South Korean airline Asiana Airlines Inc. has transformed its passenger aircraft A350-900 into a cargo carrier in a move to enhance its cargo operations.
The newly transformed aircraft debuted as a cargo carrier on Thursday flying from Incheon, Korea to Los Angeles carrying 20 tons of cargo goods. In October, the A350 will travel mostly on routes with high cargo demand, such as between Incheon and Ho Chi Minh City.
Asiana Airlines removed 283 economy seats from the aircraft’s passenger cabin and installed pallets and iron panels on the floor, making room for 5 tons of additional cargo. The conversion will push up the airline’s cargo volume from 1,152 tons to 1,175 tons.
Global aircraft manufacturer Airbus has taken great interest in the A350 transformation. Asiana Airlines consulted with Airbus from the very beginning on the move, and the changeover was carried out under guidelines approved by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency.
Source: Korean Investors
Transport enterprises of Ukraine (excluding the territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol, as well as part of the OOS zone) transported 382.2 million tons of cargo in January-August 2020, which is 13.4% less compared to the same period in 2019, reported by the State Statistics Service.
According to the State Statistics Service, the freight turnover of carriers for the specified period decreased by 17.1% – to 185.7 billion ton-kilometers.
According to statistics, for eight months of this year, 196.7 million tons of cargo were transported by rail in domestic traffic and for export, which is 5.3% less than in January-August 2019.
119.4 million tons (-23.5%) were transported by road, 3.3 million tons (-12.4%) by water, 62.7 million tons (-15%) by pipeline, 0.1 million by air. tons (- 10.7%).
As a reminder, the CFTS reported earlier that Ukrainian transport enterprises transported 327 million tons of cargo in 7 months. For the period from January to July 2020, Ukrainian transport enterprises reduced their freight traffic by 15%.
Source: Centre for Transport Strategies
Volvo has introduced two new trucks, the Volvo FH and Volvo FM, which run on liquefied natural gas (LNG) and biogas.
The use of biogas allows you to achieve zero carbon emissions and reduce CO2 emissions by up to 100%.
Volvo notes that LNG trucks are currently the most commercially viable alternative to conventional diesel for long-haul heavy hauls.
“This fuel is available in sufficient quantities and at a competitive price. The use of more trucks with gas engines in the long term creates favorable conditions for the transition to an active use of liquefied biogas,” said Lars Martensson, Director of Environment and Innovation Volvo Trucks.
The Volvo Trucks LPG and Natural Gas powertrain offers comparable energy efficiency to diesel engines, but significantly less CO2 emissions.
The use of liquefied biogas, also known as liquid biofuels (Bio-LNG), reduces net emissions by 100% “tank to wheel” (TTW), and the use of natural gas reduces emissions by about 20% (TTW) compared to conventional diesel European standard.
Electromobility using hydrogen fuel cells can reduce the need for long-haul batteries in the long term.
“While hydrogen fuel cell technology is a promising development, there are still practical and financial barriers that need to be overcome before it can provide significant climatic benefits for the transport of super heavy cargo,” added Martensson.
Source: Centre for Transport Strategies
Airbus unveiled three concepts for aircraft of the future that will not emit carbon dioxide during flight.
The company intends to achieve this by switching to hydrogen as the main fuel.
The first two aircraft are similar to existing airliners. One of them will operate on jet engines and will be able to transport 120-200 passengers over 3700 km. Hydrogen in liquid form is supposed to be transported in the tail behind the bulkhead, which ensures the sealing of the cabin.
The prototype of the second airliner will be the existing regional turboprop aircraft. Airbus expects that this type of aircraft can fly up to 1,800 km and carry up to 100 passengers.
The third “flying wing” concept is new to civil aviation and is nowhere in use for commercial transport.
It is assumed that the entire fuselage will be a wing, inside which will accommodate a cabin for 200 passengers and fuel tanks. Airbus emphasizes that this concept allows for different cabin layouts and fuel tank locations.
The concepts presented are the starting point for further research into a CO2-free aircraft. That is why the final version of the airliners, if the project becomes a reality, may differ significantly from the concepts.
Airbus expects that hydrogen aircraft will enter commercial operation in 2035, but admit that their use will require significant changes in airport infrastructure.
Source: Avianews
EUROCONTROL has revised downwards its Draft Traffic Scenarios up to February 2021. Under its new “Current Status Scenario”, the total number of flights expected in Europe is anticipated to be 55% lower than in 2019, a drop of 6 million fewer flights, or a further 1 million reduction in European flights than previously anticipated.
Eamonn Brennan, Director General EUROCONTROL said, “We’re going backwards now and it’s really worrying for the entire industry. There’s a lack of coordination between States on how to manage air travel despite good guidance from EASA and ECDC; there’s a lot of confusion and very little passenger confidence; and of course outbreaks of COVID-19 are picking up across Europe.
