercial Airplanes put forth

three important questions

before the panel Are trade

agreements drafted with any

particular mode in mind Can

trade agreements liberalise

market access by themselves

What can we as industry

stakeholders do to make our

voices heard

Crabtree was joined on the

panel by Glyn Hughes global

head of cargo IATA Tleli

Makhetha general manager

South African Airways and

Vladimir Zubkov secretary

general TIACA

Hughes responded to

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

Sanjeev Gadhia Astral Aviation

Drone technology has strong potential to boost the continentrsquos air connectivity and deliver goods and services to remote regions and more critical lifesaving products to those in need

pathway that will encourage regulators

operators and manufacturers to come

together and pave the way forward

for safe and efficient UAS use in the

continentrdquo says Geoffrey

Sanjeev Gadhia the founder and

CEO of Astral Aviation who presented

the project on behalf of Geoffrey was

delighted to have been recognized

for the project ldquoDrone technology has

strong potential to boost the continentrsquos

air connectivity and deliver goods and

services to remote regions and more

critical lifesaving products to those in

needrdquo says Gadhia

Astral Aerialrsquos project seeks to lay the

It is great to see a developing nation company helping to drive the innovation that is needed throughout the global air cargo industry

Glyn Hughes iAtA

foundation for safe secure and effective

UAS operations and integration into

existing airspace to ultimately allow the

expansion of air cargo in Africa

ldquoIt is great to see a developing nation

company helping to drive the innovation

that is needed throughout the global air

cargo industryrdquo says Glyn Hughes IATArsquos

Global Head of Cargo

Geoffrey is still overwhelmed by the

warm reception he received from IATA

delegates and the acceptance of his

project ldquoI was also impressed with the

industry-wide drive to use new

technologies and innovation to improve

customer experience This united voice

by the industry towards adopting

innovation gave me hope that the cargo

industry would be attractive to young

talent wanting to join the aviation

industryrdquo he adds

UTM CONCEPT

LEVEL 1 1500ft

LEVEL 2 4000 ft

LEVEL 3 8000 ft

LEVEL 4 15000 ft

Medical Supplies Precison Agriculture and crop spraying

Mining

Wind Turbine inspections

Geofence

Power lines and Telecommunications

Emmergency Response

oil and gas

Pipeline inspections Wildlife

Sport and recreational

Surveillance Mapping Security

CARGO DRONESLarge Payload Long Range

General Aviation

Commercial Jets and Airliners

Flyox cargo drone developed by Astral Aerial Solutions

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 13

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14 APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14

rePort | air carGo africa

Bigger betterstrongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

teAM StAt trAde tIMeS

With massive

participation

from industry

stakeholders and

leaders at the fourth edition of

Air Cargo Africa the three-day

conference-cum-exhibition

was a resounding success To

unearth the growth potential of

the African continent the global

air cargo community converged

at the Air Cargo Africa 2017 at

the Emperors Palace in City of

Ekurhuleni Johannesburg from

February 21-23

The event under the theme

ldquoAir freight in Africa Building

tomorrowrsquos market todayrdquo was

inaugurated by the guest of

honour Dr Ismail Vadi Gauteng

Member of Executive Council

for Roads and Transport and Dr

N Xhakaza Member of Mayoral

Committee Finance and

Economic Development City

if Ekurhuleni along with Tleli

Makhetha General Manager

South African Airways and RK

Patra Group Editor-in Chief

STAT Media Group

Welcoming the delegates

to the fourth edition of Air

Cargo Africa RK Patra Group

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15

Editor-in Chief STAT Media

Group spoke about the

revolutionary changes that

the aviation industry is going

through where drones and

unmanned aerial vehicles are

being employed to deliver

cargo and Hyperloop is a

proposed new way to move

people and freight at airline

speeds for the price of a bus

ticket Emphasizing on the

importance of cooperation

he said ldquoAt Air Cargo Africa

through the deliberations in the

next three days we intend to

become a facilitator for greater

cooperation and collaborations

to enhance trade across

bordersrdquo and thus set the ball

rolling for the proceedings over

the next three days

Making his inaugural

address Dr Ismail Vadi pointed

out that significant innovations

are compelling people to

ldquorethink the way they live

interact transport domestically

and internationallyrdquo They are

influencing people to rethink

about all the ldquowell established

norms and practicesrdquo

Musa Zwane CEO (Acting)

South African Airways in his

keynote address said ldquoFor

South African Airways the

air cargo is an important and

significant part of businessrdquo

He goes on to add ldquoWe are

singularly proud that our

country is playing host to this

event which seeks to highlight

and enhance the development

of the air cargo and the

opportunities in the African

region We are also excited

that for the first time this year

shippers and forwarders are

participating fully in the event

to both exhibit and deliberaterdquo

IMPortAnt tALKIng PoIntSPanel discussions over the

three days touched upon

topics ranging from unlocking

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

to dealing with overcapacity

and declining yields in a volatile

market to understanding trade

agreements in the African

context and bringing to the fore

innovations in cargo delivery

The first panel of the day

saw the likes of Glyn Hughes

Global Head of Cargo IATA

Graham Perkins Vice President

Sales and Marketing (EMEIA)

Atlas Air Inc Barry D Nassberg

Group Chief Operating Officer

Worldwide Flight Services

Rudolf Steiner Senior Vice

President Cargo Global

Accounts amp Commercial

Swissport International

Rainer Mueller Vice President

Commercial Saudia Cargo and

Jan de Vegt Chief Operating

Officer Kenya Airways discuss

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Mueller highlighted that

even though the infrastructure

is somewhat in place when it

comes to handling the import

shipments or the export

shipments at the African

airports there is need to

improve the ground transport

ldquoWhat I would be hoping is

we as an industry manage for

setting up an effective ground

transport product in addition

to what we are having as an air

cargo productrdquo

Steiner however said that

investments are being made to

improve the current scenario

ldquoWe invested in brand new

facilities in Africa We have

opted for facilities in Dar es

Salaam and Kenya It is an

absolute must to invest in Good

Distribution Practices (GDP) and

core facilities we have done

that Are we yet there Most

probably not but compared to

two years ago we took a big

step We have to work closer to

the producer in order to further

improve in the logistics chainrdquo

he said

According to Barry D

Nassberg a lot more can be

done and that airports need to

be a willing partner in looking at

how it would develop a policy

where it allows a necessary

investment to happen

Graham Perkins pointed

out that with regards to

the readiness supporting

e-commerce African people

are ready to take this on but

the question is whether Africa

is ready to take it on He said

that custom infrastructure is

a major issue as it does not

support e-commerce ldquoIn many

cases a lot of countries have

customs rules and regulations

that dates back decades

and they are being used

unfortunatelyrdquo he said

Another significant topic

was the Yamoussoukro

Declaration that is most likely to

be implemented by December

2017 It was adopted out of the

recognition that the restrictive

and protectionist intra-African

regulatory regime hampers the

expansion and improvement of

air transport on the continent

Commenting on Africarsquos

Yamoussoukro Declaration and

the debate on opening skies

Jan de Vegt said Africa needs

to take cautious steps and not

rush to open skies outside Africa

ldquoWe have to come to a situation

where Africa has an open sky

within Africa firstrdquo he said

The panel moderated by

Glyn Hughes concluded that

for all countries across Africa

harmonisation is critical

particularly as the continent has

got a growing population and

a young labour force which

would be able to become a

young workforce and then a

young consumer market

In the session on trade

agreements the moderator

Tom Crabtree Regional

Director Airline Market

Analysis Marketing amp Business

Development Boeing

Commercial Airplanes put forth

three important questions

before the panel Are trade

agreements drafted with any

particular mode in mind Can

trade agreements liberalise

market access by themselves

What can we as industry

stakeholders do to make our

voices heard

Crabtree was joined on the

panel by Glyn Hughes global

head of cargo IATA Tleli

Makhetha general manager

South African Airways and

Vladimir Zubkov secretary

general TIACA

Hughes responded to

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14 APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom14

