Danita Waterfall Brizzi is on the world stage this week as Air Cargo Africa continues in Nairobi, Kenya.
     In a bravura presentation part of a roundtable discussion on Tuesday, this dynamic female airline professional, who began her career at Pan American World Airways, keeps moving on up while delivering some straight from the shoulder insights into DL Africa and some other thoughts and revelations as well.

     “Delta operations to and from Africa have been one of many great success stories in cargo over the past several years.
     “With respect to U.S.-Africa flight offerings, this route is largely an untapped market.
“Delta is currently the only U.S.-based carrier with operations to the continent and we feel this gives us a huge jump on our U.S. domestic-based competition.
     “Today in cargo, we see consistently full bellies going both into and out of destinations like Johannesburg.
     “As airport infrastructures keep on improving in destinations across the continent, Delta Cargo will continue to support the needs of our customers, who clearly see the business potential between the two continents.”
     “Also, as trade relations between the U.S. and Africa get better, Delta Cargo will look to expand our cargo business in destinations across the continent.
     “Of course, we believe in Africa and want to be part of the growth and success story here.
     “For 2010, our U.S. to Africa flights averaged 69 percent positional load factors, while Africa to U.S. flights averaged 33 percent positional load factors.
     “There is a need to champion trade between these two regions of the world and Delta Cargo plans to support this need in every way possible. In Africa we already facilitate the import and export of products such as textiles, automotive parts, fresh produce and seafood.

     “Talking Delta Cargo—we saw a large YoY increase of tonnage between 2009 and 2010.
     “There were a number of causal factors to our growth in 2010.
     “The signs of recovery from the economic crisis of the past few years have certainly been a large contributing factor to our recent success.
     “As industries across the board have begun to experience the recovery, the need for global expedited freight services has grown.
     “Leveraging one of the world’s best cargo networks, Delta has been able to help our customers as their businesses begin to see these signs of recovery.
     “In addition to the economic recovery, a disciplined plan for maintaining operational efficiency, including a rational approach to capacity, and a firm commitment to backing our customers’ business needs with best in class customer service, have had a huge impact on our division’s success.
     “Taking an even wider industry view, global air cargo witnessed a significant recovery in 2010 from the recent recession, which impacted all businesses over the past few years.
     “Signs of recovery have not only just shown themselves in Delta’s financial statements this year; however we still have a steep hill in front of us.
     “As IATA has warned, air cargo traffic is expected to slow down over the next year and a half.
     “Delta’s improving revenues, low-cost structure, strong cash flow and unmatched merger synergies have built a foundation for an expected solid overall financial performance in 2011.
     “Delta has also financially positioned itself well for the future, with a strong commitment to reducing debt and improving our balance sheet for the long term.
     “By securing this position of effectively curtailing capacity where necessary, and continuing to provide our customers with best in class customer service, we believe that we can continue our success during future economic slowdowns or declines.”
     Danita began her aviation career in February 1989, recruited from a U.S. Master’s degree program in Russian Studies into the Pan American Airways Management Training Program. After job training and coursework in New York, Danita received her immersion into Airport Customer Service for 20 months in Moscow, Russia.
     From Russia with love, she was transferred to the European Headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany as Regional Analyst support for both ACS and Passenger Sales management through the transition of the Delta acquisition of Pan Am, which included temporary duty assignments in Belgium, Sweden and Atlanta.
     When DL headquarters moved to London, Danita transferred there into the position of Manager – Sales Training & Administration, developing the first passenger and cargo sales training department in Europe as well as the first European-based Regional Assistant StepUp program.
     In September 1994, Danita was sent back to Moscow, taking over the near-bankrupt joint venture between Delta and Aeroflot as Executive Director, Delta Aeroflot Travel Enterprise. While there, she developed the business into a successful profit center, including the Airport First Class lounge (which is still there today), Worldspan reservations systems office and training center, and travel agencies.
     In 1996, Danita became the Regional Director – Cargo Sales & Operations – Europe, Middle East, and India responsible for cargo sales and operations for 44 online cities in the region and a budget of USD$185 million.
     During that time she shepherded the re-structuring of the former Pan Am cargo hub and warehouse in Frankfurt, implementing extensive changes in cargo security, negotiating handling and sales vendor contracts, creating sales and marketing plans, opening new stations in the Delta international expansion, and participation in the development and implementation of the Delta Cargo/Swisscargo Atlantic Cargo Excellence, and later Air France Cargo alliances.
     In July 2009, Danita was promoted to the position of Director – Cargo Sales & Service – Europe, Middle East, Africa and India, based in Frankfurt, where she oversees DL staff and General Sales & Service Agents in 50 online and offline stations in 33 countries.
     She enjoys swimming, playing classical piano, teaching Sunday School, and continues to refine her language skills in Russian, German, Italian and French.
     FlyingTypers is proud to report on this dynamic past and future air cargo leader and to include this story in our exclusive Women In Air Cargo series.
Geoffrey/Flossie