Our new Current Status Scenario could improve if there was more coordination between States on how best to handle air travel through harmonised testing and common epidemiological assessment criteria. That would give more predictability for passengers, airports and airlines. At the same time, it could get even worse if States continue to impose blanket restrictions and quarantine measures – this approach is killing the travel and tourism industry. We welcome the European Commission proposals for harmonisation and encourage all parties to adopt them.”
However, in response to COVID-19 outbreaks breakouts across Europe since mid-August, States have been imposing individual and uncoordinated national restrictions, quarantine requirements and testing measures, which are primarily in accordance with National epidemiological assessments and National health measures. Often, these measures are announced with very short notice.
This ‘uncoordinated approach’ by States has led to much confusion and eroded passenger confidence. Forward bookings for airlines over the coming months are extremely low. By 13 September, traffic was already down 53% for the month compared to the same period in 2019, which was already 13 percentage points lower than EUROCONTROL’s previous prediction of -40% for the full month of September under the previous “Coordinated Measures Scenario”.
Taking all of the above into account, there will potentially be a total industry loss in Europe in revenues of approximately €140 billion during 2020 for airlines, airports and ANSPs, up from €110 billion loss as indicated on 24 April.
Source: EUROCONTROL
The equivalent of 8,000 Boeing 747s will be needed for shipping a coronavirus vaccine around the world, the International Air Transport Association (Iata) has said.
“Safely delivering Covid-19 vaccines for all 7.8 billion people on the planet will be the mission of the century for the global air cargo industry. But it won’t happen without careful advance planning. And the time for that is now,” said Iata’s chief executive Alexandre de Juniac.
There is no Covid-19 vaccine yet, but Iata is already working with airlines, airports, global health bodies and drug firms on a global airlift plan.
The distribution programme assumes only one dose per person is needed.
About 140 vaccines are in early development, and around two dozen are now being tested on people in clinical trials.
While airlines have been shifting their focus on delivering cargo during the severe downturn in passenger flights, shipping vaccines is far more complex.
Not all planes are suitable for delivering vaccines as they need a typical temperature range of between 2 and 8C for transporting drugs. Some vaccines may require frozen temperatures which would exclude more aircraft.
Along with making sure they are handled and transported at controlled temperatures, security is another issue.
“Vaccines will be highly valuable commodities. Arrangements must be in place to keep ensuring that shipments remain secure from tampering and theft,” added IATA.
Source: Albawaba
Boryspil International Airport served 3,500,000 passengers in 8 months of 2020, which is 65% less than in the same period in 2019 (9,900,000 people).
This was reported by the CFTS with reference to the data of the administration of the airline.
Among the passengers served, 2,300,000 are passengers of regular flights (-69% over the same period last year), 1,100,000 are non-scheduled (-50%).
At the same time, the number of transfer passengers decreased by 82.6% – to 402,746 (a year earlier this figure was 2,300,000).
The share of transfers in total passenger traffic decreased from 23% to 11.5%. At the same time, in August, passenger traffic amounted to 656,000 passengers (-60%).
Source: finance.ua
On September 1, IATA published the July 2020 Air Cargo Market Analysis.
Industry-wide cargo tonne-kilometres (CTKs) declined by 13.5% year-on-year in July. CTKs adjusted for seasonality grew 2.6% month-on-month in July, similar to the pace of improvement seen in June (3.0%).
Despite growing uncertainty in COVID-19 developments, economic activity continued to recover in July. Indicators such as manufacturing output and new export orders are improving. July’s CTK performance is weaker than expected based on economic activity. But new export orders – a leading indicator for air cargo – show that CTKs should continue to improve in the coming period.
This divergence between economic activity and air cargo is partly due to the shortage of air cargo capacity. Total available cargo tonne-kilometres (ACTKs) fell by 31.2% year-on-year in July, a small improvement from June (33.4%).
Source: IATA
United Airlines said it is preparing to furlough 16 370 workers on October 1 as the coronavirus pandemic continues to devastate the airline industry.
Chicago-based United had over 90 000 employees before the pandemic brought the industry to a near standstill in March and had warned in July that 36 000 jobs were at risk of involuntary furloughs as demand remains weak.
Airlines received $25 billion in US government stimulus funds in March meant to cover payrolls and protect jobs through September, when the industry had hoped for a rebound.
US passenger airlines are still collectively losing more than $5 billion a month as 30% of planes remain parked. Passenger travel demand is down about 70% and, on average, planes that are flying are half-full.
United’s schedule for September is 63% smaller than a year ago.
Among different workgroups, its job cuts will affect around 2 850 pilots, 6 920 flight attendants, 2 010 mechanics and 1 400 management and administrative positions, among others.
Source: SABC News