FT043020

#INTHEAIREVERYWHERE

Vol. 19 No. 36	Thursday April 30, 2020

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Donna Mullins of Mullins International Solutions—profiled here recently for her outstanding work in the Atlanta logistics community and beyond—has done it again.
Today when a random act of kindness and caring can often make the difference, she has marshalled a brave band of ladies to venture out with face masks, rubber gloves and proper social distancing to Hartsfield Jackson International Airport (HIJA) in Atlanta, where they have been delivering food to truckers who had nowhere else to go.
Here Donna picks up the story.

The Truckers Home

     “Everyone has been affected by COVID-19.
     “The transportation industry has been both blessed and cursed by the virus.
     “Cursed in international transportation but blessed in domestic transportation.
     “Our truckers are once again being seen as ‘The Backbone of America.’
     “I teach many classes for international trade and logistics and I always remind students that merchandise begins and ends its journey on a truck—from the raw materials to make the item to the retail store or distribution center where it will be purchased.”

Truckers Keep Cargo Moving

     “Mullins International Solutions is a small company and we have felt the strain and stress of this pandemic, just as our fellow industry colleagues, truck drivers included,” Donna declared.
     “The truckers have been so important to the country’s continued success that FMSCA relaxed the HOS (hours of service) for the drivers.
     “This has helped the truckers and the supply chain.
     “The HOS relaxation has enabled drivers to complete routes that otherwise may have had to be split up into multiple legs,” Donna insists.

No Place to Hit the Breaks

“However, this comes at some cost to the driver—longer hours and less time to stop and grab a bite to eat, and some establishments do not allow a tractor-trailer to sit in the drive-thru line, therefore making it even more difficult for them to get a well-deserved meal.”

Delivering Some Food for Thought

     “I gave thought to what we could do to help during this unprecedented time.
     “How could a small company like Mullins International Solutions possibly do anything to help our industry?
     “Then I saw a post on Facebook of a young girl, maybe 12 or so, sitting at a table near a roadside giving meals to truckers.
     “BAM!
     “That’s what we can do!

Other Helping Hands

     “So, I contacted a local restaurant, Ruby's Chicken House (Ruby's is named in memory of Ruby Saggus, my beautiful mama), and started a FAT KAT—Feed A Trucker, Keep America Trucking—Challenge.”
     “Ruby's made up 40 meals of chicken wraps, chips, a cookie, and a piece of fruit and gave us a discount on the purchase.
     “We bought bottled waters and along with the meals we gave every trucker a bracelet with this reminder—God's Got This!”

Faces Told the Story

     “The smiles on the driver’s faces when we gave them a free meal were priceless.
     “A big thank you to Kathy Williams, SEKO Logistics, and Cheryl Jackson, Page & Jones, for helping distribute the meals!
     “I’d like to also give a shout-out to Todd Moore of JP Hall Express who accepted the challenge and also bought 40 meals for his drivers.”

Community Begins with You

     “Just as everyone has been affected by COVID-19, everyone can help someone else too.
     “You don’t have to be a Fortune 500 company, a single meal fills someone’s belly and that, my friend, is helping your neighbor,” Donna Mullins said gently.
     “The government has initiated CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) and private stakeholders can CARES too, one single meal at a time.
     “We plan to continue.
     “FlyingTypers readers are invited to FAT KAT.
     “It all comes down to this, according to Dr. Seuss:
     “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not!”
Geoffrey
Here is how you can lean in and help FAT KAT feed some truckers. Contact Donna.

German Chancellors

Words May Inspire
Jo Frigger      “Health is the key word.
     “As long as there is no cure for COVID-19, prevention is our only defense.
     “Konrad Adenauer, the first Chancellor of the new German Republic in 1948 who assumed office and then had to deal with the blockade of Berlin when air cargo came to the rescue and helped save a city of two million people, once declared:
     “The situation is serious, but not hopeless.”
     “In that spirit, we must maintain our positive attitude and discipline to overcome this pandemic and through perseverance, we will.”
Jo Frigger, Chairman-EMO Trans, Inc.

Hello Geoffrey,

I hope this message find you, your family and your readers well and safe during this most distressful time.
In your piece on “Rationalizing Nationalizing Airlines” April 28, you rightly mention the safety considerations that carriers must assess when considering utilizing passenger seats for the carriage of cargo or even cabin seat removal. These are great innovative solutions designed to address the need for greater capacity to move critical cargo around the planet.
To support the carriers in this regard IATA has indeed been working with aircraft manufactures and regulators to develop some guidance material which commences with a safety risk assessment. Your readers may be interested to know that this guidance material, updated weekly as regulatory guidance evolves can be accessed here, or by clicking image above.
Wishing you all well.