rePort | air carGo africa

Bigger betterstrongerAir Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a record number of exhibitors global industry decision makers and a large number of trade visitors from across 29 African countries and 32 countries from other continents

teAM StAt trAde tIMeS

With massive

participation

from industry

stakeholders and

leaders at the fourth edition of

Air Cargo Africa the three-day

conference-cum-exhibition

was a resounding success To

unearth the growth potential of

the African continent the global

air cargo community converged

at the Air Cargo Africa 2017 at

the Emperors Palace in City of

Ekurhuleni Johannesburg from

February 21-23

The event under the theme

ldquoAir freight in Africa Building

tomorrowrsquos market todayrdquo was

inaugurated by the guest of

honour Dr Ismail Vadi Gauteng

Member of Executive Council

for Roads and Transport and Dr

N Xhakaza Member of Mayoral

Committee Finance and

Economic Development City

if Ekurhuleni along with Tleli

Makhetha General Manager

South African Airways and RK

Patra Group Editor-in Chief

STAT Media Group

Welcoming the delegates

to the fourth edition of Air

Cargo Africa RK Patra Group

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15

Editor-in Chief STAT Media

Group spoke about the

revolutionary changes that

the aviation industry is going

through where drones and

unmanned aerial vehicles are

being employed to deliver

cargo and Hyperloop is a

proposed new way to move

people and freight at airline

speeds for the price of a bus

ticket Emphasizing on the

importance of cooperation

he said ldquoAt Air Cargo Africa

through the deliberations in the

next three days we intend to

become a facilitator for greater

cooperation and collaborations

to enhance trade across

bordersrdquo and thus set the ball

rolling for the proceedings over

the next three days

Making his inaugural

address Dr Ismail Vadi pointed

out that significant innovations

are compelling people to

ldquorethink the way they live

interact transport domestically

and internationallyrdquo They are

influencing people to rethink

about all the ldquowell established

norms and practicesrdquo

Musa Zwane CEO (Acting)

South African Airways in his

keynote address said ldquoFor

South African Airways the

air cargo is an important and

significant part of businessrdquo

He goes on to add ldquoWe are

singularly proud that our

country is playing host to this

event which seeks to highlight

and enhance the development

of the air cargo and the

opportunities in the African

region We are also excited

that for the first time this year

shippers and forwarders are

participating fully in the event

to both exhibit and deliberaterdquo

IMPortAnt tALKIng PoIntSPanel discussions over the

three days touched upon

topics ranging from unlocking

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

to dealing with overcapacity

and declining yields in a volatile

market to understanding trade

agreements in the African

context and bringing to the fore

innovations in cargo delivery

The first panel of the day

saw the likes of Glyn Hughes

Global Head of Cargo IATA

Graham Perkins Vice President

Sales and Marketing (EMEIA)

Atlas Air Inc Barry D Nassberg

Group Chief Operating Officer

Worldwide Flight Services

Rudolf Steiner Senior Vice

President Cargo Global

Accounts amp Commercial

Swissport International

Rainer Mueller Vice President

Commercial Saudia Cargo and

Jan de Vegt Chief Operating

Officer Kenya Airways discuss

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Mueller highlighted that

even though the infrastructure

is somewhat in place when it

comes to handling the import

shipments or the export

shipments at the African

airports there is need to

improve the ground transport

ldquoWhat I would be hoping is

we as an industry manage for

setting up an effective ground

transport product in addition

to what we are having as an air

cargo productrdquo

Steiner however said that

investments are being made to

improve the current scenario

ldquoWe invested in brand new

facilities in Africa We have

opted for facilities in Dar es

Salaam and Kenya It is an

absolute must to invest in Good

Distribution Practices (GDP) and

core facilities we have done

that Are we yet there Most

probably not but compared to

two years ago we took a big

step We have to work closer to

the producer in order to further

improve in the logistics chainrdquo

he said

According to Barry D

Nassberg a lot more can be

done and that airports need to

be a willing partner in looking at

how it would develop a policy

where it allows a necessary

investment to happen

Graham Perkins pointed

out that with regards to

the readiness supporting

e-commerce African people

are ready to take this on but

the question is whether Africa

is ready to take it on He said

that custom infrastructure is

a major issue as it does not

support e-commerce ldquoIn many

cases a lot of countries have

customs rules and regulations

that dates back decades

and they are being used

unfortunatelyrdquo he said

Another significant topic

was the Yamoussoukro

Declaration that is most likely to

be implemented by December

2017 It was adopted out of the

recognition that the restrictive

and protectionist intra-African

regulatory regime hampers the

expansion and improvement of

air transport on the continent

Commenting on Africarsquos

Yamoussoukro Declaration and

the debate on opening skies

Jan de Vegt said Africa needs

to take cautious steps and not

rush to open skies outside Africa

ldquoWe have to come to a situation

where Africa has an open sky

within Africa firstrdquo he said

The panel moderated by

Glyn Hughes concluded that

for all countries across Africa

harmonisation is critical

particularly as the continent has

got a growing population and

a young labour force which

would be able to become a

young workforce and then a

young consumer market

In the session on trade

agreements the moderator

Tom Crabtree Regional

Director Airline Market

Analysis Marketing amp Business

Development Boeing

Commercial Airplanes put forth

three important questions

before the panel Are trade

agreements drafted with any

particular mode in mind Can

trade agreements liberalise

market access by themselves

What can we as industry

stakeholders do to make our

voices heard

Crabtree was joined on the

panel by Glyn Hughes global

head of cargo IATA Tleli

Makhetha general manager

South African Airways and

Vladimir Zubkov secretary

general TIACA

Hughes responded to

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 15

Editor-in Chief STAT Media

Group spoke about the

revolutionary changes that

the aviation industry is going

through where drones and

unmanned aerial vehicles are

being employed to deliver

cargo and Hyperloop is a

proposed new way to move

people and freight at airline

speeds for the price of a bus

ticket Emphasizing on the

importance of cooperation

he said ldquoAt Air Cargo Africa

through the deliberations in the

next three days we intend to

become a facilitator for greater

cooperation and collaborations

to enhance trade across

bordersrdquo and thus set the ball

rolling for the proceedings over

the next three days

Making his inaugural

address Dr Ismail Vadi pointed

out that significant innovations

are compelling people to

ldquorethink the way they live

interact transport domestically

and internationallyrdquo They are

influencing people to rethink

about all the ldquowell established

norms and practicesrdquo

Musa Zwane CEO (Acting)

South African Airways in his

keynote address said ldquoFor

South African Airways the

air cargo is an important and

significant part of businessrdquo

He goes on to add ldquoWe are

singularly proud that our

country is playing host to this

event which seeks to highlight

and enhance the development

of the air cargo and the

opportunities in the African

region We are also excited

that for the first time this year

shippers and forwarders are

participating fully in the event

to both exhibit and deliberaterdquo

IMPortAnt tALKIng PoIntSPanel discussions over the

three days touched upon

topics ranging from unlocking

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

to dealing with overcapacity

and declining yields in a volatile

market to understanding trade

agreements in the African

context and bringing to the fore

innovations in cargo delivery

The first panel of the day

saw the likes of Glyn Hughes

Global Head of Cargo IATA

Graham Perkins Vice President

Sales and Marketing (EMEIA)

