Editor’s Note: The main events

With the move into the fourth quarter, airfreight’s busiest season has arrived — never mind that demand has exceeded capacity since at least the summer months. Still, operators are doing their best to prepare for the ramp-up in B2B and B2C volumes as retailers rush to shore up depleted inventories for shoppers now, before holiday parcels make their way to homes later this year.

E-commerce parcels aren’t all that’s on the move this quarter. With vaccination rates picking up, Q4 marks the return of major airfreight events. From Oct. 12-14, Air Cargo World joined operators from around the world in Dublin for IATA’s World Cargo Symposium. Then, from Oct. 25-27, Air Cargo World and our sister publication Cargo Facts gathered in Las Vegas for the annual Cargo Facts Symposium. Find coverage from the Symposium on Air Cargo World and Cargo Facts.

Returning to the latest issue of Air Cargo World, October’s features put the spotlight on third-party logistics providers. Freight forwarders typically operate with asset-light models, leaving the headache of maintenance costs for transportation assets to carriers. That model has challenged airfreight forwarders this year, when space is at a premium and there is simply not enough to go around. The main story this month, “Control at the peak: Freight forwarders rely on dedicated capacity for peak season operations,” examines the strategies freight forwarders are utilizing to support peak season air volumes in a transportation market facing its most difficult season yet.

The secondary feature considers another trend among logistics companies: the consolidation that has marked 2021 among many operator types but particularly freight forwarders. “An appetite for acquisition: Geographic expansion, capacity constraints fuel industry investments” considers the trends in the mergers and acquisitions space and where additional consolidation is likely.

Caryn Livingston

Editor, Air Cargo World