Brgds,
Glyn
Glyn Hughes
Global Head of Cargo
IATA

Good going, Glyn . . . Wish somebody could come up with a cure for COVID-19 as fast! g

Akbar Al Baker

  Qatar Airways Cargo said it joined the International Freight Assistance Mechanism (IFAM) an initiative by the Australian Government to help restore critical global supply chains for high-value Australian agricultural and fisheries producers, who have been heavily impacted by COVID-19 containment measures around the world.   Through this initiative, the Australian Government is helping cover the cost of airfreight – reducing airfreight and freight forwarding costs for exporters and other measures for businesses and exporters.
  “Air cargo is crucial during times of crisis and we are glad to support the Australian Government and businesses in the fight against the pandemic,” Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker said, adding:
  “Through our passenger flights and freighters from Australia, we are offering registered exporters over 750 tons of cargo capacity each week for their high value fresh produce.
  “In times of crisis, we need to be able to adapt quickly and we are proud to be part of this initiative that supports global trade.”
  “Through IFAM’s mechanism, QR Cargo is offering block space capacity and charters for Australian exports from Melbourne, Sydney and Perth,” QR Cargo said.
  “For other destinations including Brisbane and Adelaide, trucking options are available.” More click here.

Finnair Sends Out The Pasi
  “It has been interesting and challenging, but at the same time it has been great to see how the Finnair spirit can be seen and felt in the organization,” declared Pasi Nopanen, Finnair Cargo Asia Sales Director. Based in Shanghai, Pasi has been on the job for about a month now.
  “Working from home has been quite easy for me as it's something I've done quite a lot in earlier roles,” Pasi said.
“It also helps that my daughters are already adults, so home schooling is not an issue for us.
  “The modern tools available make homework quite easy and effective.”
  Actually, Pasi has flown the Finnair aerial highways previously as AY, where he made his early mark in air cargo before joining Etihad and later Qatar Cargo.
  Back where it all began feels like a sentimental journey, as right now the Helsinki-based carrier operates cargo-only flights into Asia.
  “I feel privileged to work with the cargo-only flights,” Pasi said.
  “It has felt counterintuitive that during this extremely exceptional time we have been busier than ever in cargo sales.
  “There is a lot of demand and many requests for cargo capacity currently and we are doing our best to answer those needs,” Pasi assures.

Pumping Traffic

Southwest reported disastrous numbers this week losing $95 million in Q1 while saying May numbers do not look much better. “A crisis unprecedented in our history,” said CEO Gary Kelly . . . Word up and down the line is that COVID-19 will result in carriers becoming smaller, as airline management is currently creating scenarios that include voluntary early retirement; leaves of absence; cuts in pay and benefits in an effort to mitigate furloughs. “Good luck” is the expected first response from the pilot’s union, which traditionally insists on “full pay to the last day.” . . . In America the U.S. Government has provided funding that will carry the ball for its flags until September . . . What emerges after that is: best case scenario—people return to flying, worst-case scenario—might include airlines invoking the Force Majeure “Act of God” clause in negotiations . . . In America where a 75% load factor is needed for flights to break even, right now everybody is taking a beating in a system that just a few months ago looked like it had a license to print its own money . . . Now as May 2020 begins, almost overnight with merciless speed and taking no prisoners, the COVID-19 Pandemic has created a defacto nationalized air transport system in America.

Tornado Alley
. . . Elsewhere, as numbers underscore that 64% of the world’s airline fleet remain grounded, adding up to 17,000 jets idled by the coronavirus . . . Reportedly Avianca Colombia is on the verge of bankruptcy . . . In the Middle East, Emirates Airline reportedly has grounding of aircraft extended until July 1, 2020 . . . Air New Zealand’s plan to launch the world’s longest flight between New Zealand to London in a 25-hour jump via its B787s is back in the drawer until at least mid-2021 . . . American Airlines took delivery of a brand new B787 and immediately moth-balled the aircraft to Tulsa, Oklahoma where it sits today parked in Tornado Alley . . . Meantime Boeing is cutting aircraft production of its B787 from 14 to about 7 aircraft a month. There have been 1,500 B787s ordered and about 1,000 delivered. B737 Max production is supposed to resume in May, awaiting final FAA certification . . . If you wonder why anybody would want to accept, and then park an aircraft, that reasoning has to do with fines and charge backs an airline must endure for cancelling orders. So, during a time when the last thing any airline needs right now is another airplane, economically it is “cheaper to keep her.” . . . Boeing laying off 10% of its workforce as Q1 figures were released this week is no surprise.The surprise is the company laying off blame on COVID-19. “Boeing’s revenues for Commercial Aircraft, declining from US$11,822bn to US$6,205bn year-on-year and featuring US$2bn in operating losses, could be foreseen from the recent succession of cancellations that stroke Boeing’s backlog, especially the B737,” Nicolas Jouan, Aerospace and Defense Analyst at GlobalData said. Boeing has a bright spot, as the B777X is flight testing, moving closer to delivery of the first of its 309 orders to Lufthansa in 2021. But this is subject to change as Lufthansa, like every airline is currently in a challenging financial situation. The B777X orderbook doesn’t get any better, as Emirates Airline, next in line to get the new aircraft has grounded all of its A380s and as mentioned here has delayed bringing any aircraft back into service until July 1 . . .

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If You Missed Any Of The Previous 3 Issues Of FlyingTypers Access complete issue by clicking on issue icon or Access specific articles by clicking on article title
Vol. 19 No. 33 United Cargo over the Moon Letter to the Editor Chuckles for April 21, 2020 Remembering James Hartigan, Sr.	Vol. 19 No. 34 What Have They Done To The Rain Virgin Reopens China Service Virus Trucking Needs Coordination	Vol. 19 No. 36 Virgin Cargo has a Pizzazz Rationalizing Nationalizing Airlines Italy and India in Virus Pandemic Chuckles for April 27, 2020

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