Game Changers For Air Cargo

A lot has changed in the last decade within the air cargo industry. Ushering in a new era, digitalisation and big data are creating the foundation for new business ideas and models. Beyond digitalisation, new assets such as unmanned aerial vehicles, newer, lighter and connected ULDs and smart facilities are changing the game for the air cargo industry.

- Surya Kannoth

When the electronic air waybill was first introduced, it was considered to be a game changer for the air cargo industry – this was at that time when the industry still resorted to archaic methods of paper documentation. Fast forward to 2018, a lot has changed - air cargo is now entering a new era.

Digital transformation is happening everywhere: retail, travel & tourism, automotive, healthcare, education, etc. The logistics and air cargo industry are and will also be transformed, modernised and disrupted by digital technologies. These newer forms of technologies are expected to revolutionise the entire ecosystem, reveals Celine Hourcade, IATA’s head-digital transformation.

“Electronic messaging, smart data sharing platform, blockchain technologies will simplify and change the flow of information between the stakeholders. Internet of things, connected devices, augmented reality, artificial intelligence will help to make the physical flow of goods more efficient, safer and easier. (Big) data collected from all sources will contribute to safety programs, optimisation projects, more predictability, better transparency, etc. Virtual reality will support better training, etc,” Hourcade believes.

“Integrators and new players like Amazon and sea freight are already making much more use of the offered possibilities and are therefore often able to offer a better product. The “traditional” air cargo industry has to hurry in order to be able to compete with them. digital transformation is not about changing individual processes, but revolutionising the interface between the different players. digital solutions provide us the opportunity to offer more efficient and more reliable processes. Processes get more transparent: Every party always knows where a good is and through new booking platforms even rates are no black box anymore,” opines Felix Kreutel, SVP-Cargo, Fraport.