A JOINT EFFORT
An example of Bolloré’s early logistics co-ordination activity
was that of working with Worldwide Flight Services to expedite
the distribution of 2m face masks to health workers in France
and Spain to support the medical teams. Along with Airbus,
which operated one of its own A330-800 passenger aircraft
to Tianjin, in China, to collect the shipment, the trio pooled
forces and the shipment was offloaded at Toulouse for final
distribution.
Dascher was one company quick to respond
to the crisis and opened Europe/US routes
destination that of Shanghai
Pudong International. As of
February 28, weekly round-trip
flights were established from
Frankfurt, with Shanghai
departures each Tuesday.
This schedule remained in
place throughout March, when
consideration of a further
extension was made; the
service was complemented by
flights from Hong Kong to
Europe. Flights from Hong
Kong to Guadalajara were also
offered in March.
In the wake of the decision
by US authorities to close its
borders to visitors from Europe
and to prepare for the
consequent sharp decrease in
commercial cargo capacity, the
company established a return
air charter programme, linking
Amsterdam and Chicago on a
four flights a week schedule.
The first flight from Amsterdam
took place on March 21.
Aside from this air activity,
Geodis has also continued to
offer its rail solutions from
major cities in China, with
return routings also available.
Geodis has not been the
only forwarder to have
launched airfreight charter
operations in recent weeks:
Dachser, Bolloré, DSV
Panalpina and CEVA Logistics
have all joined the fray, the
latter focusing on the US/Asia
supply chain, with DSV
Panalpina enhancing its
Chinese traffic.
Responding to the supply
chain disruption brought on by
COVID-19, Dachser Air & Sea
Logistics introduced the latest
addition to its charter flight
rotation in the form of a direct
Chicago-Frankfurt-Chicago
route: service began on March
20.
At the time of writing
COVID-19 was continuing to
have a serious impact on
Dachser aims to anticipate the
needs of its customers and be
one step ahead by offering
timely, intelligent and flexible
solutions. We plan to continue
to expand our premium air
service as the needs within the
air freight market continue to
grow,” added Stroh.
Action in Latin America
In Latin America, the industry
has also been pro-active.
Avianca Cargo has been
providing an uninterrupted
freight transport service with
the support of aircraft and
passenger crew to contribute to
the supply of food, medical
equipment, toiletries and
medicines. A B787-800
passenger aircraft set the ball
rolling when it undertook its
first cargo flight, carrying
nearly 20 tonnes of essential
goods as belly freight from
Colombia to JFK.
Since it has been necessary
to take additional measures for
the welfare and protection of
onboard and ground
personnel, Avianca established
protocols to minimise physical
contact, as well as provide
cleaning kits and protective
items to its employees:
anti-bacterial gel, gloves and
digital thermometers were
given to the crew and staff
members who had contact
with the public. Further, it has
delivered alcohol and towels
for cleaning keyboards and
accessories in the offices and
carried out additional
disinfection work in bathrooms
and offices of the cargo
terminals.
“Achieving this operation
has been a major logistical
challenge for Avianca.
Prioritising the safety of our
personnel and operation, we
have adapted to the regulations
of the different countries to
supply chain fluidity and air
freight capacity. Dachser has
taken a proactive stance in
addressing the needs of the
marketplace by chartering B747
aircraft and adding them into
its premium charter flight
service rotation with this
Chicago-Frankfurt-Chicago
route. Prior to introducing this
new service Dachser, in
anticipation of ongoing air
freight capacity challenges,
expanded its premium charter
flight service by introducing
several new charter flights,
primarily focusing on direct
routes to and from Frankfurt
and Asia.
“With this new Chicago-
Frankfurt-Chicago service, our
Americas-based customers
interested in efficiently
connecting with Asia can
leverage our expanded charter
flight rotation that features
additional routes in and out of
China, Hong Kong and South
Korea,” explained Timo Stroh,
Head of Global Air Freight.
“For those customers looking
to do business in Europe, we
offer an unmatched European
road network that essentially
creates a connection to the
entire continent when
dispatching out of Frankfurt.”
During these volatile and
unpredictable times, Dachser’s
European customers have been
requesting a direct charter
flight to the US for their
time-sensitive cargo. This
Chicago-Frankfurt-Chicago
route addresses that need and
allows swift movement of cargo
between the US and Europe.
“Today, the marketplace
demands reliability and agility.
TOWARDS A BETTER OVERVIEW
XPO Logistics recently introduced a new digital dashboard for shippers and carriers
in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The company integrated the tools with its
XPO Connect digital freight platform in North America and Europe. Mario Harik, Chief
Information Officer, XPO Logistics, commented: “We’re giving our customers a central
source of vital information as they manage their supply chains in uncharted waters.
Our team developed the COVID-19 dashboard in the cloud and deployed it globally
in a matter of days. We’ll continue to leverage our technology to rapidly respond to
customer needs.”
The multi-lingual dashboard is located in the analytics section of XPO Connect
and includes daily alerts issued by states, provinces, countries and transportation
infrastructure sources, such as municipalities and airports.
www.airlogisticsinternational.com June 2020 11
/www.airlogisticsinternational.com