Gulf Air OK Although
Grand Prix Postponed

     Decision has been taken to cancel the Bahrain Grand Prix due to continuing unrest in the Kingdom with word from the organizers that the race has been deferred until later this year.
     Meantime Carl Dias, Gulf Air Regional Cargo Manager - Europe & North America confirmed that “all Gulf Air flights and our Bahrain cargo hub are operating normally.
     “Despite the civil unrest in BAH our cargo/mail uplift was only down by 2% compared to the previous week.
     “Gulf Air Cargo is open for business and there is no disruption to our service.”
More info: carl.dias@gulfair.com

     One of the major questions plaguing India’s planners concerns infrastructure development and resettlement of the people whose land is used. The other, of course, is that age-old war between development and environment.
      The international airport in Mumbai, for example, is unable to expand because the surrounding slums cannot be moved, nor can the people living in them be resettled elsewhere.
      The latest problem has arisen in Nagpur, where the country’s first multimodal international air cargo hub (MIHAN) and Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel’s pet project is being set up. Delayed by almost four years – it was scheduled for completion in 2008 – the villagers all around the city’s international airport are up in arms because they have been moved out to make place for the hub.
      To top it all, most of them complain that the Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC) paid them measly amounts. MADC is responsible for the MIHAN project and has started acquiring around 350 hectares from farmers and others. The MADC has acquired 3,313 hectares of land for the construction of the cargo hub and Special Economic Zone (SEZ). The total acquisition for MIHAN and SEZ would be 4,354 hectares of land, which includes 183 hectares of land owned by the government. A SEZ of 2,086 hectares—the largest multi-product SEZ in India—will be set up beside the airport. Of 2,086 hectares, various processing units will use 1,472 hectares and the remaining 614 hectares will be for service sector units.
      The Hitavada, a local and established newspaper, has taken up their cause. Commenting on the MADC’s moves, the newspaper’s editor, Vijay Phanshikar, penned an open letter some time ago. Addressed to the Government of Maharashtra, Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Minister, Ministers, Legislators, and officials, the letter said:
      “It is after a deep thought that we have opted to write this open letter to highlight a major issue to correct a huge wrong being perpetrated in Nagpur by way of the Special Economic Zone promoted by Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC). If we fail to act fast, if we do not step in to stop the loot that has been going for a long time in the name of development, a mega scandal will explode here.”
      He goes on to state that “a detailed study of the project has led us to believe that under the pretext of developing the SEZ, a blatant loot is going on of farmers’ precious land by vested interests that are aiming to make hundreds of crores of rupees after developing the property and selling the same to interested buyers at shockingly high cost. In the process, farmers are left high and dry with only a few pennies in their pockets, by violating the law that governs Special Economic Zones.”
      The editor ends the note by asking the government to conduct a thorough probe into the SEZ land grab affair and even consider possibilities of launching criminal proceedings against the guilty.
      For his part, the Chief Minister of Maharashtra (Nagpur is incidentally the winter capital of the state) has stated that the government would provide compensation, starting at around $10,000, to those farmers whose land had been acquired for the cargo hub.
      Whatever the outcome of the battle, air cargo stakeholders hold mixed views on MIHAN. Many have even gone on to question whether the project will be worth it or not. According to many, the government should come out with a clear date on when the project will be completed. Still others feel that the multi-modal hub concept at Nagpur will not work. Their reason: a far larger tonnage of cargo emanates from the west and the south of the country than the north and the east. If aircraft from all directions fly in to Nagpur for redistribution of cargo, there will be fewer planes from the north and the east to take back the cargo.
      There are, however, a number of cargo stakeholders who feel that the hub and spoke concept – akin to the one used by FedEx and UPS – would work well. If the economy performs as well as it has been doing, then Nagpur would do well as a hub.
      Then, of course, there are environmental concerns. Once the hub is fully functional, the number of planes taking off and landing could not only cause sound pollution but also environmental hazards.
      Praful Patel recently announced that Air India would soon set up an aircraft engine maintenance workshop for all its next generation engines.
      “All the next generation aircraft engines manufactured by General Electric (GE) will be maintained at the Nagpur workshop in the Multi Modal International Passenger and Cargo Hub (MIHAN) in the city,” Patel said.
Tirthankar Ghosh/Flossie

