PPE tests the limits of PVG cargo terminals

Shanghai Pudong International Airport ( PVG ) is experiencing a surge in cargo charter activity as the supply chain rushes to match capacity with burgeoning export demand, particularly for personal protective equipment (PPE) and medical supplies to combat the COVID-19 pandemic . With all-cargo carriers and integrators already operating full schedules, passenger aircraft being utilized for cargo-only missions, or “passenger freighters,” are responsible for much of the added capacity, but also the heavy congestion cropping up at PVG. At times following the May 1 holiday, trucks have had to wait up to seventy-two hours in ten-kilometer queues to unload their cargo. Agility confirmed in its COVID-19 Operational Status Monitor that reaching terminal facilities could take “36 to 40 hours.” https://twitter.com/Rentontw/status/1257460715683811328 Cargo terminal operators are reorganizing charter operations in hopes of mitigating congestion from what Eytan Buchman, CMO of air cargo marketplace Freightos, sees as “still-peaking demand for PPE and medical supplies.” On May 3, China Eastern Logistics ceased accepting charter-handling applications at its Phase I and West terminals at PVG. Beginning May 6, Shanghai Pudong International Airport Cargo Terminal Co Ltd (PACTL) will relocate cargo charter operations from its main terminal to its west terminal. In a change from normal operations, and in an effort to alleviate non-urgent trips, trucks are no longer permitted to unload outbound cargo more than forty-eight hours prior to flight departure. "Limiting export deliveries to 48 hours prior to flight departure helps with smoothing the flows through the cargo terminal," said Sandy Scott, managing director of cargo operations for Europe & Asia of American Airlines. Enticed by higher yields, hundreds of carriers have already operated more than 1,040 passenger aircraft exclusively to carry cargo and meaningful capacity is being added to the market. Rates between Shanghai and North America increased 13% week to week to $10.55 per kilogram in the last week of April, according to the TAC Index. During the last week of April, global belly capacity increased 23% week to week, according to Seabury Consulting. Passenger freighters added the equivalent of 27,000 tonnes of additional capacity compared to the week ending April 24. Supplementary customs procedures related to PPE, and the additional labor and time requirements for handling passenger freighters have created the perfect storm for congestion, forwarders tell Air Cargo World. [caption id="attachment_80593" align="alignright" width="559"] Loading a passenger-configured 757-200 with PPE. Source/Pittsburgh Airport[/caption] Under normal circumstances, offloading or onloading a factory-built 777F or 747F takes approximately two hours of ground time. Loading a widebody passenger aircraft can take two to three times as long. “If the same aircraft, i.e., a 777 passenger aircraft were to be loaded with loose cargo in the upper cabin and a full belly load, you are looking at approximately 4-6 hours of ground time, depending on the type of commodity,” according to a source familiar with the process. Despite the requirement for additional handling, American's Scott says its handling partners have continued to process freight in time to meet the carrier's outbound flights. "American Airlines has been able to fill nearly all flights to date," added Scott. Apart from the extra resources required to handle a passenger freighter, new customs procedures are also said to be hampering export efficiency. China’s Ministry of Commerce, the body that oversees customs, has gradually increased oversight of PPE shipments after complaints that subpar products were being exported. On April 26, the ministry unveiled separate procedures for the export of medical and nonmedical grade PPE and equipment. Shippers must now verify whether PPE is of medical grade or intended solely for nonmedical use. Medical-grade commodities, including testing reagents, masks, protective suits, ventilators and infrared thermometers, are now required to be accompanied with either physical or electronic proof that the commodities have been approved by the importing country, and were produced in accordance with Chinese standards. The fluid regulatory environment is likely a large contributor to the backup of trucks and warehouses, says Thomas Rogers, senior airfreight manager of U.K.-based Cardinal Logistics. " With the new protocol in place, some of the goods are no longer up to standard and will not pass customs inspections.” Shanghai Pudong is not the only export hub experiencing congestion amid the coronavirus. Zhengzhou (CGO) and Guangzhou (CAN) are also facing capacity constraints. Although Hong Kong (HKG) has seen some passenger-freighter flights, most of the recent boost to activity has included full freighter flights. There have are no reports of major delays associated with customs clearance at HKG.

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