newstodate.aero
Oct 01, 2013 (newstodate): Danish forwarders are waiting for airlines to move in preparation for implementation of e-freight.
-Lufthansa Cargo is clearly leading the way while many other carriers still have a long way to go, says Henrik Carstensen, Danish Airfreight Forwarders and managing director at Strait Air.
-I expect most of the players to move forward in 2014, but the crux is: just how far can we expect forwarders to move when airlines are still not ready. As just one example, freight forwarders cannot at this stage know exactly which IT solutions will be selected by the individual carriers so they cannot know how to adapt their own in-house systems. It seems a new "egg-and-hen" situation is developing.
-A status meeting will be called by early 2014 to allow all participants in the process including forwarders, GSAs, airlines and IATA representatives to share a common appraisal of the situation as a prerequisite for formulating a lasting plan for the remaining process towards implementation of the e-freight.
-But I would personally not be surprised if IATA eventually feels obliged to extend the time frame in light of the uneven progress on the e-freight around the world, says Mr Carstensen.
In the Danish context it seems that besides Lufthansa Cargo/Austrian and Swiss, Air France/KLM/Martinair are quite advanced in the process as well, while Thai Cargo is trailing behind and Singapore Airlines Cargo has not been heard from since the change of regional management earlier this year.
As for the national carrier in the Scandinavian region, SAS, little is heard about e-freight while its managing director still claims that the company will be ready by the end of this year without citing any concrete evidence.
-Lufthansa Cargo is clearly leading the way while many other carriers still have a long way to go, says Henrik Carstensen, Danish Airfreight Forwarders and managing director at Strait Air.
-I expect most of the players to move forward in 2014, but the crux is: just how far can we expect forwarders to move when airlines are still not ready. As just one example, freight forwarders cannot at this stage know exactly which IT solutions will be selected by the individual carriers so they cannot know how to adapt their own in-house systems. It seems a new "egg-and-hen" situation is developing.
-A status meeting will be called by early 2014 to allow all participants in the process including forwarders, GSAs, airlines and IATA representatives to share a common appraisal of the situation as a prerequisite for formulating a lasting plan for the remaining process towards implementation of the e-freight.
-But I would personally not be surprised if IATA eventually feels obliged to extend the time frame in light of the uneven progress on the e-freight around the world, says Mr Carstensen.
In the Danish context it seems that besides Lufthansa Cargo/Austrian and Swiss, Air France/KLM/Martinair are quite advanced in the process as well, while Thai Cargo is trailing behind and Singapore Airlines Cargo has not been heard from since the change of regional management earlier this year.
As for the national carrier in the Scandinavian region, SAS, little is heard about e-freight while its managing director still claims that the company will be ready by the end of this year without citing any concrete evidence.