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SEIZED IL-76 TRACKED BACK TO KAZAKHSTAN

26-Jan-2010

The cargo aircraft and crew were detained last year by the Thai authorities after a tip-off from US intelligence agencies. On board were 35 tons of explosives, rocket-propelled grenades, surface-to-air missiles and other weaponry picked up from North Korea and destined for ... which is where the trail grows murky. The crew and manifest claimed the cargo to be "oil industry spare parts".

Research uncovered layer upon layer of suspiciously new and previously unknown companies and an extremely elaborate flight path. Starting in Baku (Azerbaijan) it first flew to Al-Fujairah (UAE) and Bangkok before taking on its cargo in Pyongyang (North Korea). It then returned to Bangkok where it was then held. If it had been allowed to continue on its journey it would have continued to Colombo (Sri Lanka), then Al-Fujairah again, on to Kiev, where it would double back to Tehran (Iran) to offload and then ending up in Podgorica (Montenegro): in total, a distance of over 24,500km.

The web of companies is just as tortuous. Overseas Trading FZE, a leasing company based in Sharjah (UAE) and owned by Svetlana Zykova, leased the Il-76 to a Georgian firm, Air West, owned by Levan Kakabadze. Air West in turn leased the aircraft to SP Trading, a company that was created by Yury Lunyov only weeks before the deal was set in motion. SP Trading charted the aircraft to the Hong Kong-registered Union Top Management (UTM). UTM was also only created a month previously. The founder of UTM ­ Dario Cabreros Garmendia of Spain ­ cannot be found nor can the North Korean company that sourced the weapons.

Lunyov claims that another company ­ the Ukrainian Aerotrack ­ had responsibility for chaperoning the shipment from North Korea to Iran and that it was Aerotrack that originally falsified the charter agreement and packing list to suggest the freight was the spare parts.

No Aerotrack has ever been at its listed address and its main contact's ­ Victoria Doneckaya ­ telephone number is a private residence that has never heard of her or Aerotrack.

In fact, all the companies' owners (at least, those that could be found) ­ Zykova, Kakabadze and Lunyov ­ deny ever knowing what the shipment was. However, they all share one connection: Alexander Zykov, husband to Zykova and known associate of Lunyov.

Zykov owns East Wing a Kazakhstani airfreight company. It was his crew that were detained. Companies and aircraft belonging to Zykov are known to have been involved in arms trafficking in sub-Saharan Africa. However, Zykov claims that the crew were on temporary leave when they were caught.

Friends and family of the crew say that working for Zykov is well paid but in return the crew must ask no questions of the shipments and be prepared to fly dangerously ill-maintained aircraft into conflict zones, such as the Sudan and Somalia.

A friend and once fellow pilot of one of the crewmembers ­ Mikhail Petukhov ­ said: "It's not easy working for [East Wings]. For one thing, their planes are old, so the flights are dangerous. And it also means being ready to break pretty much every aviation law on the books. But it's work, and they pay well," he said.

An engineer who regularly works on Zykov's aircraft said: "You get paid to do the flight, and you don't ask any questions about what's inside the boxes."

The collapse of a nationwide freight transport firm has left 250 people looking for new jobs in 2010.

Rapid Roadfreighters went into liquidation just before Christmas but truck driver Amanda Bright says news of the firm's collapse came out of the blue.

The company had more than 200 vehicles and 250 workers throughout the country.

Bright says she had no idea it was in liquidation until a union representative told her on New Year's Eve. She says there have been no meetings or phone calls from management about the job losses, and the staff have all been left in the dark.

Bright says nothing was said at the firm's Christmas Eve drinks, and she only found out when another driver rang her. She says not even her branch manager knew the closure was on the cards.

Bright says she is looking for other driving work but the job market is very quiet.

ASB economist Chris Tennent-Brown says the transport sector is a good indicator of what's going on in the economy and losing a freight company shows the country is not completely out of the woods.

But he believes other indications such as more stable house prices and retail sales show things are settling down.

And the Road Transport Forum says further casualties can be expected in the trucking industry unless the economy starts to rebound strongly this year.

Spokesman Tony Friedlander says it's no surprise to see a firm fall victim to the tough economic times. He says a drop in the volume of goods being trucked has made the industry even more cut-throat than usual.

15 Dec 09

FedEx Express, a subsidiary of FedEx Corp and one of the world's largest express transportation companies, takes the lead again among international express companies operating in Asia.

FedEx ranks 23rd among multinationals in The Wall Street Journal Asia 200 survey of Asia's most admired companies, 20 spots ahead of the closest industry player on the list. The survey lists the top 200 multinationals operating in Asia and Asia-headquartered corporations, based on the five attributes of company reputation, quality of products and services, management's long-term vision, innovativeness in responding to customer needs, and financial soundness. Participating in the survey were 2,622 executives in 12 Asian countries.

The annual survey of Asia's 200 most admired companies has been conducted since 1993, and FedEx has consistently been recognised among the leading multinationals operating in Asia.

"We are honoured to be recognized by executives for quality performance in the Asia Pacific region," says David Cunningham, Jr, president of FedEx Express Asia Pacific.

