Ground handler dnata marks preighter cargo milestone
08 / 03 / 2021
Ground handler dnata has marked a cargo milestone at its Dubai International Airport (DBX) airport base.
Since March last year at the onset of the pandemic, the company has operated 5,000 preighter flights (passenger aircraft with seats removed), transporting around 50,000 tonnes of cargo.
In order to meet increased demand for capacity, the company also trained more than 500 of its staff to ensure they were able to to process the cargo carried on its preigher aircraft.
Preigther cargo handling trials were conducted at DXB using both narrow and widebody aircraft. “This allowed dnata to identify the best and safest procedures to serve cargo-in-cabin flights,” the company said.
The company also worked with government authorities, customers and suppliers to “maintain global trade and the flow of essential goods”.
Paul Littlejohn, dnata’s divisional vice president of airside operations, said: “We are proud to reach this memorable milestone in such a short space of time.
“There was intense demand for airlines to recoup revenue through cargo-in-cabin operations and we needed to be in a position to provide safe and effective ground handling services quickly. Our teams delivered innovative, efficient solutions at great speed while never letting our safety standards drop.
“We continue to work hard to consistently provide the highest level of service and safety to all of our airline customers, every day.”
Most recently, dnata has been focussed on enhancing its pharma handling capabilities to support the rollout of Covid-19 vaccines. For example, in month, the company announced that it has partnered with Dubai Airports and GMR Hyderabad International Airport to better connect pharma manufacturers in India with global markets. It also added four cool dollies to its pharma handling opertations in Australia.
