The air cargo industry saw a 10.3% increase in cargo theft last year in the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region – with 89.9% of the 2 880 reported incidents occurring when trucks carrying air cargo were stationary at unsecured parking locations, according to recently released statistics by the Transport Asset Protection Association (Tapa).
Head of standards at Tapa in the EMEA region, Mark Greuntjies, said that many of these targeted vehicles contained highvalue air cargo either on their way to or from airports.
The collective loss of the close to 3 000 incidents reported in the region amounted to around ¤105 million, he said.
As a result of this increase, Tapa saw a 16.6% increase in the number of Facility Security Requirements (FSR) certifications and a 41.5% growth in companies with Trucking Security Requirements (TSR) certifications.
“The number of FSR and TSR certifications in the region is now higher than at any time in our 20-year history,” said Greuntjies.
“Not only are more companies recognising the value of operating Tapa-approved facilities and trucking services to combat rising crime, the increase can also be attributed to more manufacturers asking or requiring their logistics service providers to meet the requirements of Tapa security standards,” he said.
