Cargo Airlines Research Articles

Competition in cargo and passenger between high-speed rail and airlines—considering the vertical structure of transportation

High-speed rail (HSR) services are experiencing rapid global expansion, posing competition not only in the traditional passenger sector but also challenging air cargo with their attributes of speed and punctuality. In this study, we establish a straightforward model for air-HSR competition in both passenger and cargo markets, taking into account the vertical structure of transportation supply chain. We explore various market equilibria based on the combination of three factors: 1) HSR's provision of cargo services, 2) the integration or separation of HSR's ownership and operation, and 3) uniform or differentiated airport administrative fees for passenger and cargo airlines. The analytical results of our model indicate that the entry of HSR into the cargo market consistently enhances social welfare and may even improve the profit of cargo airlines. However, if airports adopt uniform pricing or there is vertical separation in HSR sector, this could potentially weaken the positive impact on welfare enhancement. These findings have important implications for transportation policy, highlighting how strategic management of infrastructure can significantly influence the effectiveness and societal benefits of HSR's expansion into cargo services.

The relationship between fleet structures and business models of combined airline cargo companies: A comparison with apriori algorithm

The relationship between fleet structures and business models of combined airline cargo companies: A comparison with apriori algorithm

Optimized fuel values for emission reduction

Aviation is an integral and vital part of modern society. The growth over the last decades has consequences for greenhouse gas emissions and reducing this through efficiency within the same framework is difficult. Precision flight planning is crucial for reliably and optimized real environment aircraft operation. The presented study gives an overview of the status of the legal requirements for flight planning under the current fuel requirements of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the emerging opportunities for fuel savings. As part of the larger study, planned and actual fuel figures of an international cargo airline were statistically analyzed. The overall analysis showed that there was no significant deviation between planned and consumed fuel. Based on the results, an adjustment of the planned alternative fuel quantity can be considered within the framework of an individual fuel plan. The possible savings potential using the example of Destination Alternate Airport fuel is presented.

Airplane as the Object of Mortgage Collateral in Indonesia Collateral Law

Transportation is an important thing in supporting economic activities in Indonesia. One of them is an airplane which is a means of transportation for humans and facilities logistics. Based on data from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, Ministry of Transportation (Kemenhub), there are around 18 airlines operating to transport passengers and around 54 cargo airlines, as well as 56 foreign airlines operating in Indonesia. It shows that the position of an airplane as an object becomes important, especially in terms of buying and selling and leasing of the airplane itself. In Indonesia, airplane leasing air travel is more often carried out for the implementation of the aviation business compared to buying and selling. This is due to the high price of airplanes as well as the legal situation regarding guarantees against airplane in Indonesia that are not yet fully present. In terms of guarantee, airplane is one of the objects that can be charged guarantee. This refers to Article 72 of Law Number 1 of 2009 concerning Aviation stating that "airplane objects can be burdened with interests international agreements arising from agreements on the granting of material guarantee rights, binding agreements conditional rights, and/or leasing agreement". Looking at these provisions, raises an issue regarding the classification of guarantee imposition criteria. Remember airplanes is an object that can change hands, then an airplane should be classified into movable objects subject to fiduciary guarantees. However, when viewed from the total weight of the airplane has a weight of more than 20 m3 so that it is included in the excluded object the imposition of fiduciary guarantees as referred to in Article 3 of Law Number 42 of the year 1999. Based on these problems, the author wants to devote the author's thoughts related to AIRPLANE AS MORTGAGE COLLATERAL OBJECTS IN INDONESIA COLLATERAL LAW

Аэропорты как платформы: следствия для антимонопольного правоприменения

Airports connect several functionally heterogeneous groups of users (passengers or cargo carriers, airlines, advertising and other service companies), enable direct interaction between them and affiliate each of them. These provide ground to analyze airports as platforms, which raises a question of how antitrust enforcement should account for characteristics of airports as platforms. The author shows that the presence of indirect network externalities and pass-through effects need to be taken into account when considering the relevant boundaries of markets with airports. The author proposes an approach to quantitatively assess indirect network externalities and pass-through effect using a survey. In addition, when defining the minimal set of products while testing relevant market boundaries the analysis of core functions can be used. This approach allows to find a minimum set of products that are distributed by airport as a platform. The characteristics of airports as platforms should also be taken into account when analyzing platform pricing, as the traditional price-cost test applied to the separate markets can be misleading.

