Berlin airport about to open - really! 
Berlin's new airport (BER) will finally go into operation tomorrow, 31.10.2020, thus ending an odyssey that began in 1996. At the beginning, it was decided to extend the already existing Schönefeld (SXF) airport and then close down the Tegel (TXL) and Tempelhof (THF) locations... more
Brexit a benefit for air freight?
The British aviation services group and air freight broker Air Partner is preparing for a possible influx of air freight requests as the UK approaches the end of its transition period out of the EU (31 December 2020). In fact, loaded trucks that at present enter England via... more
Big win for new P2F programme
Gecas Cargo and Kalitta Air have signed an agreement for three B777-300ERSF. The US cargo airline will be the first operator of the new passenger-to-freighter type, adding to their already sizable all-cargo fleet, including four B777F, 24 B747-400F and nine... more
Qantas puts world's first A321P2F into service
ST Engineering, Airbus and their joint venture Elbe Flugzeugwerke (EFW) achieved a key milestone in their joint A321 passenger-to-freighter (P2F) conversion programme in September with the re-delivery of the "head of version" to launch customer Vallair. The A321P2F,... more
"No sign of recovery in sight" for Asian carriers
Preliminary September 2020 traffic figures released by the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (Aapa) showed that both international passenger and cargo demand is "at markedly depressed levels, with no sign of recovery in sight". Whilst manufacturing conditions... more
Welsh MRO moves into conversion business
With aircraft continuing to be grounded by the pandemic, belly capacity on passenger flights has been significantly reduced, increasing demand for dedicated cargo freighters. Amidst the uncertainty in the passenger sector, the number of aircraft primed for the conversion market... more
The rising sun over Frankfurt
Nikkei-listed All Nippon Airways (ANA) is launching its first scheduled freighter flights to Europe with the start of services between Tokyo and Frankfurt today. The Boeing B777F flights will operate twice a week (Wednesdays and Saturdays) and offer 100 t capacity per flight.The... more
Pipistrel with Honeywell
Pipistrel, a small aircraft designer and manufacturer specialised in energy-efficient and affordable high-performance aircraft, has selected Honeywell’s "compact fly-by-wire" system as the "brain" for its Nuuva V300 cargo, which is designed to carry up to... more
"FRA-OS" for innovative cargo data exchange
Fraport AG, the operator of Frankfurt airport, one of the major cargo hubs in Europe, is developing a digital data exchange platform for freight handling. The project is carried out in cooperation with the German customs office, the regional freight forwarding and logistics... more
Pharma.Aero introduces five new full members
During October, Pharma.Aero, a non-profit organisation based in Brussels, which aims to achieve excellence in reliable end-to-end air transportation for life science and medtech shippers, has announced five new full members from different parts of the world: the Belgian... more