Gaping cargo stats hole to be plugged

Three bodies are busy examining their statistical data with the intention of at long last filling an historical gap in SA’s market stats – to create for the first time a monthly statistical analysis of SA’s airfreight market. Companies in any transport business have always had some source of market stats on which to base their production and marketing strategy. But, said Alwyn Rautenbach, chairman of the Air Cargo Operators’ Committee (Acoc), the SA airfreight industry has always been bereft of such figures. Airlines have always been very cagey about releasing any figures of their own because of the competitive advantage that this would give to opposition airlines, he told FTW. And the other bodies and companies in the air cargo industry have been equally unwilling to publicly release whatever statistical data they may have. “But at long last,” Rautenbach said, “Acoc, the SA Revenue Service (Sars) and the Airports Company of SA (Acsa) have finally got together with the intention of creating SA’s first regular release of market stats.” These three bodies are currently in the process of examining the figures that each compiles in an attempt to produce an accurate statistical picture of the airfreight industry’s activities. “We are looking to see why any discrepancies may occur between Acsa and Sars data,” said Rautenbach. “And once this is all sorted out we’ll see if they can be compiled and published through SA Statistics.” He also assured the airlines that their sensitivity to revealing individual figures would not be disturbed. “The Sars stats are purely related to cargo categories, volumes and values on each air cargo route,” he said. “Nothing related to individual airlines is included.” But what it will do, he added, is to fill that gaping hole in the SA air cargo industry. “It will provide that accurate picture of the market that has never been available before for the SA aviation industry. And it will give us all a clear indication of just how we need aim our business products and marketing strategy.”