The EU emissions trading system and airline low-carbon transition: A game-theoretic approach

Aviation is among one of the fastest-growing sources of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG). Thus, transitioning into a more low-carbon approach for future sustainable growth in the airline industry is necessary. Inspired by European Union's GHG emissions trading system that allows automobile makers to “pool” their carbon emissions, we study three emission pooling scenarios for the airline industry. Under the EU emissions trading system (EU ETS), passenger and cargo airlines such as Lufthansa and FedEx can either (1) pay a premium for each ton of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2eq) they fall short of free allowances (Pay Premium Strategy) or (2) buy allowances from other industries in the EU ETS market (Market-Based Strategy) (3) partnership with other airlines to “pool” their carbon emissions (Cooperative Strategy). These three approaches correspond to different market structures. The latest strategy has a co-opetition relationship between airlines: traditional airlines operating older aircraft purchase emission allowances from airlines operating newer aircraft. The purpose of this paper is to examine the conditions for airlines' paying penalties, purchasing allowances from the ETS market, or cooperation. We demonstrate that the EU ETS will always be detrimental to airlines using older aircraft. A hefty premium may effectively induce airlines to pursue a low-carbon transition plan. Our study shows that the ETS is not a silver bullet; it only works when the premium mechanism is designed properly and a fair market for emission allowances is available.

The Role of the Top 50 US Cargo Airports and 25 Air Cargo Airlines in the Logistics of E-Commerce Companies

Background: The purpose of this study is to analyse the role of the main 50 US cargo airports and 25 air cargo airlines in the logistics of e-commerce companies from 2000 to 2020, to highlight the importance of airports in the logistics and e-commerce industries. Methods: A review of the relevant literature on airports, air cargo carriers, logistics, and e-commerce sectors was undertaken to understand the link between them. The data were collected using four criteria: airport category, airport location, top 25 air cargo carriers, and other relevant data from the Federal Aviation Administration, International Air Transport Association, Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, US Department of Transportation, amongst many others. Results: The findings reveal that there is a consolidated relationship between airports, air cargo airlines, and e-commerce, which has been especially evident during the COVID-19 pandemic. Airports and air cargo carriers are identified as the most relevant partners in the e-commerce industry. This is because of the e-commerce sector and its users’ demand for speed and reliability in the interaction between the demand for and supply of products and services. Conclusions: The pandemic has changed the way in which organizations operate and is likely to create new demand from companies and users in the aviation and e-commerce industries. E-commerce companies are highly dependent on the quality and efficiency of air cargo airlines and airports because they need to provide a good shipping service for their products to customers.

The impact of the pandemic on the business models of air cargo carriers

The global pandemic has affected all sectors of the economy, including cargo air transport, and it is obvious that it has brought with it many changes. For cargo air carriers, the onset of the pandemic was a big challenge. The pandemic affected both the employee sector and the customer sector of the analyzed cargo air carriers, which required a change in the usual processes. Cargo airlines had to flexibly and creatively look for ways to cope with the new market demands that arose as a result of the pandemic. The paper deals with the analysis of the impact of the pandemic on changes in the business models of selected cargo airlines. Based on the evaluation of the analysis, a proposal for a hybrid business model for air cargo carrier is created in the conditions of aviation market affected by the pandemic.

Cargo delivery management in global supply chains under sustainable development conditions

The article aims to propose new approaches to cargo delivery management in global supply chains in the context of sustainable development. Recently, this issue gaining in importance and needs to be addressed, as international supply chains are becoming more complex, the range of transported goods is increasing, the requirements of the cargo clientele and the reliability of delivery in general are significantly increasing. Within the framework of the study, a critical analysis of scientific sources on cargo delivery technologies, the functioning of transport systems, the formation of global supply chains was carried out. The empirical research is based on the use of methods of systematization, deduction, expert assessments, statistical analysis — in the classification of cargo flows. Methods of statistical observation, correlation and regression analysis, mathematical modeling and optimization were used in the management of airline cargo flows and determining organizationaltechnological principles of interaction between participants in global supply chains. Scientific and practical recommendations for managing the cargo delivery technology in global supply chains are provided, which ensured the interests of all participants and allowed to unify this process in general.