Atlas Air Inc Barry D Nassberg

Group Chief Operating Officer

Worldwide Flight Services

Rudolf Steiner Senior Vice

President Cargo Global

Accounts amp Commercial

Swissport International

Rainer Mueller Vice President

Commercial Saudia Cargo and

Jan de Vegt Chief Operating

Officer Kenya Airways discuss

Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Mueller highlighted that

even though the infrastructure

is somewhat in place when it

comes to handling the import

shipments or the export

shipments at the African

airports there is need to

improve the ground transport

ldquoWhat I would be hoping is

we as an industry manage for

setting up an effective ground

transport product in addition

to what we are having as an air

cargo productrdquo

Steiner however said that

investments are being made to

improve the current scenario

ldquoWe invested in brand new

facilities in Africa We have

opted for facilities in Dar es

Salaam and Kenya It is an

absolute must to invest in Good

Distribution Practices (GDP) and

core facilities we have done

that Are we yet there Most

probably not but compared to

two years ago we took a big

step We have to work closer to

the producer in order to further

improve in the logistics chainrdquo

he said

According to Barry D

Nassberg a lot more can be

done and that airports need to

be a willing partner in looking at

how it would develop a policy

where it allows a necessary

investment to happen

Graham Perkins pointed

out that with regards to

the readiness supporting

e-commerce African people

are ready to take this on but

the question is whether Africa

is ready to take it on He said

that custom infrastructure is

a major issue as it does not

support e-commerce ldquoIn many

cases a lot of countries have

customs rules and regulations

that dates back decades

and they are being used

unfortunatelyrdquo he said

Another significant topic

was the Yamoussoukro

Declaration that is most likely to

be implemented by December

2017 It was adopted out of the

recognition that the restrictive

and protectionist intra-African

regulatory regime hampers the

expansion and improvement of

air transport on the continent

Commenting on Africarsquos

Yamoussoukro Declaration and

the debate on opening skies

Jan de Vegt said Africa needs

to take cautious steps and not

rush to open skies outside Africa

ldquoWe have to come to a situation

where Africa has an open sky

within Africa firstrdquo he said

The panel moderated by

Glyn Hughes concluded that

for all countries across Africa

harmonisation is critical

particularly as the continent has

got a growing population and

a young labour force which

would be able to become a

young workforce and then a

young consumer market

In the session on trade

agreements the moderator

Tom Crabtree Regional

Director Airline Market

Analysis Marketing amp Business

Development Boeing

Commercial Airplanes put forth

three important questions

before the panel Are trade

agreements drafted with any

particular mode in mind Can

trade agreements liberalise

market access by themselves

What can we as industry

stakeholders do to make our

voices heard

Crabtree was joined on the

panel by Glyn Hughes global

head of cargo IATA Tleli

Makhetha general manager

South African Airways and

Vladimir Zubkov secretary

general TIACA

Hughes responded to

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom16

rePort | air carGo africa

Crabtree by sharing a timely

news of WTO Trade Facilitation

Agreement (TFA) coming into

force Global trade reforms

received a big boost when

the number of WTO members

notifying their acceptance

of the Trade Facilitation

Agreement touched 110 which

provides the minimal two

third threshold required for

its operationalisation when

Rwanda Oman Chad and

Jordan provided their letter

of acceptance to the director

general of the multilateral

trade forum on February 22

ldquoThe reason why this

is so timely and beneficial

for air cargo because there

are a number of measures

within the TFA that are

pro-air cargo First of all any

trade agreement leads to

growth and growth results in

prosperity Anything that can

promote and encourage and

facilitate simplification of trade

is something that we as an

industry should support The

TFA agreement will lead to

reduction in trade costs And

for developing nations it will

lead to 15 per cent reduction

in trade costs This is through

reduction of border restrictions

and simplification of border

management Secondly when

glyn Hughes IATA graham Perkins Atlas Air Barry D Nassberg Worldwide Flight Services Rudolf Steiner Swissport International Rainer Mueller Saudia Cargo Jan de Vegt Kenya Airways deliberate on unlocking Africarsquos civil aviation potential

Bongiwe Pityi O R Tambo International Airport gareth Joyce Delta Cargo Peter Musola Kenya Airways Slavey Djahov Panalpina World Transport (Dubai) Meshack Kipturgo Siginon Aviation Shahe Ouzounian Chapman Freeborn debates on over capacity and declining yield amidst volatility

you can streamline border

processes and harmonize

the processes like e-customs

and simplification of border

management processes

it allows air cargo whose

predicated value proposition

is based on speed to move

through the supply chain

that much quicker Any trade

agreement that will help

facilitate simplified border

crossings will help strengthen

air cargorsquos value propositionrdquo

said Hughes

Zubkov pointed out to an

interesting fact ldquoWhen the

air cargo traffic in a country

increases by one per cent then

trade grows by 63 per cent

So air cargo is the biggest

contributor to the development

of trade Thatrsquos why those

nations which understand

the importance of trade and

connections they give industry

stakeholders a chance to

develop and support the traderdquo

he said

However Makhetha was

cynical of trade agreements in

terms of its implementation

Hughes agreed with Makhetha

that it is very difficult to come

up with trade agreements

with neutralized benefits for

all parties Hughes also agreed

to Zubkovrsquos point that the

most difficult part of the trade

agreement is on implementing

the trade agreement ldquoTrade

agreements can only be

successful through the desire

and willingness of the member

states who have signed it to

implement it If everybody

enters into an agreement

with that same objective it is

very difficult to come up with

neutralized benefits which is

why bilateral or mutual trade

agreements are very delicately

balancedrdquo he said

Another important

discussion on ldquoOver capacity

and declining yield in a very

volatile market What is the

industryrsquos strategy to strike

a balancerdquo evoked a lot of

interest from participants

The expert panel was

chaired by Shahe Ouzounian

Chief Operating Officer

Chapman Freeborn Joining him

were Gareth Joyce President

Delta Cargo Peter Musola

Acting General Manager Cargo

Kenya Airways Bongiwe Pityi

General Manager O R Tambo

International Airport Slavey

Djahov Regional Head of Air

Freight (MEAC) Panalpina World

Transport (Dubai) DWC LLC and

Meshack Kipturgo Managing

Director Siginon Aviation

The panel demonstrated

how technology needed to

become an intrinsic part of the

entire air cargo supply chain ndash

from ground handlers to freight

forwarders and more - with the

aim of speeding up end-to-end

capacity and make a real impact

on business optimisation

We are singularly proud that our country is playing host to this event which seeks to highlight and enhance the development of the aircargo and the opportunities in the African region

Musa Zwane south African Airways

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 17

When the air cargo traffic in a country increases by one per cent then trade grows by 63 per cent So air cargo is the biggest contributor to the development of trade

VladiMir ZubkoV tIACA

(l-R) Ryan Viegas TEVA Peter van Domburg Expeditors Alban Francois Brussels Airlines Jimmy Nares Miami International Airport Jonathan Brand Sandoz SA Remo Hanselmann World Courier Abel Alemu Ethiopian Airlines Uttam Prakash Ranbaxy SA and Nathan De Valck PharmaAero

