The opening of a perishable handling facility has opened up new markets and increased access within the airfreight sector for Air Menzies.This is according to Frederik du Plessis, branch manager perishables and charter services at Air Menzies International. He told Freight Newsit meant perishable commodities were handled far less frequently, ultimately arriving fresher at the end destination.“Through this venture we are also supporting the various airlines in terms of equipment preparation, which adds to their operational and dispatch reliability,” he explained.He said while there was an increase in volumes in the perishable sector, there were also higher volumes in other industry sectors because it was high season at present.“Airfreight is doing well at the moment due to the challenges faced by the sea freight sector. This is providing the air cargo market with the opportunity to handle more volumes and more goods that would traditionally be transported on the ocean.”He said another interesting opportunity was that of charters as airlines were still reeling after the outbreak of Covid-19, struggling to release capacity to accommodate high volumes.“The past 18 months has not been easy. As an industry we are still recovering from the onslaught of Covid-19 and progress has been slow in some aspects. Capacity remains a major concern and there is no doubt that more capacity out of South Africa is needed,” said Du Plessis. “But now more than ever, innovation is critical.”Whilst volumes are still not what they were prior to the Covid-19, there is a steady increase. “Volumes are up year-on-year from 2019 to 2021 and are still growing positively. The effect of sea freight not operating as it should is definitely contributing to increased volumes.”Du Plessis said there had been a spike in volumes into the United Arab Emirates in particular – as more expats returned to their place of work after working from home during the pandemic and its various lockdown phases.“We remain very positive about the local airfreight market and are hopeful that capacity will return as airlines return to the skies and reinstate routes.”