Who benefits from air service agreements? The case of international air cargo operations

Air service agreements between countries spell out diverse provisions, such as reciprocal capacity allocations. We analyze how such agreements, which regulate total capacity in markets, affect total welfare and its distribution. We consider the interactions between two competing cargo airlines, their end customers, logistics service providers—who serve as intermediaries between the former two agent types—as well as the policy makers. Accounting for demand uncertainty, we model this interaction as a two-stage game. In the first stage, the policy makers coordinate equal capacity allocations to the two asset providers, whereas in the second stage, the asset providers compete over prices in the spot market. Solving the model, we characterize the pricing strategies employed by the two competing capacity-constrained asset providers in the spot market when facing price sensitive demand from end customers. We further analyze the corresponding capacity decisions.We then compare this coordinated competitive setting with a collaborative setting where the two asset providers can (virtually) merge and act as a monopoly. We find that, compared with the monopoly setting, the coordinated duopoly results in lower capacity, lower profits to the asset providers, larger benefits to both end customers and logistics service providers, and overall lower total welfare. These results suggest that policy makers shall hold an open attitude towards a higher level of cooperation among the asset providers. We carry out robustness checks to verify our insights hold with three, rather than two, asset providers, with different demand distributions, when capacity is costly and when asymmetric capacities are allowed in the spot market.

The Effect of Price Perception on Customer Loyalty in Airline Cargo Transportation

Airline cargo transportation is the preferred transportation system as the fastest transportation way today. However high costs also lead to high prices. Therefore, pricing is one of the issues that businesses should pay the most attention to when planning. Although competition over price is a competitive factor that businesses do not want to enter, this situation has become inevitable due to the intensity of the competition. To cope with this situation, it is beneficial for businesses to constantly measure and evaluate the price perception of customers.In addition, it is of great importance for every customer for airline cargo companies that want to stay afloat in a dynamic market. Providing unconditional customer satisfaction and turning these customers into loyal customers is the key to sustainable success for companies engaged in airline cargo transportation.Based on what has been described so far, it is possible to express the main purpose of this study in the form of investigating the effect of price perception on customer loyalty. The businesses using airline cargo transportation were included in the research and in this direction, research was carried out with 33 businesses operating in the Marmara Region and using airports in Istanbul.In the study, it was concluded that airline cargo service price perception does not have a statistically significant effect on airline cargo service customer loyalty. Finally, suggestions have been made to those interested in the subject.

Tackling uncertainties in aircraft maintenance routing: A review of emerging technologies

Aircraft maintenance routing (AMR) is crucial for both passenger airlines and cargo airlines to maintain flight operations efficiency, meanwhile it ensures that aircraft fulfill the civil aviation safety regulations in respect to maintenance checking. An optimal AMR solution can maximize the aircraft utilization for significantly increasing the airlines’ transport capacity and profitability. Therefore, extensive research works have been undertaken in this area. Traditionally, AMRs are optimized based on deterministic approaches. However, the theoretical optimality of the solution is usually difficult to achieve during practical operations due to disruptions arising from uncertainties. Thus, optimization of AMRs with uncertainty considerations has become more prevalent. More importantly, because of the maturity of technologies such as sensors nowadays, applications of these emerging technologies to tackle uncertainties have attracted much attention. Motivated by this, we conducted a critical review on AMR papers in handling uncertainties with emerging technologies. Currently, this is the first review in AMRs that contributes by systematically reviewing the emerging technologies in handling uncertainties in AMR. By reviewing 75 papers in the area, we have categorized the papers into four areas: uncertainty and robust solutions, big data and machine learning, smart technologies, and integrated information support systems. Based on the above, we also suggest some future research directions for researchers in the area.