"Service is the core component of our business and it is good to have a barometer like The Wall Street Journal Asia 200 to gauge where we stand in the region."

Eddy Chan, senior vice president, FedEx Express China and Yue Jing Jing, a FedEx Express courier, represented FedEx at The Wall Street Journal Asia award ceremony in Beijing.

"Our success as a company is due to our People-Service-Profit philosophy," Chan says. "Our customer-facing employees like Yue Jing Jing are the reason we are able to provide quality service. If we treat our employees well, they in turn will take care of our customers, and this ultimately means good business for the company."

20 Nov 09
Transporters plan freight costs rise
The Dominion Post
By Carl Mortished

New Zealand Warbirds are developing a Visitor Centre complex as part of their main hangar at Ardmore Airport.

The first step has been the recent official opening and dedication of the TI Bland Library - an aviation library resource which brings together the great number of aviation related hooks and magazines and memorabilia that have been donated over many years.

Trevor Bland is well-known and respected internationally as the founder president and patron of New Zealand Warbirds and it was his foresight and vision that provided the leadership to form and develop the organisation more than 30 years ago.

At the cocktail function held last Wednesday, invited guests included Papakura MP Minister of Police, Judith Collins and representatives from local councils, the RNZAF and organisations and Ardmore Airport businesses closely linked with the Warbirds.

In his welcoming speech, president, Gavin Trethewey, said: "This evening is to thank the many folk who have contributed their time and/or donated material to enable the library to become a reality."

"From the many compliments received already it is obvious that this is going to be a valuable asset for members and the aviation minded public alike."

"Recently, we've had groups of up to 180 school children visiting the hangar, furthering their knowledge and history of aviation.";

";We now have proper viewing facilities, as well as one of the most comprehensive aviation reference libraries in the country.";

";This complex is now becoming a very valuable educational resource.";

It is expected that the Visitor Centre, when fully operational early next year will offer guided tours of the hangar as well as access to the library and display floors both of which offer great views of the many fully-operational ";warbirds"; aircraft.

NZ Warbirds are holding their next Open Day Sunday, December 6, to mark the anniversary of Pearl Harbour, 1941.

11 Nov 09
Air-freight venture struggles
The Sydney Morning Herald
By Matt O'Sullivan

Qantas's air-freight joint venture with Australia Post has barely broken even this year, and the result has been blamed on a slump in parcel volumes due to the economic slowdown.

Corporate filings show the profit of Australian Air Express (AAE) slumped to $119,000 for the year to June, down from $17,625,000 the year before and a marked deterioration on the profit of $30.2 million recorded for 2006-07.

The latest slump is a blow to the previous Qantas management's strategy of focusing on freight as a large growth avenue. This had been highlighted by the airline's expansion into the Asian freight market in recent years and the $750 million acquisition of the road freight group Star Track Express, which it made with Australia Post in 2003.

AAE's chief executive, Wayne Dunne, conceded yesterday that the past year had presented the "most challenging" trading conditions since the joint venture was formed in 1992. "Quite simply, it's due to the effects of the global financial crisis and the economic downturn in Australia. It's just a volume decline." Mr Dunne would not comment on suggestions that AAE had lost clients to Toll Holdings' air-freight operations and dismissed speculation that Qantas charged well above the going rate for the lease of aircraft.

He said trading conditions had stabilised and he was hopeful of a material improvement this month before the traditional Christmas rush ­ "[but] the challenge is still there, believe me."

The company's total revenue fell to $565 million this year, from $609 million in 2007-08.

Despite talk of economic "green shoots", Qantas is still wallowing in its worst profit slump since it was floated in 1995. Last month Australia Post revealed a 40 per cent profit slide over the past year due to a decline in posted letters and parcels.

AAE's fleet includes four 737-300s, three BAe-146 jets and a range of smaller turboprops. It uses the belly space in Qantas and Jetstar planes to offer a door-to-door package delivery service. In late 2006 the company, which has a workforce of 1242, began moving from 727 freighters to the more fuel efficient 737s, which it leases from a Qantas subsidiary.

Industry insiders say the joint venture faces strong competition from Toll's air-freight service, and that it cannot pick up incremental freight between Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane because that market can be met by trucks.

Mr Dunne said the company was now focused on "rebuilding" after a tough year, but he declined to outline what this might involve, citing commercial confidentiality.

23 Oct 09
Australian Logistics Company makes another acquisition

Australian logistics firm Toll Group has continued its acquisition spree with the purchase of New Zealand-based freight forwarder Express Logistics Group (ELG) for A$50m (US$46m).

LW Bonney & Sons Acquire Tom Ryan Cartage Ltd

LW Bonney & Sons have purchased the container division only of Tom Ryan Cartage Ltd. The new acquisition will be run as a wholly-owned subsidiary called Bonney's Container Transport. The Tom Ryan acquisition was a strategic move by LW Bonney & Sons and further strengthens their position in the Auckland cartage market.

The purchase encompassed a fleet of 37 trucks and container trailers, and they will continue to operate from Onehunga as well as from their Penrose Terminal.