opportunities and challenges

This yearrsquos lsquoAir Shippers Forumsrsquo

focussed on four key com-

modities _ pharmaceuticals

perishables automotive and

humanitarian aid

neW exHIBItorS MAKe tHeIr deButWhile conference sessions set

Musola pointed out that while

the market scenario is not

entirely pessimistic the larger

problem exists in terms of

yields ldquoIt is a wake-up call for

all of us in the industry to see

how do we inject more value

in terms of our service offeringrdquo

he said Djahov observed that

the market in Africa is realizing

the need for investments

According to Pityi in the next

ten years they should be in a

position to provide facilities with

maximum handling capacity

and automated systems

The session reached a

conclusion on the point ldquoFocus

on being competitive in market

Run faster Apply cost discipline

process optimisation and invest

in technology in order to drive

a high service delivery to your

customers If you are not the

best you canrsquot survive in a high

capacity market That is be on

time every time and should a

process fail ensure that your

team is ready to react to the

customerrsquos demandrdquo

Apart from these plenary

sessions Air Cargo Africa went

an extra mile this year to roll

out commodity specific confer-

ences offering an opportunity

to the shippers and other stake-

holders involved in the supply

chain to meet and discuss

with the lsquoInternational Airport of

the Yearrsquo award Saudia Cargo

won the lsquoInternational Cargo

Airline of the Year in Africarsquo

The Air Cargo Brand of the

Year in Africa was bagged by

South African Airways while

Etihad Cargo was adjudged

the Global Air Cargo Brand

of the Year The clear winner

for the African Cargo Airline

of the Year was Ethiopian

Airways Cargo while African

Airport of the Year went to OR

Tambo International Airport

Among all cargo carriers Astral

Aviation was awarded African

All Cargo Carrier of the Year

while Cargolux bagged the

International All Cargo Carrier of

the Year in Africa

The highlight of the evening

was the Lifetime Achievement

Award that was conferred to

Chris Leach the chairman and

founder of Air Charter Service

for his outstanding leadership

and contribution to the

industry Although he was not

present to receive the award a

heartwarming lsquoThank Yoursquo video

for the award from him which

was played during the Awards

nite made up for his absence

Dan Morgan Evans Group Cargo

Director Air Charter Service

received the award on his

behalf Recipients of the awards

were nominated and voted for

by the worldwide readers of

STAT TIMES via an online poll

Curtains were drawn on the

fourth edition of Air Cargo Africa

2017 on February 23 with a

promise to get bigger and

better in the succeeding year

Air Cargo Africa 2017 gathered a

record number of 80

International Exhibiting

Companies 533 global industry

decision makers as registered

delegates and brought in an

impressive number of 3027 trade

visitors from across 29 African

countries and 32 countries from

other continents The recaps in

the pages ahead will give you a

glimpse of what you may have

missed if you were unable to

make it to the event

the tone of the convention

the exhibition received an

overwhelming response

of around 3027 visitors a

significant high from the

eventrsquos earlier editions With

80 exhibitors on the floor

this yearrsquos edition welcomed

some new members from the

community as well BeCon

Projects Bahrain Airport

Company Cargo Composites

EasyClear Express Air Cargo

Frankfurt Airport Fujairah

Airport Hybrid Enterprises

Miami International Airport

MampC Aviation Professional

Aviation Services Ultimate

Air World Courier Zone 4

International and Hybrid

Enterprises the exclusive

reseller of Lockheed Martinrsquos

Hybrid Airships

AWArdS nIte rAzzMAtAzzThe STAT Timesrsquo International

Award for Excellence in Air

Cargo was announced on Day 2

of the event The awards across

fourteen categories were given

away at a Gala Awards Nite

held at the Barnyard Theatre

Rivonia Johannesburg

Qatar Airways Cargo took

home the lsquoGlobal Cargo Airline

of the Yearrsquo award while

Brussels Airport walked away

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom18

The global pharmaceutical market could be worth nearly $16 trillion by 2020 It is estimated that export of pharmaceutical products from India is likely to reach about $20 billion by 2020 Sensing the criticality of Indian pharmaceutical industry ITLN organised the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit at Grand Hyatt Mumbai

teAM ItLn

PharmaIndian exportsto account for largest pie of

l-R Steven Polmans Dr K Bangarurajan gaurav Dhanda Vivek Padgaonkar Manoj Singh Ryan Viegas Ramesh Mamidala

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 19

The first edition of

Pharma Logistics

Summit 2017 brought

together regulatory

authorities supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share

best practices to mutually

benefit each other The event

witnessed participation of

150 delegates Supported by

OPPI and IDMA the event was

hosted by Brussels Airport and

Brussels Airlines Cargo with

SpiceJet as gold partner and

MIAL GVK as associate partner

The summit presented a perfect

platform for supply chain heads

of pharmaceutical companies

and logistics service providers

to discuss ideas and share best

practices to mutually cater to

each otherrsquos requirements

The day-long summit

discussed key issues and

steps to be taken to ensure

end-to-end visibility in the

pharmaceutical supply chain

The summit also deliberated

on how companies in logistics

industry should build their

capabilities to meet world

class standards in pharma

transportation

The summit started with

the opening remarks by Dr K

Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) who delved

upon the rapid changes in

regulatory framework critical to

enhance Indiarsquos pharma export

Currently India is exporting $16

billion of pharmaceuticals that

move to over 200 countries He

explained how the regulatory

bodies facilitated the vast

industry to reach this position

ldquoAfter the new government

headed by our Prime Minister

there was a circular by DGCA

that exports to regulated

markets like USA EU Japan

Australia need not be referred

for ADC port office NOCrdquo

Speaking on the role played

by Single Window Project as a

game changer for the Indian

pharma industry Gaurav

Dhanda Deputy Commissioner

Brussels Airport (BRU) and Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) proudly announce their

partnership in the recently launched PharmaAero initiative focused on improving pharma

handling and quality in the air cargo industry The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

was formally inked during the first edition of Pharma Logistics Summit

With the signing of this deal MIAL is the first airport in India to embark on a

community approach for the IATA CEIV (Centre of Excellence for Independent

Validators) Pharma certification thereby raising the local communityrsquos handling

standards and capability for temperature-sensitive pharma cargo

Speaking on the partnership Nathan De Valck Chairman PharmaAero ldquoWe are

thrilled that Mumbai Airport has confirmed their keen interest on becoming the first

Indian airport to join the PharmaAero initiative as a strategic member So they will

take the co-ordinating role within the Indian subcontinent in bringing the shippers

together and creating end-to-end pharma lanes together with us So the benefit for all

participating airports and shippers is that we will collaborate on creating end-to-end

certified pharma lanes sharing best practices in improving the overall handling quality

of pharmaceutical shipmentsrdquo

Steven Polmans Head of Cargo Brussels Airport Company said ldquoIn the not too far

distance selective gateways will handle more pharmaceuticals in a better way Brussels

Airport wants to be one of these selective gateways And I am sure Mumbai Airport shares

that desire For that reason Brussels Airport took the initiative together with some other

important airports to create a new organisation PharmaAero This organisation was

created to offer you the shipper dedicated pharma lanes around the globerdquo

On joining the PharmaAero initiative Manoj Singh Senior Vice President and Head

of Cargo Mumbai International Airport said ldquoWe are very pleased to sign the MoU with

the PharmaAero team It is something very different from any other associations which

is more focused on the airports and shippers connecting We believe this will really add

value quality and safety standards in the entire pharma industry This focused product

management will grow leaps and bounds and the airports are going to be informed

through shippers what exactly the quality they demand This will open communication

channels among stakeholders of pharma supply chainrdquo

PharmaAero is a collaboration of pharmaceutical shippers and airport community

stakeholders that embrace the IATA CEIV Pharma program and that are focused on

further building on the expertise gained in the program Members of this organisation

will share a common goal of strengthening pharma certified trade lanes and extending

