IATA, Lufthansa cargo reports are discouraging

July 6, 2016, © Leeham Co.: Going into the Farnborough Air Show (#FIA16 on Twitter) next week, ominous signs continue to emerge about the health of the air cargo

Photo via Google images.

industry.

The International Air Transport Assn. (IATA) Wednesday said yields and traffic remain under pressure. Freight tonne kilometers fell 0.9% year-over-year, IATA reported.

“Yields remained pressured as freight capacity measured in available freight tonne kilometers (AFTKs) increased by 4.9% year-on-year,” IATA said. “reight demand decreased or flat lined in May across all regions with the exception of Europe and the Middle East. These regions recorded growth in air cargo volumes of 4.5% and 3.2%, respectively, in May, compared to the same period last year.”

Lufthansa Cargo saw yields in a “landside” drop, according to a Bloomberg report.

None of this bodes well for the new-build, dedicated freighter market. For Boeing, which is counting on a replacement recovery demand by 2019, this is particularly discouraging news for its 747-8F.

The company is reporting its annual Cargo Forecast press briefing at Farnborough at the Volga-Dnepr chalet. It’s expected Volga will announced a firm order for perhaps 10 747-8Fs then. The company last year announced a “commitment” for up to 20 747-8Fs.

But this won’t fill the production line for the 747-8F despite the lowered rate of 6/yr. Volga’s delivery stream announced at Paris was over seven years, or at best 3/yr if all 20 aircraft were ordered.

Volga has taken delivery of two 747-8F white tails.

The IATA and Lufthansa reports also don’t bode well for the new-build Airbus A330F. The A330F hasn’t sold well and many orders were converted to passenger models in recent years.

 

 

5 Comments on “IATA, Lufthansa cargo reports are discouraging

  1. Cargo traffic is modestly negative year-to-date.

    Industry has been in the doldrums since at least the great recession.

    Make the air cargo industry great again!

  2. A problem related to low interest rates. You can order ealier without much impact due to interest costs. Therefore you can select the cheapest delivery solution (slow steaming).

    Only a few goods need fast delivery (flowers, racing cars, …).

    For Lufthansa Cargo it is also a problem that the Lufthansa pax fleet will offer more belly space in the next years (A350 and 777X).

  3. Anchorage has had a pretty good uptick in freighters coming through.

    Curious how that fits in. Mostly empty?

    Still filling the West Coast backlog on sea shipping?

  4. I´ve been harping on the improvements in container shipping efficiency for years. Add belly cargo growing faster than the cargo market…….

    I saw Lockheed are certifying a modern Herc for civil flying, they only expect 100 orders, and that is an aircraft which is cheap to buy, easy to fill, can fly places jets/belly cargo can´t and can´t be replaced by old airliners P2Fed.

    Heartily agree, 748F is dead. Existing aircraft seem to be enough for operators dealing in out sized cargo, or 748Fs would be seeing more demand. We will see civil A400s eventually, but not in the near future. I don´t think the 777F or A330F look much better.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *