“Air cargo volumes have now firmly returned to pre-pandemic levels. The challenge now is to ensure that air cargo growth is efficient, safe and aligned with achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Thanks to the hard work of the air cargo industry, the foundation has been laid to accelerate significantly progress in all these areas. ”said Brendan Sullivan, IATA Global Director of Cargo at the World Cargo Symposium (WCS), which opened today in Hong Kong.
Digitalization
“The biggest opportunity for the air cargo industry is digitalization. This has not happened as quickly as any of us would have liked. But progress is real. Inefficient manual paper-based processes are being replaced by digital solutions in all aspects of cargo operations, from tracking to customs clearance. It is a fact. And it is making international trade more efficient. “Our call to action is clear: governments must consistently implement global standards, supply chain partners must collaborate to overcome shared challenges, and the entire industry must align to ensure a unified and effective approach to digitalization,” said Sullivan.
Three areas were highlighted to illustrate progress:
Seamless exchange of digital information: Adoption of the ONE Record standard enables efficient data exchange throughout the supply chain. The goal is for all IATA members to reach ONE Record capacity by January 2026. Cathay Cargo and Lufthansa Cargo have already met this goal. And all major airline IT platform providers have committed to achieving ONE Record capability to support this transition.
Digitization of customs and trade facilitation processes: Among countries already implementing it, Brazil's use of IATA digital standards has reduced cargo release times from 5 days to just 5 hours, which which potentially reduces manual processing by up to 90%. And the EU, the United Arab Emirates and Canada recognized the value of accurate data sharing across the air cargo supply chain and will adopt advanced preload information systems by the end of 2024. The United States was one of the first to adopt this in 2019.
Shipment Tracking: The updated IATA Interactive Cargo Guide provides a unified framework that enables tracking devices to ensure the quality and accuracy of the condition of time- and temperature-sensitive goods. This is essential to facilitate the increasing demands for real-time shipment tracking by e-commerce and pharmaceutical commerce.
Security
“Security is fundamental to the success of air cargo. Last year the industry's safety record reached new heights. Among the 38 million flights in 2023, 30 accidents occurred, of which only one was fatal. A good safety record is earned every day. For air cargo, that means continuing to place special emphasis on the handling of dangerous goods, and in particular lithium batteries,” Sullivan said.
Four areas were noted regarding the safe transportation of lithium batteries:
A test standard for fireproof shipping containers is ready for approval.
More than 90 airlines now share dangerous goods incident data through IATA's Global Aviation Data Management (GADM) program.
Guidelines have been published for operators to recognize and mitigate the risks of inexperienced e-commerce carriers using the postal system.
An update to Annex 18 of the Chicago Convention that clarifies responsibilities for the handling of dangerous goods and their effective regulation is now ready for global adoption by states.
The basis for the safe handling of dangerous goods by air cargo operators is the IATA Dangerous Goods Regulation (DGR). Importantly, IATA renewed and strengthened its partnership with ICAO to publish this critical document in early 2024. And it is supported by numerous innovative tools, including Connect API and DG AutoCheck, which are gaining traction in the bespoke industry. that the benefits of automating processes that were previously paper-based are recognized.
Sustainability
Airlines and carriers have given strong signals of demand for sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), which are expected to account for around 65% of the mitigation needed to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
“There is no shortage of signs of demand from airlines and carriers to use SAF. The problem continues to be the shortage of supply. As we saw with the introduction of solar and wind electricity generation, production incentives are the way forward. Japan is a good example. The government has imposed a 10% production mandate on fuel suppliers. Singapore has also recently taken steps to create a sustainable air hub to encourage SAF production and use. The United States is another country with tax credits included in the Inflation Reduction Act that are resulting in increased production. We need more governments to follow these positive examples,” Sullivan said.
Besides:
CO2 Connect for cargo, a precise tool for calculating emissions from operations, will be launched later this year.
The IATA Environmental Assessment (IEnvA) supports 60 industry organisations, including airlines, airports and cargo handling companies, to demonstrate how their sustainability actions are positively impacting the industry.
“For any industry to survive, change is essential. And constant change is never easy for anyone. But it's absolutely worth it when that change generates 60 million tons of cargo that boosts economies, improves people's lives, and truly makes our world a better place. And that is what inspires us to make our industry more efficient, increasingly safer and reach the goal of net zero carbon emissions by 2050,” Sullivan said.
Source: IATA.