pharma cold supply chains to reach new international markets

While Brussels Airport and Miami International Airport led the foundation of

PharmaAero other stakeholders of the air cargo supply chain soon joined the

initiative to give it global identity

Mumbai International Airport joins PharmaAero initiative

l-R Steven Polmans Nathan De Valck Manoj Singh

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom20

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

Customs (Single Window

Project) Central Board of Excise

amp Customs highlighted on

how the implementation of

SWIFT (Single Window Interface

for Facilitation of Trade) will

enhance efficiencies and has

enabled to reduce dwell time

and ease of doing business In

case of imports single window

project was implemented in

April 2016 whereas for exports

the same started last month

As far as air cargo traffic is

concerned over 90 per cent of

consignments are facilitated

The inaugural panel

discussion on ldquoEnhancing

pharma logistics _ New

strategies and methodsrdquo

was moderated by Vivek

Padgaonkar Director Project

amp Policy OPPI and among the

panelist were Steven Polmans

Head of Cargo Brussels Airport

Company Manoj Singh Senior

VP amp Head Cargo Mumbai

International Airport Ryan

Viegas Head of Logistics

APAC TEVA Gaurav Dhanda

Deputy Commissioner Customs

(Single Window Project) Central

Board of Excise amp Customs Dr

K Bangarurajan Deputy Drugs

Controller (India) Ramesh

Mamidala CEO CELEBI Delhi

Cargo Terminal Management

India and Tushar Jani Chairman

SCA Group of Companies

The panel echoed that

India has lot of opportunities

and room to grow and going

forward Indian pharmaceutical

exports will be the largest from

India in the coming years

The panel urged the need to

change the mindset of logistics

players and implement good

logistics practices and good

distribution practices

Polmans said ldquoFor the last

five years Brussels Airport is

looking at focusing on pharma

projects It was hence important

to get in contact with pharma

shippers which was not easy but

would have made a difference

We wanted to be a preferred

air cargo airport Soon direct

services between Mumbai and

Brussels will be launchedrdquo

Highlighting the scenario

of Indiarsquos pharma sector

Padgaonkar said ldquoIndian

pharma industry is placed third

in global rankings in terms of

volume but 14th in value The

gap between volume and

value needs to be narrowed as

global trade is fast moving from

volume-based to value-based

output To improve our ranking

it is imperative to strengthen

Intellectual Property protection

reduce business uncertainty and

increase investor confidence

Delegates at the event

Steven Polmans

Investments in research and

innovation are an integral part

of a nationrsquos growth trajectory

and India should aspire to take

its rightful place on the global

stage Given the infrastructure

and knowledge available in

India the next logical step

towards development for the

pharma industry as an aspect of

value creationrdquo

Dr Bangarurajan informed

ldquoPharmaceutical sector is one

of the top five FDI beneficiaries

in India At present there are

18 Medical Device Rules and

new Medical Device Rules

are in pipeline that will help

significantly improve the export

of medical devicesrdquo

Of the total cargo handled

at Mumbai International Airport

Ltd (MIAL) 40 per cent are

pharma temperature controlled

and non-temperature

controlled cargo Singh said

ldquoWe are upgrading Coolport

facility at MIAL and in the next

18-19 months we are expecting

an increase of 500 per cent

which will increase the capacity

to 450000 tonnesrdquo

Mamidala said ldquoIn 2013 we

designed a dedicated pharma

facility in Delhi airport that

handled 15-20 tonnes a day

Over the years we have made

huge investments and currently

the facility handles 200-250

tonnes a day The airports

should have global quality

facility to standardize pharma

exportsrdquo

Talking about the areas of

concern Viegas said ldquoThe

shippers need to take the

ownership for the products We

need to understand that the

regulatory bodies and airports

are facilitators We need to

change the mindset of peoplerdquo

Jain added ldquoAs far as Indiarsquos

pharma logistics is concerned

there is a need to build an

ecosystem and best

infrastructure for facilitate

smooth operations of pharma

logisticsrdquo

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 21

need to change mindset of pharma logistics players

l-R Johan leunen Alban Francois Thomas Mathew Amit Chadha Vivek Acharya

Discussions ranged from changing mindset to making right management decisions

in order to experience an efficient pharma trade lane at the first edition of Pharma

Logistics Summit 2017 which saw the conglomeration of regulatory authorities

supply chain heads of pharmaceutical companies and logistics service providers

The day-long summit discussed key issues and steps to be taken to ensure end-

to-end visibility in the pharmaceutical supply chain The summit also deliberated

on reliable airline pharma servicesSpeaking on the kind of challenges the shippers face Thomas Mathew

Consultant Haffkine Bio Pharmaceutical Corporation emphasised on the requirement of moral training for the ground level workers who should be aware of what kind of pharmaceuticals they are handling ldquoThere should not be segregating but a collective responsibility in the supply chain In the logistics aspect when we entrust people for particular work they should have integrity and dedicationrdquo

Vivek Acharya Principal Consultant Pharma Supply Chain SynCore Consulting

seconded the views of Mathew and raised concern that although there is a

heightened level of awareness in the country with respect to maintaining the right

temperature of pharmaceuticals violations still happen during the course of air

transit ldquoSometime the spirit is lost Although the beginning and end temperature

comply you might find all kind of violations happening in course of the journeyrdquo

Acharya also pointed out that in remote airport areas there is power inconsistency

road networks are not very good and sometimes simple reasons like truck drivers

not carrying necessary documents or fuel shortage stops trucks for 36 to 48 hours

Acharya added that there should be heightened awareness when it comes to solving

these problems

Meanwhile Alban Francois Vice President Brussels Airlines Cargo commented

ldquoIt is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right toolsrdquo Brussels

Airlines Cargo is soon going to include Mumbai to its network ldquoWe want to

do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai So we will perform an

audit here in the upcoming weeksrdquo He went on to say that mindset is vital and

awareness for every single person is a key requirement ldquoAwareness comes with training We also have to do right

management decisions and people management is part for me of a good mindset and how do we plan stuffrdquo

The discussion emphasized that different parties across the entire value chain could be trying hard at their own

level but they seem to be working in isolation This compartmentalisation between different parties will not help

and all stakeholders have to come together The panel concluded that just having an SOP in place is not enough and

there is sheer need for policing and understanding of what is being practiced to a much higher level

It is all about trust in your partners and also giving the right tools We want to do pharma shipments out of Mumbai and to Mumbai Mindset is vital and awareness for every single person is a key requirement

alban Francois brussels Airlines Cargo

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom22

Among all the subjects discussed at the Summit this session brought to the fore the

most major concern of what can be done to achieve end-to-end visibility in pharma

air cargo shipments

The panelists for the session were Makarand Sane General Manager Export

Logistics Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Aditya Parulkar President Penta Freight

Pramod Sant Vice President Head of ImportExport Siemens Babette Desfossez

Customs Attacheacute Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium Nathan De Valck Cargo amp

Product Development Manager Brussels Airport Company Reinout Puissant Cargo

Business Development Manager Brussels Airlines The session was chaired by Johan

Leunen Cargo Marketing Manager Brussels Airport Company

The panel urged the need to improve collaboration between the players in the

pharma supply chain

On how collaboration between the shippers and stakeholders in the supply chain

can be improved Aditya Parulkar Penta Freight said ldquoWell firstly its communication

A lot to do with data exchange that is real time exchange of information We get

really late information The problem that happens in transit are communicated to us

when the shipment reaches the destinationrdquo

Pramod Sant also believes communication is key He said ldquoIt becomes very

important how each partner will build their communication channel and that

depends on the volume handled by themrdquo

Presenting shippersrsquo point of view Sane said ldquoSometimes I believe too much

data is not good I donrsquot want to follow my shipment day and night On an average

we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track

each and every shipment is a task It should be available when I want it When there

is temperature excursion there should be a red flagrdquo

Puissant said ldquoThe purpose for us to be proactive is so that when there is red flag

we can become alert and alert you as wellrdquo

According to the shippers on the panel most of the problems in the temperature-

sensitive commodity occur in the land and not in the air Pramod Sant Siemens

added ldquoThe reason for this is lack of training or the warehouse where the material is offloadedrdquo

Desfossez informed that the reason that they donrsquot do a lot of checks with the goods is because the labour is

expensive Also the mindset of the Belgium customs is that they want to be more customer friendly

Talking about what will prove to be a game changer in the industry for end-to-end visibility Nathan De Valck

concluded ldquoFor me technology is an enabler and what will make it happen is collaborationrdquo

Puissant believes transparency and adoption of technology will be a game changer for end-to-end visibility in

pharma shipments

technology and collaboration will be key drivers for end-to-end visibility

l-R Johan leunen Aditya Parulkar Makarand Sane Pramod Sant Babette Desfossez Nathan De Valck Reinout Puissant

On an average we clear 13-15 shipments per day and they are all temperature-sensitive and to track each and every shipment is a task When there is temperature excursion there should be a red flag

