Newsletter- January 6, 2022

AIR FREIGHT UPDATES

Breaking: Protesters Seize Main Airport In Almaty, Kazakhstan

simpleflying.com
Amid a deteriorating security situation in Kazakhstan, protesters reportedly seized control of Almaty’s international airport. There were also reports “hijackers” had taken control of five aircraft, including planes belonging to foreign carriers. However, in a fast-moving environment, the latest reports say security forces have retaken control of the airport. Read more here.

Virus rules hit Hong Kong airfreight just as Cathay freighters limp back into action

theloadstar.com
Things went from bad to worse for airfreight shippers and forwarders in Hong Kong yesterday, as the territory’s government banned more international routes in response to an increase in Covid-19 cases.
It announced flight bans from eight countries for two weeks, starting on Saturday, affecting all flights from the US, Canada, the UK, France, Australia, the Philippines, Pakistan and India. Read more here.

Vietnam Sees Huge Demand As International Flights Resume

simpleflying.com
Vietnam has reopened to fully vaccinated travelers from a range of countries and has already welcomed over 1,700 passenger arrivals in the first three days. The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam is reporting that 11 carriers operated 17 scheduled flights into Vietnam over the period. Read more here. 

Shanghai Pudong to grow cargo capacity

aircargonews.net
The fourth phase of Shanghai Pudong Airport’s expansion project has been launched with a new cargo area planned.
This fourth phase comprises six parts: a terminal area, flight zone, transport facilities, municipal engineering support facilities, a new eastern cargo area and auxiliary facilities.
The project was launched in response to the Shanghai international shipping centre construction plan during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25) and the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) integration development strategy. Read more here. 

Cathay Pacific restarts limited cargo service after COVID pause

freightwaves.com
Cathay Pacific will partially resume long-haul cargo service on Friday following a weeklong suspension tied to Hong Kong’s more aggressive quarantine measures for cockpit crews and operate at about a fifth of its pre-pandemic cargo capacity for the month of January, FreightWaves has learned. Read more here (login required).

OCEAN FREIGHT UPDATES

Hapag-Lloyd the latest to adopt NCB dangerous cargo screening system

theloadstar.com
Hapag-Lloyd has adopted National Cargo Bureau’s Hazcheck Detect cargo screening tool, becoming the third top-ten carrier, after Maersk and ONE, to do so.
Like other systems of its type, Hazcheck scans bookings for suspicious key words – consignees misdeclaring hazardous cargo to secure cheaper rates are implicated in a number of major ship casualties and the loss of several lives. Read more here. 

Alphaliner confirms MSC has toppled Maersk at the top of the box rankings

splash247.com
It’s been a long time coming but finally Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC) was crowned by Alphaliner yesterday as the world’s largest liner by operated container vessel capacity, surpassing 2M partner Maersk, which had been at the top of the rankings for more than a quarter of a century.
Alphaliner, part of AXSMarine, tracks the capacities of the world’s top 100 liners, making the data free to view. It’s top 100 liners page has been eagerly watched in recent months as MSC has edged ever closer to overtaking its Danish rival. Read more here.

US port envoy: Pandemic has shown supply chain’s ‘underlying reality’ and need for increased resilience

splash247.com
John Porcari, port envoy to the White House Supply Chain Task Force, spoke at yesterday’s White House press briefing, addressing questions on the effects of omicron on ports, moving medical supplies on time to where they’re needed, truck driver shortages and more. Read more here.

UK freight forwarding association lashes liner conduct

splash247.com
The British International Freight Association (BIFA) has written to the UK government asking it to investigate the state of competition within the current container shipping market, the latest in a wave of liner complaints sent to governments around the world during a period of record earnings for carriers and the poorest schedule reliability in the history of containerisation. Read more here. 

GROUND AND RAIL FREIGHT UPDATES

B.C. Flood Recovery Continues, but It’s Hardly Trucking as Usual

trucknews.com
Weeks after severe flooding wreaked havoc on B.C.’s road and rail network, round-the-clock repairs are bringing a sense of stability to carriers that haul freight in the province. As for normalcy, that’s something else entirely.
A lack of predictability remains the big problem, says Dave Earle, president and CEO of the B.C. Trucking Association (BCTA). “It’s getting better. It is one thing if you know a route is going to take you twice as long as before. The problem is, when you don’t know how long the route is going to take, it is awfully difficult to plan.” Read more here.