BUSiness buzz
Harlan Helps US Airways Express Go Green At PHL: Harlan Global Manufacturing, Kansas City, KS, launched 20 of its new all-electric belt loaders with US Airways Express at the Philadelphia International Airport. The company also rolled out 15 all-electric baggage tractors as part of the airline’s major going green initiative at its Philadelphia facilities. Both the company’s Express HBLE belt loader and Charger baggage tractors use the same state-of-the-art components. The systems are 80 volt AC. Harlan manufactures everything on the machines except for the battery and controller. This includes the recently acquired integrated drive axle system from Speth of Germany.
Passenger traffic gets a boost; freight continues to stagnate: The International Air Transport Association announced traffic results for July which showed that passenger travel was up 5.9 percent over July 2010. Freight markets were stagnating with a 0.4 percent demand decline over previous year levels. International passenger markets, which grew by 7.3 percent compared with July 2010, remain stronger on average than domestic markets which showed weaker growth of 3.5 percent year over year. Compared to prerecession levels of early 2008, international passenger traffic has expanded by 12 percent. Had the industry continued to grow at the prerecession pace of 8 percent, international markets would have been about 14 percent higher than today’s levels and a quarter higher than prerecession level. This confirms that the global financial crisis has cost airlines about two full years of growth. Load factors for the total market (domestic and international) have improved by half a percentage point over July 2010 to 83.1 percent. This is equal to the highs recorded in the third quarter of 2010. North American carriers and European carriers were in the lead. Latin American carriers saw the biggest improvement (from 76.5 percent last July to 79.6 percent this year).
Finnair in discussions with Swissport for Helsinki Airport: Finnair is in negotiations with Swissport International, Zurich, Switzerland, about baggage and apron services at Helsinki Airport. The aim is to conclude negotiations before the end of the year. “Developing partnership networks is part of Finnair’s key strategy,” said Ville Iho, Finnair’s COO. “We aim for even better quality and cost-efficiency.” Employees working for Barona Handling, currently executing Finnair’s ramp handling activities in the Helsinki hub, would transfer to the service of Swissport under their present terms of employment if the Swissport and Finnair reach an agreement. Swissport International plans to establish a ground handling organization in Helsinki to be able to offer the full range of ground handling services to all airlines operating at Helsinki airport.
ALTA member airlines passenger traffic increases 2 percent in July: The Latin American and Caribbean Air Transport Association announced that its member airlines carried 12.7 million passengers in July, up 2.1 percent from the previous year. Traffic grew 1.5 percent and capacity declined 2.8 percent, raising the load factor to 79.4 percent, 3.3 percentage points higher than in July 2010. “The July results are significantly affected by Mexicana’s exit from the market,” said Alex de Gunten, ALTA’s Executive Director. “Excluding Mexicana, passenger growth in July would be 11.2 percent with an increase in traffic of 11.6 percent and capacity at 6.8 percent.” The number of passengers carried year-to-date (January to July) increased 4.1 percent versus the same period of the previous year, reaching 80.4 million passengers. During the aforementioned period traffic rose 5.3 percent, capacity increased 0.3 percent and the passenger load factor reached 75.6 percent.
NATA updates de/anti-icing training module: The National Air Transportation Association’s Safety 1st released its updated De/Anti-icing training module this month. Winter weather training programs like NATA’s Safety 1st De/Anti-Icing module are designed to familiarize line service specialists with the responsibilities of their job and give an overview of the skills necessary to ensure safe aircraft departures. The De/Anti-icing training module was first released in 2010. Updates include supplementary documentation of different types of contamination; communication section between crews and deicing techs; and anti-icing and deicing section to clarify the sequence of procedures.
ATS receives first ISAGO registration in Las Vegas: Airport Terminal Services, St. Louis, MO, announced that it had received the IATA Safety Audit for Ground Operations registration for its corporate office in St. Louis and is the first ground service provider to be registered at Las Vegas – McCarran International Airport. ATS services audited by ISAGO included baggage handling; aircraft handling and loading; aircraft ground movement; and organization and management. The implementation of ISAGO aims to improve safety and cut airline costs by drastically reducing ground accidents and injuries.
Lufthansa Cargo receives U.S. SAFETY Act Designation: Lufthansa Cargo AG has been the first air carrier to receive the U.S. Department of Homeland Security SAFETY Act Designation for the screening of air cargo departing the United States. The airline has invested heavily to further improve air cargo security over the recent years. In the Americas, Lufthansa Cargo has implemented new x-ray and trace detection machines into operation and is currently increasing the number of security experts at its stations significantly. The SAFETY Act provides legal liability protections for providers of “Qualified Anti-Terrorism Technologies.” The goal of the SAFETY Act is to encourage the development and deployment of new and innovative anti-terrorism products and services by providing liability protections.