On-line three-dimensional packing problems: A review of off-line and on-line solution approaches

Three-Dimensional Packing Problems (3D-PPs) can be applied to effectively reduce logistics costs in various areas, such as airline cargo management and warehouse management. In general, 3D-PP studies can be divided into two different streams: those tackling the off-line problem, where full knowledge about items is available beforehand; and those tackling the on-line (real-time) problem, where items arrive one by one and should be packed immediately without having full prior knowledge about them. During the past decades, off-line and on-line 3D-PPs have been studied in the literature with various constraints and solution approaches. However, and despite the numerous practical applications of on-line problems in real-world situations, most of the literature to date has focused on off-line problems and is quite sparse when it comes to on-line solution methods. In this regard, and despite the different nature of on-line and off-line problems, some approaches can be applied in both environments. Hence, we conducted an in-depth and updated literature review to identify and structure various constraints and solution methods employed by researchers in off-line and on-line 3D-PPs. Building on this, by bringing together the two separate streams of the literature, we identified several off-line approaches that can be adopted in on-line environments. Additionally, we addressed relevant research gaps and ways to bridge them in the future, which can help to develop this research field.

Analysis of the Structure and Dynamics of European Flight Networks

We analyze structure and dynamics of flight networks of 50 airlines active in the European airspace in 2017. Our analysis shows that the concentration of the degree of nodes of different flight networks of airlines is markedly heterogeneous among airlines reflecting heterogeneity of the airline business models. We obtain an unsupervised classification of airlines by performing a hierarchical clustering that uses a correlation coefficient computed between the average occurrence profiles of 4-motifs of airline networks as similarity measure. The hierarchical tree is highly informative with respect to properties of the different airlines (for example, the number of main hubs, airline participation to intercontinental flights, regional coverage, nature of commercial, cargo, leisure or rental airline). The 4-motif patterns are therefore distinctive of each airline and reflect information about the main determinants of different airlines. This information is different from what can be found looking at the overlap of directed links.

Cargo flow distribution of cargo airlines considering outsourcing

Cargo flow distribution of cargo airlines considering outsourcing

Analysis of Cargo Airline Services Quality in Cargo Delivery In Nigeria

This study analysed cargo airline services and cargo delivery in Nigeria. The focus was on identifying the disparity between expected and perceived airline service quality on cargo delivery. This study was carried out in Lagos State, Nigeria. Random sampling technique was used to select 239 freight forwarders agents that operate in the Cargo Terminal of Muritatal Muhammed International Airport, Lagos State. SERVQUAL model and t-test were used to analyse the disparity between expectations and perceptions of airline service quality. SERVQUAL model average gap score is -0.126 which implies that customers are not satisfied with cargo airline service quality. Moreover, the findings revealed that there is a negative disparity between customer expectations and perceptions of airline service quality on air cargo delivery with Reliability having the lowest negative t-value of (-34.409), followed by Tangibles with a t-value of (-23.300), Responsiveness has a t-value of (-12.910), Assurance followed with t-value of (-13.572) while Empathy has a t-value of (-10.165). Conclusion is drawn that cargo airline customers' expectations about their service quality are more than they really perceived. Recommendation was made that cargo airline should make an assessment of service quality dimensions (Tangibles, Reliability, Responsiveness, Assurance and Empathy) and provide a means to improve upon them.

НАБЛИЖЕНИЙ МЕТОД ЕКСПРЕС-ОЦІНКИ ЕФЕКТИВ-НОСТІ АВІАПЕРЕВЕЗЕНЬ ЗА СОБІВАРТІСТЮ РЕЙСУ ПО-ВІТРЯНОГО СУДНА

It is known that the main goal of passenger and cargo airlines is the most stable profitability with a positive gradient of its growth. This goal is provided by a number of factors, among which the prime cost of operating aircraft (AC) on the routes of passenger and cargo transportation lines plays an important role. Based on the analysis of the world and domestic air transportation market, the article highlights the main factors that determine the level of the cost of flights. The analysis of these factors showed that the cost of flights is a complex multifactorial problem that is solved by air carrier companies sequentially at a number of stages as a large amount of information accumulates.At the same time, an air carrier needs a very approximate, but prompt method of assessing this cost, especially at the stage of its entry into the air transportation business.A detailed analysis of the dependence of the cost of air transportation on the length of the runway, proposed by the General Designer O.K. Antonov for an express assessment of this complex parameter in relation to cargo aircraft, which we have expanded for the type of passenger aircraft. The analysis showed the admissibility of considering the curve Scost=f(LRS) as a function of the mathematical expectation of the cost of air transportation, and the points lying outside this curve as the variance of the cost, i.e. as the risk of choosing an alternative aircraft option.The main factors that predetermine the level of the cost of air transportation have been synthesized, among which the factor of non-stop flight is of particular importance, i.e. range. This made it possible to develop the idea of O.K. Antonov to present as an approximate criterion of efficiency the dependence of the cost of air transportation on the range of the aircraft in the form of a hyperbolic dependence of a similar type.The analysis of the efficiency of the proposed method for assessing the effectiveness of the criterion of the cost of air transportation from the flight range of the aircraft showed the validity of its application for the express assessment of the preliminary choice by the aircraft operator at the initial stage of his development of the air transportation business.

