TIACA calls for an end to misleading weight-based load factor

THE International Air Cargo Association (TIACA) is calling for the air cargo industry to adopt the dynamic load factor developed by CLIVE Data Services over the traditional weight-based system, reports London's Air Cargo News.

The dynamic load factor measures how full an aircraft is by considering freight volume and weight rather than just weight since aircrafts typically reach their maximum volume before their maximum weight.



'CLIVE and TIACA consider this as a major improvement compared to the traditional weight-based load factors, which are misleading and paint an unnecessarily negative image of the airfreight industry,' said TIACA.



'The reason is that, in most of the cases, the space in an aircraft runs out before reaching its maximum weight capacity. It is due to aircraftss higher capacity density, calculated as available kg per cubic metre, than the average density of the goods moved by air,' said TIACA.



'Our dynamic load factor reflects the reality of air cargo capacity utilisation. Looking only at weight-based load factors is not enough anymore and can lead stakeholders to wrong conclusions,' said CLIVE's managing director, Niall van de Wouw.



'We must establish a common benchmark on the utilisation of air cargo capacity, particularly if airlines want forwarders and shippers to understand why rates behave as they do. It is otherwise difficult to explain why rates are spiking when the traditional load factor measurement suggests aircraft are operating only half-empty,' said Mr van de Wouw.



The weight-based load factor in September stood at 47 per cent while the dynamic load factor stood at 70 per cent.



'So many business decisions in air cargo industry are influenced by the perceptions of cargo load factors which do not show the true figures. Adopting the dynamic load factor will enable cargo professionals and stakeholders to make informed decisions based on timely and more accurate data,' said chair of TIACA's board of directors, Steven Polmans.



A recent TIACA survey showed a 98 per cent support for the dynamic load factor methodology. CLIVE will now be delivering a monthly detailed lane analysis to TIACA members based on prime markets to and from North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, Africa, and the Middle East.


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