U.K. companies form ‘seamless air cargo service’ consortium anticipating Brexit

As the deadline for Brexit approaches less than five weeks away, still with no new trade deal agreed upon between the U.K. and the E.U., logistics industry community members are taking matters into their own hands by forming small-scale alliances to address inevitable supply chain disruptions and soothe clients’ concerns.

One example is a new partnership between Liverpool-based Wynne Aviation, Leipzig-Halle Airport (LEJ) and Airport Park Leipzig-Halle, specifically aimed at the automotive industry’s needs in the U.K.’s North West, North Midlands and North Wales regions and East Germany.

The companies said, by teaming together, they will be able to offer “a seamless air cargo service” that will include warehousing, air cargo handling, customs clearance and trucking. Capacity on freighter charter services will also be provided by U.K.-based Jota Aviation and Volga Dnepr Group’s airlines.

For the past few months leading up to the March 29 deadline, industry leaders have been unanimous in the sentiment that there is no way to predict what the fallout of the U.K.’s secession from E.U. will be for the logistics community will be – but that’s it’s a safe bet that the supply chain will be rocked significantly, possibly leading to a shortage of perishable goods on the island nation.

Both Liverpool John Lennon Airport (LPL) and LEJ airports are located “at the heart of two major automotive clusters,” said Tom Hughes, business development director at Wynne Aviation, which provides air charters and 3PL services in the region. At present, cargo from the E.U. passes through these hubs without having to undergo cross-border customs procedures; once the Brexit deadline hits, this will no longer be the case.

Mario Patyk, head of business development for cargo logistics at LEJ, said that the “just-in-time” principle of the automotive supply chain could face some “unforeseen consequences” in the case of a no-deal Brexit, “so the establishment of a strong counterparty relationship on air cargo logistics with the U.K. and, in particular, the automotive cluster within the Liverpool catchment area, where Liverpool Airport is a key air cargo gateway, is a prudent measure to take both today but also beyond Brexit,” he said.