New road feeder association to tackle issues facing air cargo truckers

Road feeder operators have teamed up to launch a new association that aims to tackle the issues facing the market, such as slot booking, and to launch a standardised contract. The International Road Feeder Association (IRFA) was announced at the Aviation Connect event that took place in Athens this week, with six firms initially signing up to the group: Arthur Welter Transport, Georgi Transport, Wallenborn Transport, Jan de Rijk from Europe, Thor Xpress from the US and Wymap Transport from Australia. Speaking at a press conference to announce the association, association chairperson and secretary Henrik Ambak explained that road feeder services (RFS) were becoming an increasingly important part of airline cargo operations and in Europe one third of all air cargo starts or ends its journey with an RFS service. Ambak added that the association is open to more members joining its ranks and highlighted its international reach. “The topic of IRFA is to represent the RFS industry and other stakeholders. It could be recommending best practice on security, sustainability, safety, documentation, process and systems, participating in the elaboration of relevant regulations, acting as a contact organisation for authorities, and providing training and information dissemination to the sector.” Issues that the association will aim to address include a recommended standard contract and service level agreement; standards for slot allocation at airport cargo terminals; data standards for cargo on the road to support real-time cargo visibility; sustainability; and improving driver access to facilities at airport cargo terminals. The IRFA said that slot allocation at airports is one of the biggest challenges faced by RFS operators, which “lose many truck and driver hours due to insufficient slot allocation at airport cargo terminals…which often further can lead to service failures as flight connections are missed or ready for pick-up promises not met”. “[The] IRFA wishes, with the ground handlers, to create solid standards for slot allocation for truck loading and off-loading, reducing service failures and increasing service efficiency,” the association said. A standardised contract, meanwhile, would help tender, contracting and service follow-up processes for airlines and RFS providers. The contract would act as a framework with commercial terms being negotiated bilaterally between each airline and each RFS provider. On sustainability, the association said it aimed to help with the development of more charging points and hydrogen refuelling stations at airports, the lack of which is a blockage to the development of more environmentally friendly road operations. Improving driver facilities would help attract more people to the industry, which is currently facing a driver shortage, the members explained. The not-for-profit organisation is in the process of being registered in Luxembourg. The leadership board will be made up of: Ambak; Michael Rau, chief sales officer, Arthur Welter Transport; Christian Georgi, chief operating officer, Georgi Transport; Ram Menon, chief operating officer, Wallenborn Transport; David Smorenburg, business development manager, Jan de Rijk; Kirk Ejdys, owner, Thor Xpress; and Justin Bailey, chief executive, Wymap Transport. The members said it was the first association of this type. Menon said that the idea for the association started two years ago at a previous Aviation Connect event. “We are normally forgotten, but if the trucks don’t run, the planes don’t fly full. We have never had a voice and the whole purpose of this is to give us a voice so we can go to the industry and bring something to the industry on a structural level and on a tangible level,” said Menon.