Makarand sanesun Pharmaceutical Industries

review | Pharma loGiSTicS SummiT

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 23

NEWSCivil Aviation Minister inaugurates first integrated Heliport in Delhi

tHe first integrated Heliport was

dedicated to the nation by Ministry of

Civil Aviation in association with Pawan

Hans at Rohini Heliport Delhi After

inaugurating the facility the Minister

for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju

said that the heliport was an excellent

infrastructure but pointed out that

helicopter services in India are still at

a nascent stage He added that the

facility will keep the cost under control

as Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

(MRO) facility has been incorporated

This would also help in job creation He

also expressed the hope that the pilot

training centre would come up soon

The Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha said that the

aviation sector is making history

almost every day and that the heliport

is one such event He said that the

facility will be useful in providing

medical emergency public safety and

enhancing tourism Sinha also said

that helicopter services could become

economically viable if the prevailing 25

percent tax on ATF was reduced

The Secretary for Civil Aviation RN

Choubey said that it is part of National

Aviation Policy to have four heliports

one in each region and Rohinirsquos heliport

is the first step He also said that

helicopter operations could be shifted

from Indira Gandhi International Airport

to Rohini

The Rohini Heliport has been

completed in almost two years at a cost

of nearly Rs 100 crores This Heliport

will provide all helicopter operational

facilities and will decongest busy Indira

Gandhi International Airport and also

promote Regional Air Connectivity

through helicopters in the northern part

of the country for regular passenger

services heli services landing and

parking of helicopters Helicopters

Maintenance Services disaster

management helicopter emergency

medical services (HeMS) law and order

surveillance The Heliport consists of

a terminal building having capacity

of 150 passengers four hangers with

parking capacities for 16 helicopters

and nine parking bays

Pawan Hans has also prepared

a roadmap to connect all the major

destination from this Heliport such as

Ex-Delhi to Shimla Haridwar Dehradun

Mathura Agra Meerut and Industrial

Hubs such as Manesar Bahadurgarh

etc They will provide air connectivity

between Delhi and neighbouring cities

from Rohini Heliport

Pawan Hans is working to develop

four ldquoheli-hubsrdquo in line with the

concept lines of the ldquoAirport-Hubsrdquo

and Rohini is the First step into this

series These heli-hubs will be a

one-point solution for the helicopter

business and will act as a heliport for

public passenger services MRO facility

for helicopter maintenance and also as

a skill development centre for training

of pilots AMEs and technicians

GVK MIAL Cargo bags lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo on International Customs Day

gvK MIALS cargo division was awarded the

lsquoCertificate of Meritrsquo under the category of lsquoBest

Custodianrsquo on the occasion of International

Customs Day The prestigious recognition was

bestowed upon MIAL in an award ceremony

orchestrated by Devendra Singh Chief

Commissioner of Customs Air Cargo Complex

at the YB Chavan Auditorium recently At the

celebrations MIAL was felicitated in the presence

of Maharashtrarsquos Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

as Chief Guest and Godrej Group of Companyrsquos

Chairman Adi Godrej as the guest of honour

The Mumbai International Airport houses a

state-of-the-art cargo export terminal for processing

heavy and bonded cargo spread over 7500 square

metre and capable of handling 300000 tonnes

of cargo per annum The first-of-its-kind terminal

is a part of MIALrsquos ongoing Cargo Master Plan and

not only increments export capacity but also helps

reduce the overall dwell time by a considerable

extent Currently handling a throughput of over 07

million metric tonnes per annum

Each year the celebrations are set around a

particular theme this yearrsquos being ldquoData Analysis

for Effective Border Managementrdquo Important

stakeholders from the air cargo and ocean cargo

industry including exporters importers customs

brokers and customs officials from all over

India freight forwarders and other regulatory

authorities dealing with air cargo and ocean

cargo clearance were a part of the occasion The

decision for awarding the list of nominations

was made by a jury comprising of the Chief

Commissioners of Customs

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom24

NEWS

Jet Airways ink codeshare agreement with Fiji Airways

AAI to lead operations development and maintenance of Diu Airport

AAI DRDO and Jharkhand Govt sign MoU for development of Deoghar Airport

AIrPortS AutHorIty

of IndIA (AAI) has

undertaken the Operation

Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

from Diu Administration

A Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU)

demonstrating the

responsibilities has been

executed recently between

UT Administration of Daman

and Diu and AAI The

Operations Development and

Maintenance of Diu Airport

will now be led by AAI

The airport operations

were handed over to

AAI on March 10 2017

With this transition AAI

will provide required

facilities infrastructure and

management at Diu Airport

Further with the objective of

upgrading the infrastructure

and services at Diu Airport

Planning Department of

Airports Authority will shortly

develop the new design for

the airport At present Air

India operates scheduled

movements four times in

a week on Mumbai-Diu-

Mumbai sector on Viability

Gap Funding provided by

Diu Administration

AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) Defense Research

and Development Organization

(DRDO) and Government of

Jharkhand signed a tripartite a

Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for development of

Deoghar Airport in Deoghar

district of Jharkhand The

existing Deoghar Airport will be

developed for operations of A320

and C130 Aircraft

Signing of MoU took place

in a ceremony held at the Chief

Ministerrsquos Residence Chief Minister

of Jharkhand Raghubar Das

Union Minister of State for Civil

Aviation Jayant Sinha Minister of

Transport Govt of Jharkhand CP

Singh Dr Guru Prasad Mohapatra

Chairman of AAI and other senior

officials of State Government of

Jharkhand and AAI were also

present on this occasion

The Govt of Jharkhand has

acquired 60034 acres of land

which will be handed over to

AAI apart from the existing 5341

acres Deoghar Airport land DRDO

Government of Jharkhand and

AAI will provide Rs 200 crore Rs

50 crores respectively to develop

operationalise and maintain the

airport The time frame given to

develop and operationalise the

Deoghar Airport is two years

jet AIrWAyS and Fiji Airways

has announced a codeshare

partnership which offers guests

travelling on both carriers

convenient and seamless

connectivity between India

and Fiji via Singapore and

Hong Kong The codeshare

agreement a first-of-its-kind

between the airlines of the

two countries will address the

growing demand for travel

between India and Fiji

Jet Airways will place its lsquo9Wrsquo

code on Fiji Airwaysrsquo flights from

Singapore and Hong Kong to

Nadi and Fiji Airways will place

its lsquoFJrsquo code on Jet Airwaysrsquo

services between Singapore and

Mumbai Delhi and Chennai as

well as between Hong Kong and

Mumbai and Delhi All codeshare

flights will allow through check-

in to the final destination of any

journey JetPrivilege members

will also be able to accrue

and redeem JPMiles on the

codeshare flights operated by Fiji

Airways flights and the accrued

miles will count towards their tier

status as well

Gaurang Shetty Whole-time

Director Jet Airways said ldquoOur

codeshare agreement with Fiji

Airways reflects our continuing

commitment to the travelling

public to offer the best possible

connections to more and more

destinations around the world

which now extends to the

beautiful paradise of Fiji Ties

between the people of India and

Fiji can be traced back over a 100

year We believe this codeshare

partnership will play a pivotal role

in these endeavours by enabling

seamless connectivity between

both countriesrdquo

Andre Viljoen Fiji Airwaysrsquo

Managing Director and CEO

said ldquoThis is a very significant

achievement for both airlines

Demand for travel from Fiji

to India for tourism medical

treatment education and family

reasons keeps growing and

our codeshare agreement will

boost this even further And

with our convenient Hong Kong

and Singapore services which

connect with Jet Airwaysrsquo flights

we look forward to welcoming

more Indian travellers to our

home Fiji one of the most

sought after tourist destinations

in the worldrdquo

Speaking on behalf of the

Fijian Government _ the majority

shareholder of Fiji Airways _

the Attorney-General Minister

for Economy and Minister in

charge of Civil Aviation Aiyaz

Sayed-Khaiyum described the

new code-share agreement

as a major boost to relations

between the two countries ldquoThe

seamless connectivity that this

offers for travellers between Fiji

and Jet Airways destinations on

the Subcontinent and beyond

opens up all sorts of possibilities

for tourism and trade Fiji is

especially keen to attract more

investment from India and the

other countries serviced by Jet

Airways and this makes the

journey in both directions that

much easierrdquo he said

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 25

Airbus to set up its first Asia training centre in New DelhiAIrBuS is setting up a greenfield

training facility at Aerocity New

Delhi This step has been taken

to support Indiarsquos growing need

for Airbus aircraft pilots and

maintenance engineers The

ground-breaking for the Airbus

India Training Centre (AITC) was

performed by P Ashok Gajapathi

Raju Union Minister of Civil Aviation

and Tom Enders CEO Airbus in the

presence of Jayant Sinha Minister

of State for Civil Aviation

India is the fastest growing

domestic aviation market in the

world and is expected to continue

to grow at an annualised 93

percent over the next 20 years

outpacing the world average of

46 percent The number of trips

per capita in India is expected

to quadruple by 2035 due to a

Tom Enders and P Ashok gajapathi Raju during the ground breaking ceremony in New Delhi

