Domestic carriers queue up to develop dedicated cargo hubs http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News_By_Industry/Transportation/Air lines__Aviation/Domestic_carriers_queue_up_to_develop_dedicated_cargo_hubs/a rticleshow/3537757.cms <Kingfisher Airlines is looking at Goa and Banglaore as potential locations while Jet Airways is eyeing at Hyderabad and Bangalore. National Aviation Company of India (NACIL), in which Indian Airlines and Air India have merged, was originally looking at Nagpur, but the state-run airline is also looking at other centres including Delhi. Deccan Cargo & Express Logistics Private Limited has already zeroed in at Nagpur. Capt Gopinath's Deccan has signed a memorandum of understanding with state government authorities to develop its cargo hub. Carriers such as SpiceJet and IndiGo are also in the process of identifying locations for their cargo hubs. GoAir has also plans to start dedicated cargo airline based out of Mumbai. According to Tulsi Nowlakha Mirchandaney, managing director, Blue Dart Aviation, the economy is primarily driven by domestic consumption and therefore, the hub selection should be based on that. She said Chennai and Mumbai have potential to become as cargo hubs. Industry sources said the air cargo is growing faster (19%) than shipping (10%) and railways (9%). "With shrinking passenger volumes and steady demand for air cargo, airlines are looking to bolster their cargo operations by setting up separate cargo airlines to serve the growing market. Airlines are hiring specialized staff for their cargo operations and are also considering the conversion of passenger airplanes into freighter airplanes into freighter aircraft," said Ernst & Young report on aviation titled "The tough will get going - New paradigms for success in Indian aviation". The report said the impact of rising costs on air cargo volumes has not been drastic. "This is largely due to the non-availability of close substitutes of the air cargo services. Additionally, airlines, which are incurring huge losses due to decrease in passenger traffic, can diversify their revenue bases by ramping up their cargo operations," the report pointed out. An airline official said the carriers are busy in finding locations for their cargo hubs as they have realized that cargo revenues will become one of the main stays for an airline in the coming days. "These centres will act as a sorting warehouses and cargo will be allocated according to various airports. Airlines are also developing capabilities to handle perishable cargo," he said. The potential of air freight cargo in the country is huge, considering that India currently moves only 1% of this freight by air, as opposed to the global average of 2%, according the Ernst & Young report. "The country's air freight is expected to grow at a CAGR of 11.6%, with the growth in international air freight set to outpace growth in domestic volumes by almost 2% on an average," it said. Besides scheduled carriers, as is reported in these pages earlier, other Indian companies are looking to tap the growing demand for movement of cargo by air. Domestic freight traffic increased to 423.43 tonne between April and December, up 8.1% from a year ago, according to Airports Authority of India (AAI). Bangalore-based Quikjet Cargo Airlines, Hyderabad-based Flyington Freighters, Mumbai-based Avicore Aviation and New Delhi-based Aryan Cargo Express are also drawing up plans to enter the market.>
Its good to know that somebody is thinking of Goa as an air cargo hub. The problem is to sort out the potentials in this business as between Dabolim civil enclave and Mopa airport. There should be a clear demarcation of roles as to primary or secondary. This in turn will have to be based on the roles envisaged for the two airports as a whole. The roles have to be set for 5-10 years from the start of Mopa operations. The design and phasing of Mopa will depend on this as will financing and ownership stakes. The Goa govt has to get up to speed quickly in aviation matters instead of thinking that it doesnt have to do much and can relax. The long term future of Goa is inextricably tied to aviation decisions and they cannot be abdicated without putting it (Goa's future) at serious risk.