Phl air cargo business seen to sustain growth

The Philippine air freight business is seen to sustain its growth amid the growing needs of the logistics industry.

Cebu Pacific president and CEO Lance Gokongwei announced yesterday the company’s foray in operating specialized aircraft to transport cargo.

Cebu Air Inc, the carrier's listed operator, has signed an agreement with Switzerland-based IPR Conversions Ltd to convert two of its ATR 72-500 passenger aircraft into dedicated cargo aircraft.

“We will be able to offer cargo capacity that no other carrier in the Philippines can provide,” said Gokongwei.

“With the freighter aircraft, we will further support the growing needs of the logistics industry, especially as the Philippines’ e-commerce businesses expand rapidly and look for faster delivery schedules.”

The firm expects to receive the first of two converted aircraft in the fourth quarter of 2018. The cargo aircraft will continue to be operated through its wholly owned unit, CebGo.

IPR Conversions, based in Lausanne, Switzerland, is one of the leading ATR freighter conversion service providers in the world. The conversion of two of CEB’s passenger ATR 72-500 aircraft into dedicated air freighters involves the installation of a large cargo door, allowing standard containers and pallets used throughout the aviation industry to be loaded. The aircraft will have space for seven AKE Unit Load Device (ULD) containers; and can carry more than seven tons of cargo.

With a longer body to fit in more freight, an increased wingspan and more powerful turboprop engines, the ATR aircraft is ideal for expediting the transport of high-value and timesensitive commodities such as marine products, computing equipment and even heavy machinery to various points across the country.

The budget carrier has about 50 percent market share for domestic air cargo, currently using belly space of its passenger aircraft fleet. Its cargo services have grown considerably with revenues growing 29 percent in 2017 to P4.6 billion and 28 percent in the first quarter of 2018 to P1.3 billion. —

Carlo S. Lorenciana