combination of economic and

demographic factors

To cater to this huge demand

Airbus forecasts a requirement

for at least 1600 new passenger

and freighter aircraft by 2035

Indiarsquos rapidly growing passenger

aircraft fleet must be matched

by adequate availability of skilled

pilots and maintenance engineers

Airbusrsquo pilot and maintenance

engineering training center is the

type of facility which will help

augment the talent pool of such

personnel and thus be a force

multiplier for the Indian aviation

sector said Raju

We have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the

growth of civil aviation in India

This training centre will be the first

such facility fully owned by us in

Asia It is a symbol of our enduring

partnership with this country said

Tom Enders CEO Airbus

The almost 7000 square metre

Airbus India Training Centre will

be built in a modular concept

in order to become operational

by end-2018 with two A320

full flight simulators increasing

to four and potentially to six

simulators in due course It will

start with an initial capacity to

train over 800 pilots and 200

maintenance engineers annually

The centre will cater primarily

to Airbus operators in India and

the region Airbus has more than

250 aircraft in service in India

and over 570 are on order by

Indian airlines

NEWS

Vistara and Airbus India ink agreement for pilot training

Qatar Airways to start domestic carrier in India

vIStArA has signed a five-year

agreement with Airbus Group

to provide training services to

Vistara pilots for the A320 type

aircraft The two companies

inked the agreement at the

launch of Airbus India Training

Centre (AITC) in New Delhi

which brings state-of-the-art

technology to India for the

training of flight crew The

AITC is equipped with the

latest software that accurately

simulates the aircraft handling

characteristics and system

responses ensuring Vistara

pilots are well trained and

become more proficient with

global standards

Through this partnership

Vistara pilots will gain

significantly from Airbusrsquo

world-class training

methodologies and systems

Commenting on the

partnership Phee Teik Yeoh

Chief Executive Officer Vistara

said ldquoWe are delighted to join

hands with Airbus at the launch

of its first training centre in India

QAtAr AIrWAyS Gulf

carrier and the state-run Qatar

Investment Authority plan to

start a domestic airline in India

This information was revealed

by the CEO of Qatar Airways

Akbar Al Baker while addressing

to a media query at ITB Berlin

Last year India had allowed 100

percent foreign direct investment

in airlines up from 49 percent

previously

Al Baker said ldquoYes we will have

a 100 percent owned domestic

carrier in India that will belong to

both QR and our state investment

arm as India has now allowed

foreign direct investment in

domestic carriers within Indiardquo We

will soon be making an application

to that effect he added

Al Baker was responding

to a question whether he will

increase stake in IAG further He

said he had no intention to do

so at the moment but will file

an application for an airline in

India soon

As India gears up to become

the worldrsquos third largest aviation

market it is imperative to have

adequate world-class training

facilities to ensure a steady

pipeline of proficient pilots

This partnership underlines our

uncompromising commitment

to uphold the highest of safety

standards and operational

excellence I am confident

that our pilots will immensely

benefit from Airbusrsquo in-depth

and specialised training

solutions It will help us tread

a path towards industry

leadershiprdquo

ldquoWe are honoured to have

Vistara as the first customer

for the Airbus India Training

Centre We will start training

their pilots when the centre

becomes operational end-

2018 Our success is tied to the

success of our customers and

one way we contribute to that

is by offering them our services

like flight training said Dr

Srinivasan Dwarakanath

President Commercial Aircraft

Airbus in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom26

Emirates SkyCargo lifts more than 200 tonnes of flowers in Q1 2017

NEWS

Brussels Airlines adds Mumbai to its international network

Alliance Air to connect SAARC countries

eMIrAteS SKyCArgorsquoS new

cargo statistics has shown a

growth in the export of flowers

from major Indian hubs this year

While the airline uplifted more

than 550 tonnes of flowers in

2016 (January _ December) from

India it has already recorded

an uplift of more than 200

tonnes this year The carrier

attributes this marked increase

to the pre-Valentine day rush

Unsurprisingly roses were the

most uplifted flowers from across

its hubs in India

Apart from roses this year

also saw a rise in number on the

export of other exotic flowers like

jasmine orchids and carnations

from hubs like Bengaluru and

Mumbai Flowers were exported

from India not only for demand

around Valentinersquos Day Mothersrsquo

Day and other similar events but

also for religious purposes like

garlands for temples outside India

The transportation of flowers by

the air cargo carrier is a year-

round activity from its hubs such

as Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai

and Kolkata This year Bengaluru

and Mumbai already witnessed a

record uplift of close to 150 and

80 tonnes respectively in just the

first two months of the year

Speaking on the flower uplift

Keki Patel Cargo Manager (India

amp Nepal) Emirates SkyCargo

said ldquoMany regions in India have

the ideal climate for cultivating

flowers all year round offering

excellent growing conditions

We have witnessed a surge in

flower demand this year from

destinations like Europe who

have experienced a harsh winter

this year We have reported

strong volumes of flower

transport in the weeks leading

up to Valentinersquos Day this year

which will play a substantial

part in the total yearly volume

recorded for 2017rdquo

Sophisticated logistics by

Emirates SkyCargo ensures quick

and reliable air transport of these

delicate goods to destinations

across its global network State of

the art equipment and facilities

help avoid the wilting of flowers

Roses are hand harvested

and then sorted arranged in

bouquets and hand-packed into

boxes which are then loaded on

the aircraft Emirates SkyCargo

has transported Valentinersquos Day

flowers this year to Amsterdam

London Gulf countries like

Kuwait Bahrain and United Arab

Emirates US destinations like New

York and San Francisco

Emirates Skycargo also offers

a range of innovative cool chain

solutions to ensure that the

flowers are maintained at the

right temperature from the origin

to destination One such solution

is lsquoWhite Coverrsquo an innovative

temperature protection

solution that is cost efficient

and environmentally friendly

Designed to shield temperature-

sensitive cargo from solar heat

during transportation it is water

resistant yet breathable making it

ideal for the transport flowers

BruSSeLS

AIrLIneS

welcomes the

summer season

with new

destinations and

higher flight

frequencies The

main highlight

of the schedule

is the launch of

Mumbai route In addition the growth of the European

network with new leisure destinations

The biggest newcomer in Brussels Airlinesrsquo

intercontinental network is Mumbai Brussels Airlines

will fly five times a week to the economic heart

of India The Mumbai-Brussels flights can all be

combined with Brussels Airlinesrsquo connections to Africa

the US and Canada

Both the European and intercontinental routes grow

significantly during the 2017 summer season which runs

from end of March till October In an average summer

week Brussels Airlines offers eight percent more seats

compared to last year

ALLIAnCe AIr regional arm of

Air India is looking at spreading

its wings abroad Plans are afoot

to connect cities like Dhaka

Kathmandu Colombo and Male

from various Indian cities Alliance

has already applied to the authorities

for permission to start international

operations and is working on to

enhance its fleet strength to get to

20 aircraft the minimum number

required to begin international

operations as per the guidelines of

the Ministry of Civil Aviation The

fleet of Alliance Air largely consists of

turbo-propelled ATR aircraft

According to media reports the

start of flights by Alliance Air will

not see the withdrawal of flights

that Air India is operating to either

Kathmandu Male or Dhaka

On the domestic front Alliance

Air plans to start services between

Vizag-Vijayawada-Tirupati apart

from operating flights connecting

Chennai to Coimbatore and Chennai

to Madurai The airline is also looking

to see Alliance Air launch flights

from Delhi to Pathankot Lucknow

and Udaipur apart from a service

connecting the national capital to

Jaipur and Agra

Alliance Air has also gone in for

another rebranding exercise _ now

its aircraft have the Konark emblem

on their tails A few years back

Alliance Air had rebranded itself to be

called Air India Regional

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017| wwwacaainewscom 27

Logistics associations meet GST Working Group seek exemption for exim trade services

