Now that the summer holidays are over, the air cargo industry is once again heading into serious conference season from SEP25 on. The next three months are full of events happening across the world. One of the last to happen this year, is TIACA’s now annual Air Cargo Forum (ACF) taking place 03-06NOV25 at the Yas Island Arena in Abu Dhabi (AUH). It will be the first time the ACF is held in its second home base, following last year’s decision to alternate between Miami (MIA) and the UAE capital. TIACA recently published some of the many panel topics that will be on offer. This is what you can expect, if you’re still undecided about joining the 2000+ air cargo crowd there.
CargoForwarder Global signed up early for the event – all smug with WIZZ flights booked well in advance until that moment when the airline decided, this summer, to focus wholly on its European market and promptly pulled its UAE frequencies… No big loss for the air cargo industry in this case, but a brief inconvenience all the same until alternative flights were found. What does impact air cargo in the UAE and how AUH is carving its place in the global air cargo hub network, will naturally be one of the topics of discussion at the ACF. In one of the Oasis-Side Chats (nothing to do with a band revival, and everything to do with symbolism: fertile ideas in a desert environment): Stanislas Brun, Chief Cargo Officer, Etihad Cargo will reveal the airline’s plans for developing Abu Dhabi into a logistics hub.
Middle East as a Global Gateway
Not just AUH, but the Middle East as a whole is seeing incredible growth, thus “The Middle East as a Global Gateway” is another panel discussion, no doubt highlighting the significant infrastructure investments being made across hubs like Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Riyadh, and the region’s increasing role as a critical cargo bridge between Asia, Africa, and Europe. Middle Eastern hubs are positioning themselves as multimodal, digitally advanced, and sustainability-focused logistics centers. Questions of interest could be: if trade flows continue to shift eastward, will this region redefine old patterns of global connectivity? And how resilient can these new freight corridors be amid ongoing geopolitical uncertainty?
Digitalization in Air Cargo
A staple of all conferences over the past years is the ongoing digital transformation of the air cargo industry. It has long struggled with fragmented systems, slow adoption of technology, and insufficient transparency compared with other parts of the global supply chain. Yet, there are plenty of stars on the horizon and the ACF 2025 sessions will explore how advanced tools ranging from digital booking platforms to predictive analytics and blockchain can unlock major gains in efficiency, visibility, and resilience. With automation, robotics, and other potential arising from AI, change can come that will both solve and stimulate processes around another rapidly growing area: that of e-commerce. Discussions at ACF 2025 will dig into what e-commerce shippers now expect from supply chain partners – likely more transparency, better data integration, and seamless end-to-end delivery. Can the industry scale quickly enough to keep pace with double-digit e-commerce demand, given ongoing capacity restraints and infrastructure bottlenecks? What do the panelists think?
Workforce challenges
Digitalization and automation are just one half of the equation – alongside innovation, which will also have its own panel focus. Equally pressing are the workforce challenges facing our industry. The demand for skilled professionals continues to grow, but recruiting and retaining talent is difficult. Attrition rates are heightened by long hours, intense competition, and generational shifts in workplace expectations. Questions that might be answered in the Workforce Challenges panel and during networking, could be: how can companies make the air cargo sector more attractive to emerging talent? What new training methods and educational partnerships will prepare workers for a digital, data-driven future? Or as automation and robotics become more prominent, how do businesses strike a balance between technology and the need to preserve human expertise?
Aviation Net Zero
The forum will also dedicate attention to the air cargo industry’s sustainability commitments – particularly the industry-wide goal of reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Achieving this will largely hinge on the scalability of sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs), operational efficiencies, and breakthrough technologies. But the road ahead is anything but straightforward. Can SAF adoption realistically grow without substantial incentives? Or are mandatory regulation and stronger carbon policies necessary? Is the sector moving fast enough to align with broader climate goals, or are aspirations outpacing practical progress?
Where are we heading?
The “Industry Trends and Outlook” panel will discuss the future of the industry and what can be expected going forward. Possible questions to be answered could be: How are macroeconomic factors, shifts in trade patterns, and volatile fuel prices reshaping long-term planning? How can the industry adapt to shifting supply chains, particularly with manufacturers diversifying beyond China? To what extent will geopolitical fragmentation influence demand corridors? And is the sector resilient enough to handle cycles of demand uncertainty – as seen during the pandemic and economic downturns?
TIACA’s verdicts
Steven Polmans says: “This year’s program reflects the breadth and depth of the issues shaping our industry. From digital innovation to workforce development, ACF 2025 will bring the right people into the right conversations at the right time.” Particularly poignant – it will be his final ACF as TIACA Chair and one time slot will see him reflect on his 6 years as chair of the board, before he then hands over to Roos Bakker.
Glyn Hughes, Director General, comments: “Bringing the Forum to Middle East offers a unique opportunity to connect global leaders with one of the fastest-growing air cargo ecosystems. We look forward to insightful discussions that will shape the industry’s future.”
Indeed! CargoForwarder Global will be there to listen, learn, and report. Will you?