Integrators' global networks: A topology analysis with insights into the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic

In this paper we propose, to the best of our knowledge, the first analysis of the global networks of integrators FedEx, UPS, and DHL using network science. While noticing that all three networks rely on a “hub-and-spoke” structure, the network configuration of DHL leans towards a multi-“hub-and-spoke” structure that reflects the different business strategy of the integrator. We also analyzed the robustness of the networks, identified the most critical airports per integrator, and assessed that the network of DHL is the most robust according to our definition of robustness. Finally, given the unprecedented historical time that the airline industry is facing at the moment of writing, we provided some insights into how the COVID-19 pandemic affected the global capacity of integrators and other cargo airlines. Our results suggest that full-cargo airlines and, much more dramatically, combination airlines were impacted by the pandemic. On the other hand, apart from fluctuations in offered capacity due to travel bans that were quickly recovered thanks to the resilience of their networks, integrators seem to have escaped the early months of the pandemic unscathed.

Use of blockchain technology as supply chain management system involving air transport

This article explores Blockchain Technology, and how it can be used in the context of information exchange between stakeholders in international supply chains and networks involving air transport. The article reviews the global experience with this technology of iconic companies (Maersk, Lufthansa, Walmart, Unilever, Nestle, Samsung, British Airways) in logistics and supply chain management. It highlights the features of international chains using air transport, which predominantly consist of two categories of goods: goods with high added value (electronic devices and their components, fashion industry products, jewelry) and goods with strict delivery time requirements (pharmaceuticals, live animals, perishable products, e-commerce products and mail). The study shows that perishable goods have great potential for increasing airline cargo turnover. However, at present, there is no single universal tool for managing their supply chains since the tools used (ERP, SRM, TMS, WMS) do not provide complete transparency of information exchange between all stakeholders. The most problematic stage in the delivery to control steps in the delivery of perishable goods by air occur on the ground, while goods are being handled at the airport of departure and the airport of destination. Difficulties arise while checking the correctness of paperwork, labeling and information authenticity about the product origin. The article suggests using block chain blockchain technology in combination with IoT and smart-contract technologies for SCM of perishable products using air transport. The use of this technology allows to reduce the time of document verification procedures. Customs clearance and phytosanitary control could be vastly improved. Overall tracking and monitoring of a product from the moment of its production to the destination simplifies the identification of any counterfeits, improves the quality of food safety control. A greater level of control becomes possible in logistics operations, to determine liability in possible delivery conditions’ violations cases. Overall optimization of the logistic processes, automatization of the execution of verified financial transactions can be achieved. The use of these technologies in combination with innovative technologies for food quality control will significantly reduce logistics costs in the supply chains of perishable products.

A cryptographic cloud-based approach for the mitigation of the airline cargo cancellation problem

In order to keep in good long-term relationships with their main customers, Airline Cargo companies do not impose any fee for last minute cancellations of shipments. As a result, customers can book the same shipment on several cargo companies. Cargo companies try to balance cancellations by a corresponding volume of overbooking. However, the considerable uncertainty in the number of cancellations does not allow to fine-tune the optimal overbooking level, causing losses. In this work, we show how the deployment of cryptographic techniques, enabling the computation on private information of customers and companies data can improve the overall service chain, allowing for striking and enforcing better agreements. We propose a query system based on proxy re-encryption and show how the relevant information can be extracted, still preserving the privacy of customers’ data. Furthermore, we provide a Game Theoretic model of the use case scenario and show that it allows a more accurate estimate of the cancellation rates. This supports the reduction of the uncertainty and allows to better tune the overbooking level.