AIR cargo carriers and forwarders who handle automotive logistics find there is plenty of business to be done, but there also challenges to be overcome as well, reports London's Air Cargo News.
Lufthansa Cargo, part of Germany's national flag-carrier airline group, is one of the carriers that transports all types of automotive spare parts - in its case, everything from windshields to engines and spare parts for production sites, right up to entire cars.
According to Carolin Gerstenmaier, head of industry development at the freight carrier: 'Our well-trained teams look back on many years of experience and have transported all kinds of cars, with which we are trusted by our customers.'
It moves automotive parts on a daily basis in both its own fleet of 21 freighters as well as in the bellyholds of Lufthansa, Brussels Airlines, Austrian Airlines, Discover Airlines and SunExpress aircraft.
For the transport of whole vehicles, maindeck capacities of Lufthansa Cargo freighters are preferred as bellies are often not large enough, but automotive spare parts can in most cases be transported in passenger aircraft bellies as well as in freighters.
Overall, though: 'Due to the size of our fleet and our dense global network of more than 300 worldwide destinations, we are able to steer our network flexibly according to our customers' demands or to unforeseen logistical challenges [while also meeting] ad-hoc requests from suppliers,' Ms Gerstenmaier said.
Automotive shipments represent a substantial proportion of Lufthansa Cargo's business. And, says Ms Gerstenmaier: 'The distribution of demand and volumes over time is not linked to specific seasonal effects and therefore [automotive] remains an important business throughout the whole year.
'Nevertheless, market dynamics or global issues can cause disruptions within supply chains, influencing demand. Urgently needed goods can only be transported quickly and safely worldwide via air freight.'
SeaNews Turkey
Lufthansa Cargo, part of Germany's national flag-carrier airline group, is one of the carriers that transports all types of automotive spare parts - in its case, everything from windshields to engines and spare parts for production sites, right up to entire cars.
According to Carolin Gerstenmaier, head of industry development at the freight carrier: 'Our well-trained teams look back on many years of experience and have transported all kinds of cars, with which we are trusted by our customers.'
It moves automotive parts on a daily basis in both its own fleet of 21 freighters as well as in the bellyholds of Lufthansa, Brussels Airlines, Austrian Airlines, Discover Airlines and SunExpress aircraft.
For the transport of whole vehicles, maindeck capacities of Lufthansa Cargo freighters are preferred as bellies are often not large enough, but automotive spare parts can in most cases be transported in passenger aircraft bellies as well as in freighters.
Overall, though: 'Due to the size of our fleet and our dense global network of more than 300 worldwide destinations, we are able to steer our network flexibly according to our customers' demands or to unforeseen logistical challenges [while also meeting] ad-hoc requests from suppliers,' Ms Gerstenmaier said.
Automotive shipments represent a substantial proportion of Lufthansa Cargo's business. And, says Ms Gerstenmaier: 'The distribution of demand and volumes over time is not linked to specific seasonal effects and therefore [automotive] remains an important business throughout the whole year.
'Nevertheless, market dynamics or global issues can cause disruptions within supply chains, influencing demand. Urgently needed goods can only be transported quickly and safely worldwide via air freight.'
SeaNews Turkey
