ACW - Air Cargo Week
01/18/2012
Lufthansa hits record as capacity grows
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Despite what was undeniably a very difficult time for Lufthansa Cargo, the carrier nevertheless moved more freight in 2011 than in any other calendar year.
It shipped a total of nearly 1.9 million tonnes of freight and mail over the course of the year, an increase of 5 percent over the 1.8 million tonnes carried in 2010.
Freight traffic as measured in tonne-km rose by 6.5 percent year-on-year to reach 8.89 billion. That increase was only made possible, however, by an increase in capacity of 8.6 percent year-on-year to 13.65 billion tonne-km, expansion that derived in the main from the inclusion in the Lufthansa Group inventory of Austrian Airlines and a growth in the AeroLogic joint venture fleet to eight B777 freighters.
The extra capacity added also meant a slight fall in the average cargo load factor, from 70.9 percent in 2010 to 69.5 percent last year.
Nonetheless, Lufthansa Cargo chairman and CEO, Karl Ulrich Garnadt, remains in buoyant mood, observing: "Especially in our German market, we made full use of strong export demand to gain market share."
Although he admitted that the important Asian air freight market had become "increasingly bleak over the course of the year and led to overcapacities and increased competition for all airlines in the air freight industry", Garnadt noted: "That we managed to continue our growth course on a global level against that strong headwind manifests the strength and adaptability of Lufthansa Cargo."
What is more, he remains positive about the prospects for the year ahead, saying: "Lufthansa Cargo is excellently positioned in all growth markets. We will stay on our successful course and adjust our capacities flexibly in line with demand."
Of course, a significant determinant of the freight carrier's fortunes for the coming year lies out of Lufthansa Cargo's hands, and in his comments on the year ahead Garnadt was quick to point out the potential danger of an unwanted decision being made on night flights through Frankfurt-Main International airport.
He explained: "Germany profits from a strong and successful air freight industry, which must not be decoupled for several hours daily from global trade flows.
"A night-flight ban would deal a severe blow to the entire industry and threaten thousands of jobs in Germany, not only in the logistics industry," Garnadt concluded.
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