New air option on Luxembourg-Jo’burg route

This week saw the launch by
Safcor Panalpina of a weekly
own-controlled airfreight
service from Luxembourg to
Johannesburg using a Boeing
747-400F aircraft with
105-ton capacity.
It follows the signing of
an ACMI multi-year lease
agreement (Aircraft, Crew,
Maintenance, Insurance)
between the logistics major’s
global partner Panalpina and
Atlas Air.
Working with Panalpina
World Transport, the weekly
inbound service will connect
from the USA and Far
East via Luxembourg and
Dubai respectively, Richard
Hartmann, product and
procurement air at Safcor
Panalpina told FTW.
“The modern aircraft is
designed for abnormal sized
loads and is fuel-efficient,
which is a requirement of
our global multinational
clients who are committed to
reducing cargo emissions,”
he said.
“With own-controlled
capacity, competitive pricing
and quick retrieval times
through our facility adjacent
to OR Tambo International
Airport, the service allows
us to offer tailor-made
solutions for specific
industries, including a fully
integrated cool chain solution
particularly suited to the
pharmaceutical industry,”
says Hartmann.
And it comes at a
crucial time of the year, he
adds. “There are capacity
constraints in the market at
the moment due to the change
of model of aircraft on routes
with limited cargo-carrying
capacity as well as Far
East peak season demand.
Although we use commercial
uplift where we can, our
customers demand the
flexibility of own-controlled
capacity. In fact, we are
in the process of signing a
second service provider to
offer a similar uplift on a
different day of the week.”