Clariant enables Oslo Airport to recycle de-icer: A new Clariant recycling plant for aircraft de-icer was inaugurated this month at Norway’s Oslo International Airport. In the coming 2011-12 winter, it is expected that the unit will reprocess as much as 70 percent of the aircraft de-icer fluid used in Oslo. The recycled product – mono propylene glycol – will substitute an estimated 700 metric tons per year of original material in de-icing and heat transfer applications. Recycling also will reduce the airport’s carbon footprint. Clariant, Mount Holly, NC, estimates that carbon emissions over the life cycle of de-icing will be reduced by an annual 2,800 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent. This is roughly equivalent to the emissions of 7,400 round-trip flights between London and Oslo.
Partnerships/Acquisitions/Contracts
Cavotec acquires INET Airport Systems: Cavotec, Lugano, Switzerland, acquired INET Airport Systems, a leader in the engineering and manufacturing of ground support equipment based in United States in August. “Our focus is directed strongly on servicing our extensive North American customer base with local North American manufacturing and sales support, while simultaneously strengthening our global presence through our extensive Cavotec sales and service network,” said Ottonel Popesco, Cavotec CEO. The acquisition further consolidates Cavotec’s position in North America, with nearly 200 employees and colleagues working from three manufacturing facilities and from Cavotec’s own local offices in Chicago, Charlotte, Houston, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, Toronto and Vancouver. The deal also marks a milestone in Cavotec’s presence in the U.S. market, especially given INET’s long list of U.S. and international clients, which include Lockheed, Boeing, NASA, Northrop Grumman, as well as many international airports such as Miami, Bangkok, Cairo, Toronto and Vancouver.
Former Flightworks president acquires ADI: Aerodynamics Inc., Waterford, MI, announced in August that the company and its subsidiary, ADI Shuttle Group LLC, has been acquired by Scott Beale, former president, founder and co-owner of FlightWorks. Terms of the acquisition were undisclosed. ADI is a full-service flight and maintenance repair firm that operates under Part 121, 125, 135 and 145 of the Federal Aviation Regulations. The company’s specialties include corporate shuttles, charter services, aircraft management, and maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services. ADI headquarters will remain in Michigan at the Oakland County International Airport.
Matheson Flight Extenders, Inc. awarded international contract with Asiana Airlines Inc.: Matheson Flight Extenders, Inc., a transportation, environmental and airport services company headquartered in Sacramento, CA , announced its first international contract last August with South Korea’s Asiana Airlines to provide import/export warehousing and aircraft ground handling at Matheson’s Portland, OR, facility. Asiana Airlines Inc. will initiate service with three flights per week.
DOE awards grant to Boeing to study renewable jet fuel: The Department of Energy awarded Boeing up to $4 million to study new methods of converting biomass-based ethanol into jet fuel. “Investments aim to accelerate the discovery of innovative solutions that could drive down the cost of biofuels production and boost their availability in the marketplace,” said U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu. Back in 2008, Boeing and other companies partnered to launch the first commercial aviation flight using a sustainable biomass-to-liquid fuel mixed with traditional kerosene-based jet fuel. The Virgin Atlantic 747-400 flew using a biofuel blend of babassu oil and coconut oil.
People in the news
Garsite names Chris Dukes to lead new Middle-East branch: Garsite, Kansas City, KS, announces a permanent office in Dubai, UAE, scheduled to open by Jan. 1. Chris Dukes, vice president of international sales will lead the new office. The new site will give Garsite the ability to better service existing customers in Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE-United Arab Emirates.
NBAA announces Winant Award winner: Jim Cannon, airman, author, and advocate in business aviation, will be honored with the National Business Aviation Association’s John H. Winant Award. Cannon will be formally recognized at the group’s 64th Annual Meeting & Convention, Oct. 10-12. The Winant Award recognizes former NBAA directors whose service to business aviation continues well beyond their tenure on NBAA’s Board of Directors. Winant’s association with NBAA extended over five decades.
Swissport announces new management in Brussels: Swissport International, Zurich, Switzerland, appointed new management to run the ground handling operations at Brussels Airport. The company named Marcel Buelens as CEO and Alex Weidmann as COO. Swissport Cargo Services will remain under the lead of Managing Director Patrick Minsart. Buelens was previously CEO of Brussels South Charleroi Airport from 2006 to 2009. He has extensive international experience within ground handling and logistics, including overseas assignments in Hong Kong and in the Middle East. Weidmann has 28 years of international expertise in the aviation industry. He was manager for special projects at Swissport Zurich. He has additional experience in similar roles in Los Angeles, Manila and Paris.
JetStream Ground Services appoints new leaders: JetStream Ground Services, Inc., Jupiter, FL, recently appointed Richard “Rich” Cordell as COO. Cordell is the former senior vice president of airport customer service and a 30-year veteran of Delta Air Lines. JetStream also announced Blake W. Schultz Jr. has joined the company as vice president of sales and marketing. Schultz has more than 35 years of airline and aviation service experience holding various positions both in operations and sales during his career. The appointment of these two leaders to the executive team closely follows the company’s significant technology investment in mobile resource planning solutions for its airport operations. Both Cordell and Schultz will report to Marc Desnoyers, president and founder of the company and will be based at the corporate headquarters in Jupiter, FL.
