Category Archives: Aviation

GMR Hyderabad Air Cargo proudly announces the official rollout of CLIMB – Cargo Loyalty Incentives and Milestone Benefits, India’s first dedicated loyalty program for freight forwarders. Following a successful soft launch during the ACFI Conclave in Hyderabad on January 31, 2025, the program will go live on July 1, 2025, with Hyderabad (HYD) as the pilot location.  Developed exclusively for the freight forwarding community, CLIMB is a pioneering initiative across GMR-operated airports in India, designed to recognize and reward freight forwarders. The program offers a host of premium benefits, including: Priority cargo handling Dedicated single point of contact (SPOC) Demurrage waivers And more exclusive add-ons Loyalty Rewards   With CLIMB, GMR aims to strengthen long-term collaboration, incentivize performance, and enhance stakeholder value across the air cargo ecosystem. This innovative loyalty program reflects GMR’s commitment to driving operational excellence and nurturing a future-ready cargo infrastructure in India.  

Swiss WorldCargo has completed the rollout of a new fleet of lightweight ULDs to help save fuel and emissions. The cargo division started to deploy the new ULDs around nine months ago and said the new units are 22 kg lighter for the AKE type and 20 kg lighter for the AKH type. The weight decrease translates into fuel savings of nearly 900 tons per year, and contributes to lowering CO2 emissions by approximately 2,770 tons per year, advancing the airfreight division’s goal to more sustainable cargo operations,” Swiss WorldCargo said in a press release. In addition, Swiss WorldCargo has recently replaced over 1,500 old PMC and PAJ pallets with brand-new versions. “We are very enthusiastic about our successful rollover to newer, lighter and more sustainable containers and pallets” said Miguel Seco, head of global business excellence at Swiss WorldCargo.

Nitin Navneet Tatiwala, Vice President of marketing, air network, and customer experience, Middle East, Indian Subcontinent, and Africa, FedEx said, “India’s logistics story today is defined by scale, speed and strategic clarity. As supply chains diversify and trade corridors shift, India is responding with clear intent. From PM Gati Shakti and the National Logistics Policy to digital-first reforms, India is laying the groundwork for a logistics system that is faster, smarter, and more sustainable. Despite global headwinds, merchandise exports crossed US$437 billion in FY24, and the country’s rise to 38th in the World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index reflects the depth of change underway. The growing footprint of FedEx in India mirrors this momentum — a quiet signal of the confidence global businesses place in India’s logistics future.”  

SolitAir has signed an agreement for the lease of two Boeing 737-800 freighters for global operations. The airline has also launched new flights to Beirut and Kuwait, said an official LinkedIn Post.  “We’re proud to announce the launch of our inaugural flight to Beirut, strengthening SolitAir’s commitment to providing faster, smarter, and more reliable cargo solutions,” said SolitAir. In addition to its network expansion, SolitAir has signed an agreement with World Star Aviation for the lease of two Boeing 737-800 freighters.

The Airports Authority of India (AAI) team is reportedly inspecting three locations on Kanakapura Road for building second greenfield airport in Bengaluru. AAI team is expected to submit a feasibility report within a month, according to Infrastructure Development Minister M.B. Patil. As per the reports, “Patil said that the AAI team inspected the locations, of which two were on Kanakapura Road and one on the Nelamangala-Kunigal Road. After receiving feedback from the AAI team, he said a feasibility report would be prepared followed by a detailed study which would be undertaken by expert consultants specialising in airport infrastructure development.”

The Airports Authority of India (AAI) operated Bhogapuram Greenfield International Airport near Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh has nearly completed its construction work and have entered the final stages. “With the air traffic control tower nearing completion, a calibration test was performed at Bhogapuram airport by the Director-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) recently,” said reports. AAI conducted a trial run of the runway and signaling systems. After taking off, the aircraft hovered over the site for some time before heading to the sea. The initiative is seen to give a push to employment, regional cooperation and encourage India aim to become a global aviation hub. The Andhra Pradesh government is planning to make the aircraft-related work in the state conclude soon. Once the Bhogapuram airport gets operational, Visakhapatnam International Airport will be suspended.

Arun Chandra, Vice President – Aviation Business, BIAL said, “We see PMGS as a key enabler in our mission to position BLR Airport as a premier cargo and logistics hub for South India and a vital node in the national supply chain. Through Gati Shakti’s framework, we have seen enhanced alignment between air, road, and rail connectivity—facilitating more efficient cargo movement and reducing transit bottlenecks. The initiatives like ULIP have played a pivotal role in enabling real-time data exchange and streamlined inter-agency coordination, improving turnaround times, especially for high-value and perishable goods. At BLR Airport, we have aligned our infrastructure development with the objectives of PM Gati Shakti, exemplified by India’s largest Domestic Cargo Terminal and the upcoming Logistics Park. These investments are designed to create a seamless, tech-enabled ecosystem that supports efficient end-to-end cargo solutions. The initiative aligns with our digital-first approach, driving automation and enhancing operational transparency. This transformation is essential to meet the demands of a growing trade economy, offering cutting-edge solutions like ACS, and ensuring service excellence across all cargo operations.”

Delhivery launched on-demand intracity shipping on the Delhivery Direct app in Delhi-NCR and Bengaluru after a successful pilot launch in Ahmedabad. The service offers pickups within 15 minutes of booking for local deliveries using two-wheelers for parcels as well as three and four-wheeler vehicles for larger consignments. “We are now fully live with Delhivery Direct across NCR and Bengaluru – two of the largest markets for on-demand intracity service in India and will rapidly expand to key metros,” said Sahil Barua, MD & CEO, Delhivery. “This launch provides millions of consumers and SMEs across the country with a logistics solution that simply works: fast, affordable, and reliable and completes the spectrum of offerings to our customers who can now use us for intracity needs as well.” Delhivery Direct not only simplifies shipping for users, but also significantly benefits riders and drivers by providing consistent earning opportunities and flexible working hours through Delhivery’s extensive network. The Delhivery Direct App is available on Google Play and Apple App stores where customers can download and book their intracity orders on-demand. It also allows you to ship intercity shipments across small and large parcel types to anywhere across the 18,800+ pincodes in India that Delhivery serves from your doorstep.

“India has tremendous growth potential. India’s ranking in LPI has considerably improved and with ease of doing business, LPI ranking needs to improve more,” said Sanjeev Edward, President ACFI and CEO – Cargo and Logistics, GMR Group, while addressing the media at ACFI curtain raiser event, ahead of its upcoming annual Conclave on 11 July in New Delhi. He added, “Process simplification is must to achieve operational efficiency. At ACFI, we are focusing on process simplification and paperless transactions. With the ‘Go Green’ initiative, we have added ESG to it. We are also focusing on promoting domestic as well as international cargo movement and making air cargo the preferred choice of transport. We will focus on domestic cargo also this year. We will also focus on women diversity and inclusion, Special Economic Zones, cargo hubs, multimodal connectivity, capacity building etc.”  

Gautham Raju, Senior Manager – Global Air Freight and Head of Air Freight at WIZ said, “Due to the war between Iran and Israel, several countries in the general region, including Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon and Israel, have temporarily closed their airspaces. If the war prolongs further, we could definitely expect an increase in oil and gas prices, which could also indirectly impact the rise of Jet fuel prices, which could directly result in an increase in freight charges. We foresee that air freight rates from India to Europe and Western Asia are going to be increased between 10 to 20 % due to potential re-routes that are longer than normal, which require excess fuel carriage and lesser payloads for cargo. The ongoing war is significantly impacting perishable and low-value cargo.”