     The terrible earthquake that struck New Zealand has left that island nation in a state of complete turmoil.
     People that want to help from anywhere in the world have an express line to relief workers on the ground by donating any amount to The New Zealand Red Cross

     Happy birthday, Hamburg Airport!
     The airport, one of the world’s oldest, celebrated its one-hundredth birthday on Monday, January 10, 2011.
     “Someone is old if the past seems to be more joyful than the future,” said Managing Director Michael Eggenschwiler in his speech, attended by 500 guests in the city’s town hall. Mr. Eggenschwiler was citing an old Swiss saying, and if this sentence is correct, Hamburg’s airport is fairly young “because our future looks much more joyful than the past,” exclaimed the Switzerland-born manager.
     The proclaimed shining perspective is dependent, however, on how fast Boeing and Airbus deliveritheir new long-haul variants B787 “Dreamliner” and A350 to their many customers around the globe. Both aircraft could very easily fill the existing gap of long distance traffic that Hamburg Airport laments over since it misses a big home carrier and has no hub status in international aviation.
     With both Airbus and Boeing models coming into the market in the near future, facilities off the main routes that circumvent the crowded gateways will presumably become increasingly attractive for intercontinental airlines. Nonstop flights between Hamburg and Shanghai, Beijing, Chicago and other destinations seem to be very reasonable since Hamburg is Germany’s second biggest city after Berlin and is an attractive trading place in itself.

     The century of aviation began with the legendary Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin, who established the Deutsche Luftschiffahrts-Aktiengesellschaft (DELAG), the very first worldwide airline in November 1909. Since DELAG needed sites where the huge Zeppelins could land and depart, Hamburg’s city government decided to drain a swamp and convert it into a landing field at the nearby village of Fuhlsbuettel. The airport is still located there today, making it one of the rare specimens of its kind on this globe that has never been redeployed.
     Last year 13 million passengers (+6%) landed at or departed from Hamburg Airport, with 72,000 tons of air freight imported or exported via HAM. Currently passengers can choose between 80 nonstop flights mainly to European destinations or Dubai, New York, Toronto or Tehran. The place ranks among the most profitable airports in Europe and has attracted 250 enterprises that offer jobs for 15,000 people.
      Finally, the much-lauded architecture of the modern, passenger terminals makes it real eye candy as well as a spot of architectural identification and pride for a great number of the 3.7 million inhabitants in Hamburg’s metropolitan region; among them, the author.
Heiner Siegmund

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