Amazon petitions FAA for commercial drone ops exemption 

In addition to wide- and narrowbody freighters joining the Amazon Air fleet, Prime Air drones may soon begin delivering Amazon purchases directly to customer doorsteps. Next in the series of the broader air cargo industry’s commercial drone saga, Amazon Prime Air submitted a petition to the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) yesterday that, if […]

• Chelsea Toczauer
• August 9, 2019

Cathay freighters to carry lithium batteries again

Standalone lithium-ion batteries can once again be carried by Cathay Pacific Cargo on its freighter aircraft, after the carrier developed and introduced a fire-containment bag. Shipments of standalone lithium-ion batteries are a significant driver of freighter traffic, especially given the growth of e-commerce and personal electronic devices. Under a provision adopted by the ICAO Council […]

• Jeff Lee
• August 1, 2019

UPS seeks airline-type status for long-distance drone deliveries

United Parcel Service is seeking approval to operate delivery drones under the same rules as a private jet service, unlocking the potential to carry health-care packages over long distances between hospitals. The company is working with the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration to obtain Part 135 certification this year, a step toward freeing it from current commercial […]

• Bloomberg News
• July 23, 2019

Boeing’s 737 MAX may stay grounded until 2020, WSJ says

Boeing Co.’s 737 MAX may stay grounded until early 2020, the Wall Street Journal reported, months later than the guidance the planemaker is privately providing customers for resolving a software issue that surfaced last month. The plane is expected to start flying again in January 2020 “under the latest scenario,” the Journal said, citing unidentified sources within […]

• Bloomberg News
• July 15, 2019

FAA airspace restrictions over Iran to create bottlenecks for cargo carriers

The current Iran-US military confrontation, which today led the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to issue a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) prohibiting US-registered aircraft from operating over the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman, is set to have major cargo implications for European and Asian carriers. For the complete story, see our sister publication, Air Cargo World.  […]

• Caryn Livingston
• June 24, 2019

US House committee considers bill to fund FAA during shutdowns

Today, the US House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Aviation held a hearing to discuss H.R. 1108, the proposed “Aviation Funding Stability Act of 2019” that would fund the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the event of a partial government shutdown like the one ended late last month. The hearing examined how the […]

• Chelsea Toczauer
• February 13, 2019

The technology of airfreight

Most of us have come across a colleague or friend bemoaning the air freight industry’s inability to “innovate” or “modernize”. If you have not, try bringing up electronic air waybill penetration during your next cocktail party – after more than a decade of pushing carriers to go paperless, adoption is still hovering 50%. But, jokes […]

• Charles Kauffman
• June 16, 2017

Part 107 and the future of drone pizza deliveries

Days could be numbered for the pizza delivery guy with newly-released unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) regulations from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). ‘Part 107,’ as the first set of rules governing small commercial drones is known, will surely spur previously forbidden experimental UAS activities across a wide-range of industries and applications. Still however, the […]

• Charles Kauffman
• August 30, 2016