Yields a constant challenge for airlines

Rising costs and diminishing
yields are the unrelenting
challenges faced by airlines
worldwide, and the Far East
route is no exception.
While cargo capacity
inbound is at a premium,
freight rates don’t reflect the
supply/demand ratio, says
SAA’s regional manager for
Asia Pacific and Middle East,
Nely Kusmin.
The airline serves Hong
Kong on a daily basis using
an Airbus 340-300 – which
means freight capacity is fairly
restricted.
But with Middle East
carriers having increased
flights between their hubs
and the east, there’s more
competition which means
rates and subsequently yield
are negatively affected, says
Kusmin.
And while high-value
electronic goods as well as
apparel dominate the inbound
cargo manifest, outbound cargo
has always been very limited,
says SAA cargo sales manager
Ronel Rossouw.
“Exotic seafood is generally a
year-round commodity, except
in October and November when
the season closes.
“In the past projects were a
big part of our general cargo to
the Far East – but a lot of that
has dried up. We used to carry
all the Volkswagen engines
some time back but since they
have sufficient stock levels these
now go by sea.
We also have some seasonal
perishables from other parts of
our network into Hong Kong
in our summer months but
apart from that there’s
been no significant
growth.”
For the year ahead
SAA is expecting more
of the same – and
the battle to improve
yield is unlikely to
change any time soon
as an increasingly
competitive market
fights for a slice of the
action.
INSERT & CAPTION
In the past projects
were a big part of our
general cargo but a lot
of that has dried up.
– Ronel Rossouw