Cargoitalia launches charter/ACMI division

   The Italian all-cargo airline Cargoitalia said Friday it has established a new division, called Cargoitalia Ondemand, to cater for its growing air, crew, maintenance, and insurance (ACMI) and charter business.
   The division will be headed up by Giacomo Sciuto as charter and ACMI manager. Sciuto has been with the airline since its relaunch in April 2009, and has spent more than 12 years in airline operations and planning.
   Cargoitalia’s charter and ACMI work has grown dramatically, most recently with the signing of a long-term contract for Lufthansa Cargo to operate twice-weekly from Frankfurt to New York and Chicago. The contract follows many ad hoc flights for Lufthansa since 2009.
   Cargoitalia has also renewed its contract for Africa West, which began in June, with a doubling of the previous weekly flights from Liege to destinations throughout West Africa.
   With the additional operation of ad hoc charters on an average weekly basis, Ondemand now accounts for around 30 percent of Cargoitalia’s total flying.
   Sciuto said Cargoitalia’s MD11-focused fleet has helped it grow its ACMI and charter business.
   It is proving an ideal aircraft for scheduled airlines needing short-term or periodic additional capacity,” he said. It is large enough to provide the extra general cargo space they require, and can also cater for outsize cargo. But it does not require the same constant high levels of demand as newer and larger equipment like B777 or B747 freighters.
   “We are also receiving a steady flow of charter enquiries and movements. Again, the size of the aircraft is winning jobs for which the 747 is too large and too expensive, and the A300/B767 are too small. Much of our work is in Africa, which is a traditionally strong market for the MD11F with its high temperature and high-altitude operating capabilities.”
   The success of Cargoitalia Ondemand has been a welcome boost to Cargoitalia’s fortunes, following recent cutbacks in its scheduled services, the airline said.
   “2011 has been a difficult year for all freighter operators, with falling demand, over-capacity and rising fuel costs,” said Managing Director Giacomo Manzon. “Our routes have been impacted, resulting in our need to temporarily reduce frequency and suspend some services. Ondemand is absorbing our spare capacity, which means we are now able to maintain our scheduled services until the market conditions are right to re-start our expansion program.”