 When
is an air cargo movement as supple and well composed as the opening
chords of a Mozart Symphony?
Well, the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra
discovered first-hand that the fine tuning and rhythm of leisure air
cargo is music to shippers around the world after contacting Air Berlin
to fly their musicians and instruments to the USA.
The grand finale of this tale was the
soft delivery of artists and their “axes” just in time for
a grand USA/ Canada/Mexico/ tour during early 2011.
Now comes the libretto:
Air Berlin (AB) designated Felix Brockerhoff from leisure Cargo (LC)
to plan and accompany the complete shipment from Germany into the USA.
leisure Cargo has over 20 years of experience
in all forms of airfreight transport, thus Air Berlin knew this transport
would be in good, reliable hands.
The special characteristic about this
transport was the very high volume and value of the instruments and,
of course, the fragility of the freight.
In the beginning the main objective was
to combine the ideas of the transport department from Vienna and the
cargo hold of the chartered Airbus 330-200 in Dusseldorf.
Many months later, in fact only two weeks
before last Christmas 2010, leisure Cargo received a final draft of
all instruments that needed to be moved.
Since leisure via Air Berlin is all belly
lift, it was quickly realized that space aboard the A330 would be tight—perhaps
too close for comfort—and would require some fine tuning.
But no need to fret!
 Faster
than you can say ‘Prestissimo!’ leisure Cargo organized
two options with the AB Traffic Center.
First to go from the A330 was the usual flight kit PMC on charter flights
(for spare tires and tools). Second, the possibility was explored to
load some baggage in the cabin (suitcases with fastened seatbelts!).
That idea did not fall on deaf ears, but
resulted in the instruments being strapped to the seats, which we suppose
also made it possible for the boys and girls to strike up the band if
flying six miles high moved them to a five part Grand Fugue.
The documentation had to be done through
a forwarder due to regulations for U.S.-bound import freight.
leisure Cargo worked closely together
with Cargo-Partner, so the documentation moved alle breve.
After detailed discussion with U.S. Customs
regarding the transmission and customs clearance requirements at the
first stop (Oakland, California), a special permit was approved just
two weeks before the planned departure of Vienna Philharmonic from Düsseldorf.
The permit allowed Customs Clearance in
the USA to be conducted just like the invaluable, classic instruments
brought to life in performance—the old fashioned way—in
paper form, no electronic transmission (AAMS) needed.
Everything was set up to go, the Vienna
Philharmonic would play their last concert in Cologne, Germany on the
22nd of February until 22:00 local, just two hours before midnight.
Then while the musicians rested, all their
instruments would be safely packed in their flight cases and loaded
on to trucks for delivery 3 hours later in Düsseldorf.
The designated warehouse staff from the
FDCG and Felix Brockerhoff would await the instruments, together with
the head of the Vienna Philharmonic transport department and three representatives
from Cargo-Partner.
Two days before the planned transport
was to begin, somebody decided the Vienna Philharmonic needed different
instruments to fly to USA, so a new list of instruments bound for the
tour was presented to leisure Cargo from Vienna.
 But
leisure was ready to play it by ear and remained unfazed by the change,
and as it turned out different, smaller flight cases were actually needed
for a few less instruments.
Everyone involved was fit as a fiddle
and ready for the big musical move as the day came and went without
any complications.
From the packing and pick-up in Cologne,
to the transport to Dusseldorf, where the instruments were all screened
and built-up, to the actual loading aboard the AB A332, everything went
as smooth and sweet as a Mozart Pastoral.
Customs clearance in Düsseldorf and
Oakland without a snagged string or a blown oboe was followed by the
post arrivals unloading, breakdown and transport to the concert hall
in the USA. Everything showed up in tip-top shape, and with bells on.
“leisure Cargo has once again proved
that it is a top choice for all kinds of transport,” said Managing
Director (and Principal Conductor) Ralf Auslaender.
“We can move anything from flutes
to fruits with any one of our 18 service partners, almost anywhere in
the world.
“Whether it is delicate and valuable
instruments for the Vienna Philharmonic or perishable freight, including
everything from German white asparagus in season (spargel) to pharma
and high value cargo with a very tight critical timespan, we are ready
to meet and exceed any expectations.
“That’s the music here at
leisure cargo,” Mr. Auslaender smiled.
And certainly, for such a feat leisure
deserves to toot its own horn!
Geoffrey/Flossie
|
Munich
calls and everybody seems to come.
This
is demonstrated right at the show’s kick-off May 10 at 10:15 a.m.,
when German Transport Minister Peter Ramsauer, (right) a native Bavarian
himself, will deliver his views on “how much green the logistics
industry can afford” in a high ranking panel which also includes
CEO Karl Ulrich Garnadt of Lufthansa Cargo and Ruediger Grube, head
of German rail group Deutsche Bahn. 
If
you ask Cargolux CEO Frank Reiman how to handle change in a cargo business
of myriad responsibilities, including the seen and the unseen, which
have a nasty way of popping up unannounced, his gaze is level and the
answer is direct:
ATC
Has A
Ram
Menen DSVP Emirates Sky Cargo:
Stephan
Blank, General Manager Air Freight Germany, WorldNet Logistics:
Tom
Hoang, Regional Director, Cargo Marketing, Boeing Commercial Airplanes:
Volker
Dunkake, Head of Global Sales and Service, Lufthansa Cargo CharterAgency:
