Air freight forwarder endorsements to get overhaul

Two trade associations – the International Air Transportation Association (IATA) and the International Federation of Freight Forwarders Association (FIATA) – will roll out the new IATA-FIATA Air Cargo Program in phases, beginning in early 2017.    A partnership program that simplifies business transactions between international airlines and transportation intermediaries will be updated to reflect modern realities of the air cargo industry, the International Air Transportation Association (IATA) and the International Federation of Freight Forwarders Association (FIATA) said Monday.
   Airlines prefer to do business with forwarders that have gone through voluntary certification because it gives them an added level of comfort that certain operational, safety, security and financial criteria have been met and reduces the need to get letters of credit or other guarantees for each cargo sale.
   The program, which has been in place in for decades, treats forwarders as “selling agents” for airlines. The relationship has evolved to where forwarders are purchasing customers for cargo space on aircraft.
   “IATA and FIATA have reached an important agreement on a new jointly-managed air cargo program. This is the result of four years of hard work to modernize the relationship between freight forwarders and airlines,” IATA Senior Vice President for Financial and Distribution Services Aleks Popovich said. “The [new program] also provides a framework to ensure that industry standards are relevant, pragmatic and fit for purpose. These standards cover the endorsement of freight forwarders and more broadly the safe, secure and efficient transportation of air cargo shipments.”
   Forwarders will be given an equal voice in creating the new program through participation on a governing board, the trade associations said.
   Forwarders in the existing Cargo Agency Program will be granted access to the new program after they meet the new criteria. New entrants will go through a new process.
   IATA and FIATA will roll out the new IATA-FIATA Air Cargo Program (IFACP) in phases, beginning in early 2017 with Canada as a pilot country. The full global rollout is expected to be completed by the end of 2018, they said.
   “The Cargo Agency Program has long needed updating. I am really pleased that FIATA and IATA have joined forces to provide our industry with a new, modern program and a framework for operation that benefits both airlines and freight forwarders,” FIATA Chairman of Airfreight Institute Rudi Sagel said. “IFACP will eliminate unnecessary administrative procedures and costs as well as free up valuable resources to tackle the complex challenges that today’s global trade presents. These include regulatory compliance, safety and security and the introduction of new technologies. This agreement paves the way for a more successful future for the fastest and most fascinating mode of international transport.”