Hahn Cargo Services – No risk, no fun, no success…

… is Oliver Hellwig’s entrepreneurial credo. After he sold his shares in Cologne Bonn’s Cargo Center, he decided to invest in a large handling facility located at Frankfurt Hahn Airport, or TRIWO Hahn Airport as the airport has been rebranded following the insolvency proceedings. We spoke with Oliver Hellwig (OH), the owner of Hahn Cargo Services, and his Managing Director, Robert Kurth (RK), about their goals and the airport’s prospects of acquiring additional cargo business.

Hahn Airport offers carriers abundant slots and 24/7 accessibility – photo: courtesy HHN

Attractive offerings

CFG: What makes Hahn attractive from an air freight perspective?

OH: There are several unique and very positive factors that speak in favor of Hahn Airport (HHN), which had a decisive influence on our decision:

  • The airport never sleeps since it operates 24/7/365, so a night flight ban does not exist. It is located close to Europe’s largest cargo airport, Frankfurt Rhine-Main. Added to this is the positive attitude towards Hahn Airport by the neighborhood and local policymakers.
  • New market entrants are offered a broad range of slots which are not regulated at HHN.
  • The cooperation between the airport management, operator Triwo AG, the responsible authorities such as customs officials, and the ground handling agents, works absolutely smoothly and is very transparent.
  • The housing market for labor is excellent, which helps when recruiting new employees. This is a major difference compared to most other airports throughout Germany, such as Frankfurt, Munich or Cologne, to name but three.
  • The airport offers very flexible handling options. So, customers feel welcome and are treated with respect and utmost priority.
Being an entrepreneur requires courage, visions and a climate of social recognition, states Oliver Hellwig, owner of Hahn Cargo Services GmbH – photo: private 

Three success factors

CFG: In the air freight industry, everyone is currently talking about e-commerce as a growth engine. What does Hahn Airport need to become a serious player in this market?
OH: That’s a good point. In my opinion, Hahn is one of the most suitable airports in Europe for e-commerce. This said, three factors are necessary for upping e-commerce throughput in Germany:
Firstly: Indirect protectionism must end. It favors the national carrier which is unable or unwilling to handle the volumes ordered by German consumers. This is why a number of competing carriers are forced to land in neighboring countries from where most of the goods are trucked across the border and handed over to German buyers.
Secondly, customs authorities must interpret the European Customs Code homogeneously, which is not the case so far. According to our experience, the customs authorities at Hahn Airport are very willing to support all actors, especially in providing additional human resources at short notice when urgently needed.
Last, but not least, the same aviation security standards decided by the EU need to be applied in all member states of the block of 27. Regrettably, this, too, is still not the case. For instance, deploying sniffing dogs to detect explosives or drugs is everyday practice in Amsterdam, Strasbourg, Paris or elsewhere, but forbidden at German airports, despite identical EU laws. This said, the German regulator should take action fast to ensure a level playing field in the industry. In addition to this, I might say that a bit less bureaucracy would also be helpful to spur e-trade.
Once implemented, not only airlines, consumers and airports would benefit, but the state as well, since the Berlin government could cash in millions of additional tax revenues.

Tailored solutions

CFG: What was and is the current reaction of airlines to your handling company’s offer to process their air freight shipments, including customs clearance of the goods?
OH: Our aim is to offer airline customers and/or trading platforms (e.g. Amazon, SHEIN, Temu), a tailored solution covering their needs from A to Z. This offer includes services such as customs clearance of a large number of single shipments, for instance 50,000 items loaded on an import flight. This all the more since most of the e-commerce shipments arriving at airports in neighboring European countries have been ordered by German consumers. From there, they have to be trucked across the border on the last mile, which ups greenhouse gas emissions significantly. We are currently working through an increasing number of inquiries with the aim of providing customers with flexible, functioning e-commerce handling solutions. As to the timeline: we expect to handle first fully e-commerce loaded freighters at Hahn Airport in the third and fourth quarter of 2024.

CFG: Robert, for smooth last mile delivery, among other things, you are looking for a reliable partner that offers an electronic interface to coordinate the processes between all parties involved, including customs and trucking. Is there already a candidate on the shortlist?
RK: There are an abundant number of service providers in Germany, most of whom have invested large funds in optimizing electronic data transmission, benefitting the ground infrastructure and the flow of goods. As a rule, potential customers have existing agreements with various providers. Nevertheless, the aim is to coordinate the processes throughout the entire logistics chain, including the use of night-time hours, with the aim of delivering the consignments as quickly as possible upon arrival at Hahn Cargo Services to the market.

Cargo veteran Robert Kurth is Managing Director of Hahn Cargo Services – picture: HCS

Border control reopened

CFG: The border control point at Hahn Airport was reopened this year and is now located directly on the hahncargo site. What does this step mean for handling?
RK: It is a big step in the right direction. In our role as handling agent, we would like to thank the relevant authorities and Hahn Airport for reopening the facility as quickly as they did. Everyone involved worked together very professionally and purposefully. Now, it is a matter of collaborating in a customer-oriented and flexible manner in the coming months when the perishable season starts. Here, of course, we offer tailored handling services including at night times or during weekends if desired.

CFG: One of your main competitors reports a new cargo airline landing there practically every week. Most recently, Maersk Air Cargo apparently opted for the Walloon airport. Are there any new candidates on Hahn Cargo Services’ list who are knocking on your door?
OH: We are in talks with various cargo airlines, including trading platforms. As we have often concluded “non-disclosure agreements”, we are not allowed to mention names today.
It must be acknowledged that some of our neighboring peers in Belgium or Southeast Europe have developed excellently by growing cargo throughput and upping employment. Encouraged by their own success stories, they are determined to invest big money for their further development.
This said, my feeling is that a growing number of customers are increasingly looking for personalized services instead of getting lost in a big and constantly growing pool filled with fish. Some of the companies we are talking to, and this much I can say, are currently customers of the above-mentioned airports.

Remote but not isolated

CFG: Hahn Airport is located in a rather rural region. As a ground handler, how do you manage to find qualified personnel who are willing to work here and don’t prefer Frankfurt, Cologne or Leipzig, where employees are also urgently sought-after?
RK: As Oliver mentioned earlier, in comparison, there is a much better housing market situation around Hahn Airport. We also have long-standing, experienced employees who are willing to train new staff in the best possible way.

CFG: HCS intends to expand: What is the plan?
OH: We have around 16,000 m² of apron-side expansion space right next to our existing cargo handling terminal, that can be built on at short notice. In addition, there is the option of developing further areas with warehouses in reaction to rising demand. Therefore, we won’t see any queues of trucks waiting here to deliver or collect goods.

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