NEWS

Air cargo grew at 93 from April 16-Feb 17AIrPortS AutHorIty of

IndIA (AAI) furnished statistical

report that showed total

passenger traffic (both domestic

and international) at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed

a growth rate of 189 percent

Total air cargo at all Indian

airports during 2016-17 (April

2016-February 2017) witnessed a

growth rate of 93 percent

Main steps taken by

Government for growth of air

cargo are as follows

(a) The Ministry of Civil Aviation

(MoCA) has got the dwell-time

study conducted at six major

airports in the recent past to

identify the reasons for higher

dwell time in Indian airports and

corrective action(s) required The

free period for air cargo has been

reduced from 72 hours to 48 hours

wef April 1 2017

(b) The concept of 24x7 customs

clearance of importexport cargo

has been initiated at 13 airports

(c) The concept of lsquoSingle

Windowrsquo has been launched by

customs wef April 1 2016 in

phased manner which inter-alia

ensures on-line clearance from

various regulatory agencies

(d) For handling international

cargo at its airports AAI has

provided Automatic Storage amp

Retrieval System (ASampRS) as well

as Elevated Transfer Vehicle (ETV)

facilities for handling both import

LogIStICS InduStry leaders

from Federation of Freight

Forwarders Associations in

India (FFFAI) Air Cargo Agents

Association of India (ACAAI)

Association of Multimodal

Transport Operators of India

(AMTOI) and Consolidators

Association of India (CAI) recently

met JM Kennedy ADG DGR

Working Group Transport amp

Logistics in Chennai

The Central Board of Excise

and Customs (CBEC) constituted

GST Working Groups in March to

interact with select industry sectors

to address their concerns relating

to GST implementation issues

Welcoming the basic

objective of the Tax reformation

called Goods and Services Tax

(GST) as a revolutionary step

the associations maintained

that there are certain

provisions in the proposed

GST law causing concerns for

freight forwarding customs

broking logistics services and

manufacturing and exports

industry in the country

The association leaders

pointed out that currently

there is no service tax for freight

(l-R) Naveen Prakash from CAI Vivek Kale from AMTOI Samir Shah from FFFAI J M Kennedy gST Working group Vaitheeswaran Advocate and Hemant Bhatia from ACAAI

forwarding in the air and sea

cargo segment based on Rule

10 of the lsquoPlace of Provision

of Service Rules 2012rsquo which

provides that in respect of

taxation on transportation

of goods (other than mail or

courier) criteria should be the

lsquoPlace of Destination of Goodsrsquo

However the proposed

GST law plans levy of GST on

international transportation as well

as freight forwarding which is in

variance with the GST Provisions in

other countries as well

In addition in the international

air segment all airlines have

registration in India and when

a freight forwarder purchases

an air freight slotspace from

the airline the tax would be

applicable as per GST rate on

services Currently there is no tax

imposed on freight forwarders for

the same

Similarly levy of GST on

import cargo would also result

in double taxation (since on the

entire freight customs duties

are being levied under Section

14 of the Customs Act) affecting

re-export or Exim trade

and export cargo respectively at

Chennai and Kolkata Airports

(e) All the international air cargo

terminals managed by AAI are well

equipped with sufficient storage

space cargo handling equipment

cold rooms for perishable cargo

and other basic facilities

(f) The Common User Domestic

Cargo Terminal (CUDCT) concept

has been introduced for

maximum utilization of facilities

(g) AAI has prepared a road map

to create cargo infrastructure and

facilities at 24 AAI Airports initially

provide impetus to economic

growth and development

on pan-India basis to ensure

harmonious growth of all regions

in India

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

APR - JUN 2017 | wwwacaainewscom28

NEWS

Emirates SkyCargo ensures freshness of perishables launches Emirates SkyFresh eMIrAteS SKyCArgo the

freight division of Emirates

has launched Emirates

SkyFresh _ a suite of solutions

that help maintain the

freshness of perishables and

fresh consumables during

transportation

Emirates SkyFresh brings

together Emirates SkyCargorsquos

state of the art infrastructure at

its hub in Dubai a modern fleet

of wide-bodied aircraft including

freighters a range of innovative

cool chain solutions including the

brand new ventilated cool dolly

and experienced staff to ensure

that perishables such as fruits

vegetables fresh fish and seafood

meat and flowers maintain their

freshness during the entire air

transportation process

Emirates SkyFresh will

feature three levels _ Emirates

SkyFresh Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe and Emirates SkyFresh

Active _ offering varied levels

of cool chain protection for

different kinds of perishables

The basic solution Emirates

SkyFresh is geared towards

temperature tolerant fruits

and vegetables and will offer

quick ramp transportation and

thermal protection through

Emirates SkyCargorsquos White

Cover blanket Emirates SkyFresh

Breathe provides protection for

temperature sensitive perishables

such as fresh cut flowers ready

to sell cut fruits and vegetables

and fresh fish Unique features

will include prioritised ground

handling as well as the use of the

Emirates SkyFresh ventilated cool

dolly Emirates SkyFresh Active

will offer the highest protection

for perishables that cannot

withstand any temperature

deviation using specialised

temperature controlled

containers during transportation

The Emirates SkyFresh

ventilated cool dolly is Emirates

SkyCargorsquos latest innovative cool

chain protection product which

helps preserve the freshness of

perishables that require constant

Lynne Embleton takes over as Chief Executive of IAG Cargo

Ibrahim Hakki Guntay appointed as new GM ndash Western amp Southern IndiaIAg CArgo has appointed Lynne

Embleton as Chief Executive

Embleton current British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

is the new Chief Executive of

IAG Cargo with immediate

effect She will also join the

IAG management committee

reporting directly into its Chief

circulation of fresh cool air The

ventilated cool dolly not only

maintains a constant temperature

while transporting cargo but

also has a ventilation system

that allows it to bring in fresh air

from outside The fresh air is then

cleaned using custom built filters

cooled and then circulated inside

the refrigerated interior where the

temperature sensitive perishable

cargo is stored The Ventilated

Cool Dolly features aluminium

and PU insulated panels and can

carry a weight of up to 16 tonnes

The ventilated cool dolly can fit a

variety of belly hold lower deck

Unit Loading Devices (ULDs)

including pallets in its interior

Transporting perishables is

an important part of business

for Emirates SkyCargo People all

over the world are increasingly

aware and interested in

culinary flavours and produce

from different countries and

regions In line with this trend

the catering and hospitality

industry globally has also been

offering more international

dining choices to customers

More and more perishables from

different parts of the world are

shipped by air to ensure that the

products arrive fresh and within

a short span of time at the

destination

In 2016 Emirates SkyCargo

transported close to 400000

tonnes of perishables across

its global network of over 150

destinations

turKISH AIrLIneS has

appointed Ibrahim Hakki

Guntay as the General

Manager of Turkish Airlines

for Western and Southern

India In his new role

Guntay is taking charge of

Turkish Airlinesrsquo strategic

success in this region and

is responsible for driving

growth and expansion of

the companyrsquos market share in India stated a release

Prior to moving to Mumbai Guntay built his career

at Turkish Airlines in Istanbul starting in 2013 as a

marketing and sales specialist He was engaged in various

responsibilities and projects within the airline including

General Manager in Niger (2015-2016)

Guntay is a Turkish born in Kayseri and graduated in

Economics from Bogazici University

Executive Willie Walsh

Embleton will replace Drew

Crawley who becomes Chief

Executive of Avios which is the

Grouprsquos loyalty programme

Embleton has over 25

years of experience across the

Group heading up strategy at

British Airways before moving

on to become British Airways

Managing Director at Gatwick

Previously she was on the IAG

Cargo board as a non-executive

director for over four years

Walsh commented Lynnersquos

extensive experience across

Group strategy as well as on

the IAG Cargo board will be

invaluable in the continued

growth of our cargo business

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners

20-22 FEBRUARY 2018 MUMBAI INDIA

VENUE

BOOKNOW

eventsstattimescom acistattimescomwwwstattimescomACI2018

For bookings contact

Organised By PrincipalMedia Partner

Media Partners