No. PR- 263
March 15, 2021
New Delhi
Policy & Regulatory systems should be recapitulated of Air Cargo Industry to aim for Higher Equilibrium
It’s time to heal the Air Cargo Industry and to take stock on how to move ahead from resilience and short revival the resurgence in many quarters and robustness in many operations in new avatars mentioned Ms. Vandana Aggarwal, Sr. Economic Advisor, IES, Ministry of Civil Aviation in the technical session on Air Cargo- Sustainability Initiatives for Future at the second day of the 7th edition of PHD Global Aviation & Air Cargo Summit themed Aviation -Air Cargo Industry’s New Growth Blueprint & Business Resurgence Parameters organized by PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Ms. Vandana Aggarwal mentioned that it’s important for us to take a deep pause at this point and see how the policy and the regulatory system must be recalibrated so that we can truly unleash the potential of air cargo that we have seen in the period of crisis. She shared that it’s time to settle down to a much higher equilibrium post this crisis.
She was appreciative of the positive Air Cargo numbers from India and the Cargo terminals & JV Airports , especially in the Tier 2 and 3 towns, which have shown tremendous growth and made full use of the crisis. She opined that we have to move ahead with rigor to see a positive All India growth.
Mr. Keku Gazder, CEO, AAI Cargo Logistics and Allied Services while moderating the session mentioned that Air Cargo has forever been the king and its importance for the Aviation industry including being a life saver for humanity & trade was highlighted during the pandemic. Mr.Gazder shared that the new definition of “Cargo is Depend on us , because we have you covered.”
He shared that deliberations & discussions are towards being forward trajectory with a foreseeable future on the new growth blueprint and sustainability initiatives for the future. He talked about the need to resolve passive issues like business barriers to achieve efficiency and stated exciting times for the Aviation Industry with the new Industry trends & the Digitization wave being a big factor in the Air Cargo Industry’s growth.
Mr. Keshav Tanna, Chair, FIATA Airfreight Institute while discussing the effect of the pandemic on air cargo opined that India is an example for commercial cargo to the world and the world is looking at us. He shared that short-haul flights are coming out quicker and cargo is a revenue stream in the industry. We are going towards digitalization and a lot needs to be done. He suggested that there needs to be some standardization and collaboration between the industry stakeholders which will help to provide multiplicity and diverse platform.
Mr. Ivo Seehann, Director Sales& Handling, Lufthansa Cargo mentioned that the industry needs to be paperless as it will help in seamless transfer of information within the industry but at the same time we need to make sure that we follow industry standards and work hand in hand for documentation. We need to the entire chain together and continue pushing it in the industry. He also mentioned that as carriers we need to look at economic sustainability and stability. We need to generate profits, look at investments into the future, focus on profit contribution, and be sustainable in our results.
Mr. Steven Verhasselt, VP Commercial at Liege Airport while deliberating about From Cargo Airport to Multimodal Logistics Hub, E-commerce Platform, and Health Hub mentioned it’s a combination of infrastructure, process, and people. He also mentioned that government bodies are an integral part of the airport community.
Mr. Ramesh Mamidala, Chief Cargo Development officer, Adani Airports Limited while discussing the export and import facts and figures in Air Cargo focused upon challenges faced by India and Aviation and Air Cargo Sector, mentioned that massive growth is to be achieved through infrastructure, digitalization, enhanced technology, and process efficiency. He deliberated upon the need to invest in infrastructure, systems, and right people for the growth of the Air Cargo industry and the need to get the basic tools and integration right to achieve the growth path.
Mr. Max Philipp Conrady, Vice President Cargo Development bei Fraport AG, Germany while discussing the change needed in a cargo airport, mentioned that every cargo airport needs to be made according to the need and usage. He also discussed the increase in air cargo during times of pandemic and the ability of the airport to adapt to it where he emphasized that digital infrastructure helps in smoothen the process and work more efficiently.
Mr. Saurabh Kumar, CEO, GHIAL Cargo mentioned that we need to strategize, adapt technology and utilize it for productivity and strong infrastructure for air cargo to accelerate in the future with all stakeholders in sync.
Mr. Cyrus Katgara, Partner, Jeena & Co & President, ACFI while giving an outlook about the importance of the air cargo industry in leveraging worldwide shipments, mentioned that air cargo has saved the world and it’s all about collaboration.
Mr. Amar More, Director, Kale Logistics stated the opportunities such as technological advancements and digitalization of cargo community platforms have risen due to the pandemic. He deliberated upon the facts of the tremendous rise of Electronic Certificate of Origins being issued during the pandemic which marks a transformation. He also talked about the emergence of common platforms for reusing data instead of paper wastage raised due to paperless processes and social distancing and the impact of IoT, Blockchain, and other technological advancements impacting the Air Cargo Industry.
Capt. T. S. Ramanujam, Chief Executive Officer, Logistics Sector Skill Council while deliberating about the skill development in the air cargo sector, mentioned in the future multi-tasking will be a norm rather than an exception in the air cargo sector.
Mr. Vipin Vohra, Co-Chairman, PHD, Civil Aviation Committee while proposing a formal vote of thanks to all the delegates and participants, lauded the diligent efforts of the Ministry of Civil Aviation during the times of the pandemic.
The session was moderated by Dr. Ranjeet Mehta, Deputy Secretary General, PHD Chamber, and was attended by many industry stalwarts. The summit has been supported by Celebi Aviation, AAI Cargo Logistics and Allied Services Company Limited-AAICLAS, GMR group, Boeing India, Continental Carriers Group Pvt Ltd , Kale Logistics & Logistics Skill Council & Media partners- Logistics Insider, Cargo Connect, and Travel Unleash.
Ends
Media Division
PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry