DHL Express latest to add AOC in response to Brexit

DHL Express is adjusting its European air network by founding a new, Austria-based airline for intra-Europe flights and strategically shifting its current airline, DHL Air UK, toward intercontinental operations. DHL Air UK expects to launch 777F operations in early 2022, flying to Asia and the Americas. The carrier currently has three production 767-300Fs and twenty-three 757-200Fs, including the unit (25620) that made an emergency landing in Leipzig (LEJ) in February with its cargo door in an open position. That aircraft is currently inactive in Budapest (BUD). Under the reorganization plans, DHL Air UK’s fleet of 757 freighters will be transferred to the new Austrian airline, while DHL Air will bolster its intercontinental capabilities with the addition of more 767 freighters and new 777 freighters, according to a press release on the plans. [caption id="attachment_415401" align="alignright" width="560"] DHL Air UK currently has 757-200Fs and 767-300Fs. (Photo/DHL Express)[/caption] The changes will accommodate the U.K.’s new position as a third country operator following Brexit, as well as projections for further growth in intra-Europe and intercontinental express, according to DHL. With the U.K. no longer part of the European Union, the “existing U.K. airline, DHL Air, will no longer be permitted to operate intra-European flight services,” a spokesperson told Cargo Facts . “These must be performed by an EU-based airline, so we plan to develop DHL Air UK into an airline operating intercontinental flights, while we plan to found a new, additional EU-serving airline in Austria.” DHL Air’s 767-300Fs fly mostly intra-European routes but occasionally operate between East Midlands (EMA) and Cincinnati (CVG). DHL’s decision to start a new airline in Austria rather than utilize its existing German airline EAT Leipzig likely stems from the relative ease of transferring non-EU-registered aircraft to Austria’s aviation authority, Austro Control. “Other civil aviation authorities take a long time to validate maintenance records from non-EASA countries,” said Frederic Horst, managing director of Cargo Facts Consulting. Also, the decision to headquarter the airline in Austria does not preclude DHL from basing the aircraft at its LEJ hub, or elsewhere in Europe. Other carriers, including affiliates of ASL Airlines, register aircraft in Austria and base them in other EU countries, Horst said. Just this week, Cargo Aircraft Management announced that it will lease four more 767-300BDSFs to DHL Express , with three arriving later this year and one in 2022. It is currently unclear whether those aircraft will make their way to Europe. The strategy also serves to meet DHL’s projections for express growth driven by the past year’s surge in e-commerce . According to DHL, volumes for its Time Definite International shipments increased by more than 25% year over year during the first quarter of 2021. Other carriers that have shuffled their fleets around different AOCs in light of Brexit include West Atlantic, which has transferred aircraft between its U.K., Swedish and Spanish affiliates , and ASL, which recently began operations with its new ASL Airlines UK subsidiary . Cargo Facts EMEA, taking place June 2-3 as a virtual experience, is the event for exploring opportunity in the EMEA region. The event continues to bring together the best, brightest, and most innovative executives in the global air cargo industry. Learn more and register at www.cargofactsemea.com .

DHL Express latest to add AOC in response to Brexit

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DHL Express adjusts to Brexit, express growth with European airline reorg

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