Attendees
of the 2016 Cargo Network Services Conference in Nashville
will not soon forget the genteel welcome from Turkish
Airlines Cargo. Attendees were met with a crew of smiling
faces and greeted at the entrance by a beautiful floor
model of Turkish’s B777 aircraft.
Turkish
served up a delicious lunchtime buffet on the second
day and some lucky conferees were able to snag the Turkish
coffee at their display stand.
“We
open services to Atlanta (pax) on May 16, added to our
line cargo flights serving ATL that have been in operation
since October 2015,” said VP Cargo Halit Anlatan.
"We
are pleased to have had the opportunity to meet and
greet our customers and potential new service partners
in Nashville.” Mr. Anlatan said.
Pictured
in Nashville are (L to R) Kani Morova, Southeast Regional
Cargo Manager; Bora Iscan, Regional Cargo Representative
Americas; Sarper Ozpercin, Regional Cargo Operations
Coordination Manager; Halit Anlatan, Vice President
Cargo; and Ismail Cay, Manager Cargo Sales Channels
and Key Accounts.
If you
examine Turkish Airlines as delegates to IATA’s
Cargo Network Services (CNS) undoubtedly did during
their big Nashville event what emerged—in addition
to the slick, ultra modern aircraft transport and handling
capabilities for all manner of cargo, from pharma to
horses to heavy machinery and small packages—is
Istanbul itself as the “Natural Bridge between
Asia and Europe.”
Any way you look at it,
Turkish Airlines is fielding its cargo division with
spirit and élan.
“Our main competitive
advantage is our people and warm hospitality, which
comes from our deep-rooted traditions, and standing
by our customers’ side as a trustable friend,”
Turkish Airlines’ Vice President Cargo Halit Anlatan
told FlyingTypers.
“Additionally, we
own a fascinating position via Gateway Istanbul and
are eager to develop and serve a significant share of
new and niche markets,” Mr. Anlatan said.
With a culture for cargo
that has been evolving now for 80 years, Turkish Airlines
Cargo is the latest manifestation in trading for a country
known throughout history as being at the epicenter of
trade.
The
Big Airplane That Could
Turkish Airlines Cargo’s
big dominator B777 floor model was impossible to miss
as it stood at the entrance of CNS Partnership Conference.
Festooned in gorgeous,
breathtaking livery, the big Boeing jet model served
as a touchstone and meeting place for IATA CNS conferees,
who may have otherwise been lost at the busy, jam-packed,
two-thousand-acre, 2,200-room hotel complex, Gaylord’s
Opryland, where several trade shows converged.
“Opryland”
is the outgrowth of the long-running “Grand Ole
Opry,” the country music radio program that has
been broadcast on radio and now television since 1943.
Originally performed at The Ryman Auditorium, “Grand
Old Opry” is now on stage year round, operating
from a giant theater just next door to the Opryland
hotel complex.
CNS
Face-To- Face A Plus
Back on the ground in
air cargo customer country, Halit observes:
“We very much enjoyed
the CNS experience, had several meetings, and greatly
appreciate the opportunity to talk face to face with
our business partners and potential customers as we
expand the Turkish Airlines Cargo brand in the Americas
and worldwide.
“This was my first
time at CNS,” Mr. Anlatan said, adding quickly:
“The opportunity
to talk directly to both customers and business partners
comes during 2016, which is getting off to a rather
challenging start, and our focus continues on expansion
and on increasing revenue.”
 Turkish
Cargo, in its bid for greatness, is delivering on its
bold plan at building on product and presence in the
global market place, and is anchored on a strong foundation
as it steps forward, adding equipment systems and infrastructure
while expansion continues into new markets in this still
fairly new century.
“You get what you
pay for, and Turkish Cargo is delivering excellence
every step of the way,” he said.
New aircraft continue
to join the fleet, new destinations will be opening,
and continual refinement for facilities and frequency
increases are all in the works.
“So,” Mr.
Anlatan said, “we boost our capacity by increasing
freighter frequencies in important trade lines like
Madrid, Maastricht, Dhaka, and Hydarabad; moreover we
recently added new destinations such as Barcelona, Billund,
Ho chi Minh, Phnom Penh (to be started on May 20, 2016),
and Warsaw, thus expanding our freighter network to
60 destinations, besides our 285 destinations served
with belly capacity of Turkish Airlines.
“We continue to
expand our services globally and from this global footprint
to position our brand across one of the largest networks
in the airline business.
“Turkish is currently
flying to 285 destinations in 113 countries with our
fleet consisting of 309 aircraft, 10 of which are freighters,”
Mr. Anlatan declared.
“The primary focus
of Turkish Cargo is to have a 'customer-oriented approach;’
to meet customer needs and to make our shipment process
clear and fast.
“We have also offered
a very customer-friendly, easily accessible website
connection—www.turkishcargo.com.tr—in
order to meet customer demands, and also to offer the
easiest way to monitor their shipment at every step,”
he said.
Cargo
Istanbul Facility Success
“Turkish Cargo is
continuing to invest non-stop in our business.
“Gateway Istanbul’s
new high tech cargo facility that we debuted just over
a year ago on January 1, 2015, is a new landmark for
air shippers that has greatly enhanced efficiencies
and our ability to exceed the need and handle every
aspect of our service offering.”
iCargo
Changes Everything
“Turkish Cargo went
live with its new generation iCargo system, delivering
its software solution COMIS (Cargo Operations Management
and Information System) on October 1, 2015.
“iCargo was developed
specifically to meet the needs of Turkish Cargo, including
quicker adaptation to sectorial developments and coupling
remarkable ease of operation thanks to its community-based
product function,” he said.
“iCargo has enhanced
our service quality and operational efficiency at Turkish
Cargo.
“We also see increased
ability to move capacity where needed in a more rapid
fashion, adding to our competitive advantages which
include Gateway Istanbul’s location and advanced
air cargo handling facilities development.”
Face
To Face, It’s The People
“Turkish Cargo is
building its future on a very solid foundation,”
Halit Anlatan declared.
“It’s our
people.
“Everywhere we fly
or wish to serve in the future begins with a solid team
on the ground.
“We have six regional
managers with knowledge of each destination and a local
approach that immediately engages our service partners,
the forwarders, to working together so that our success
and also theirs is assured.
“We know that there
are many choices out there and we never forget how important
our service partners are,” Halit Anlatan said.
Turkish Airlines continues
flying high, wide, and handsome, as my father the pilot
used to say.
Geoffrey
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Vol. 15 No. 36
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