- American Airlines Cargo completed the return of more than 200 pieces of gold and ancient artifacts from London to the Museo del Oro in Bogotá, Colombia. Working on the return leg – as with the outbound – in close collaboration with specialist art logistics company Momart, the airline shipped the items from the Beyond El Dorado exhibition at the British Museum.
- TAM Airlines is starting a new direct weekly service to World Cup host city Fortaleza, Brazil, beginning May 31, in advance of the FIFA 2014 World Cup.
- Jettainer, a provider for outsourced unit load device services, opened a new office in the Abu Dhabi Airport Business City’s Logistics Park.
- One year after the groundbreaking ceremony for Airbus’ first A320 family assembly facility, to be built in the U.S., the Mobile, Ala., Assembly Line is making progress. The main buildings are taking shape and the first employees have started their on-the-job training at Airbus Hamburg in Germany.
- Cargo traffic for LATAM Airlines Group decreased 6.6 percent in March year over year, as capacity decreased 9.2 percent. As a consequence, the cargo load factor increased 1.7 points to 61.8 percent. The decrease in cargo capacity is a result of a decreased availability in the bellies of passenger aircraft in addition to a reduced freighter operation. LATAM said the cargo traffic decrease was driven by weaker seasonal products from Latin America.
- Miami International Airport marked the arrival of its newest international carrier with InselAir Aruba’s inaugural flight from Oranjestad, Aruba. The carrier will operate four scheduled weekly round-trip flights to the Caribbean nation utilizing MD-80 aircraft and hopes to increase frequency in the near future.
- The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is proposing a US$547,500 (396,050 euro) civil penalty against Hawaiian Airlines for operating a Boeing 767-300 that was not in compliance with federal aviation regulations. The FAA alleges Hawaiian operated the aircraft thousands of times when it was not in compliance with a July 2000 Airworthiness Directive (AD) that required inspections of certain engine thrust reverser components. During a July 2012 inspection, the FAA discovered that some of Hawaiian’s records erroneously showed the AD did not apply to one of its Boeing 767 aircraft. The FAA alleges Hawaiian operated the aircraft more than 5,000 times between July 2004 and July 2012 when it was out of compliance with the AD.
- Global freight forwarder Damco will extend its partnership with the Shandong Kerui Holding Group Co., LTD. Since 2013, Damco has delivered oilfield products from Tianjin and Zhengzhou, China, to South America and Europe.
- Southwest Airlines Cargo was recently named the Airforwarders Association’s Domestic Carrier of the Year for the fifth year in a row. It also earned the Express Delivery & Logistics Association’s Domestic Airline of the Year. This is the 14th year in a row Southwest has won the award.
- Aer Lingus celebrated the launch of its inaugural flight from Dublin to Toronto, its fourth transatlantic route launch in recent months. The new 757 service will operate daily between Dublin and Toronto during the summer season, and up to four times weekly during the winter.
- Liege Air Cargo Handling Services (LACHS), part of the C.A.L. Group, announced that ANA Airline Management will be transferring its business from Ostend, Belgium, to Liege Airport and will use LACHS’ services for airfreight and ground handling. The transfer will go into effect May 29.