2024 saw Air Charter Service reach a new record in its fundraising activities over the year. The global aircraft charter broker’s branches (it has 35 international offices on six continents) managed to raise over USD 200,000 last year, through a very varied series of charitable initiatives, supporting many different charities. It has been involved in fundraising since 2009, when its co-founder, Tina Leach (now retired), created the first official charity committee in London and kicked off charitable activities. Since then, the organization’s efforts have been expanded with the implementation of Regional Charity Committees in 2022 (all volunteer-led), and the formal regulation of according every employee 2 days paid leave each year to engage in community volunteering or charity events. It has, in the past, also matched funds raised by employees for its chosen charity partners. From volunteering through to raffles and challenges such as the one pictured, or unusual events such as wing walking challenges, bake-offs, skydiving, dragon boat racing, plank challenges, or curry-themed evenings, the company’s employees’ creativity knows no limits.
Lloyd Robinson, ACS’s Director of CESR, praised: “The worldwide team has really outdone themselves this year, with a range of physical challenges, including 5 km races, half and full marathons, the UK Three Peaks challenge, climbing Kilimanjaro and a ‘virtual’ run covering the full distance from one side of the USA to the other (around 3,000 miles/4,700 kms). The raffles held at our Christmas parties raised a record amount (USD 42,000) and combined with various bake sales, and other fundraising initiatives, helped to raise a total of over USD 200,000. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one that put in the effort and their hands in their pockets to help to reach this fantastic total. On top of the money-raising activities, we have also been busy organizing other charity events – from staff in our New York office helping out in a Long Island soup kitchen, to our Australian team filling empty leg charter flights in Australia with donations of clothing and toys and flying into rural Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.”
In other Air Charter Service news this week: The aircraft charter specialist announced the opening of a second office in Canada – this time in Montreal, Quebec, in addition to its existing Toronto branch. It now operates 36 international offices. Gary Hopkins, CEO of ACS Canada, commented: “We have been serving the whole of Canada from our Toronto office since opening there 15 years ago, but we’ve been looking at Montreal as a second location for a while now, to better serve Quebec. The city is an important center of commerce, finance, industry and technology and the new operation means that we can be closer to our French-speaking clients in the province.” ACS employee, Adila Djerrar has been appointed to head the Montreal branch. She said: “I can’t wait to get started here and continue the work that my team and I have been doing over the past few months in preparation, and the expansion that we have planned to make Montreal another successful Canadian ACS office.”

Jettainer and Air Astana have communicated that their partnership has just been renewed once more. No surprise there, if everything runs smoothly as it apparently has done since 2007, which is then the ULD management provider and Kazakhstan’s national carrier first inked an agreement. The press release does not state the length of the contract renewal, simply that it is long-term, but does point out that the Almaty-based airline is modernizing its fleet and will therefore require more and a wider range of ULDs in future. Its fleet will grow from 60 to 80 aircraft in the next 3 years, and it will be welcoming Boeing 787 Dreamliners in that time. Hence, “Jettainer will continue to partner closely with the airline as it takes this step and supports it with customized solutions,” the release emphasizes. The ULD management company will assist during the transition, continuing to ensure that the right containers are available in the right place at the right time.
Berik Abdrakhmanov, Director Ground Services at Air Astana, said: “We have been working very well and closely with Jettainer for more than 18 years. We are confident that Jettainer’s team of experts will continue to help us achieve our growth plans with the innovative and customized ULD services we need to make them happen.”
Dr. Jan-Wilhelm Breithaupt, Jettainer’s CEO, commented: “Air Astana’s decision to extend our joint contract is evidence of the trust and satisfaction that the company places in our services. Our customized solutions offer Air Astana the flexibility and reliability it needs to meet increasing requirements and undertake its planned fleet expansion with three Boeing 787s.”

DHL Express, in collaboration with conservation charity, Tusk, successfully transported 17 critically endangered mountain bongo antelopes from Florida to Kenya. The herd of 12 females and 5 males, bred at the Rare Species Conservatory Foundation (RSCF), was flown 7,146 nautical miles aboard a dedicated DHL aircraft from Palm Beach International Airport to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. Fewer than 100 mountain bongos now exist in the wild due to poaching and habitat loss through deforestation and fragmentation. Custom-built crates were used to ensure that the bongos travelled safely, along with six tons of pelleted feed, two bongo specialists and a veterinarian. Upon arrival, the bongos were released into a 20-acre sanctuary on Mount Kenya prepared by the Kenya Forest Service and managed by the Meru Bongo & Rhino Conservation Trust. This sanctuary will serve as a breeding ground, with plans to gradually reintroduce their offspring into Mount Kenya’s forests after a 40-year absence. This initiative is part of Kenya’s national recovery plan for the species and involves partnerships with organizations like Lewa Wildlife Conservancy and local communities. The project not only aims to restore the bongo population but also supports local education and employment opportunities, underscoring the importance of collaborative conservation efforts.
Mike Parra, CEO DHL Express Europe, said: “The logistics of moves such as this are incredibly complex, with the welfare of the animals being everyone’s top priority. A huge thank you to our partners at Tusk, the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, and everyone involved in making this important conservation mission a success.”
Mike Watson, CEO of Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, stated: “Bringing the bongos back to Kenya is a great moment in the restoration of the country’s natural heritage. For decades, these animals have been largely absent from the very forests where they belong, and this project will be crucial in reversing that loss.”
Dr. Paul Reillo, RSCF Founder and President, added: “There is simply no higher calling for humanity than to protect what remains of nature. […] The bongo’s resilience is a story of hope for wildlife and people alike, merging elevated partnerships, proven expertise, vital resources and amazing courage.” Charlie Mayhew, Founder and President of Tusk, concluded: “[This] is a significant step in restoring this critically endangered species to its native habitat, and demonstrates the conservation progress that can be made through collaboration. We are hugely grateful to our global partner DHL Express […].”

SAS Cargo, Scandinavian Airlines’ air freight division, has partnered with cargo.one, to enhance its global sales reach. From APR25, freight forwarders using cargo.one and based in EMEA, North America or Asia, will be able to scan real-time rates and capacity, and book general and temperature-controlled shipments up to 10,000 kg on SAS Cargo’s flights. In addition to booking, the collaboration enables the tracking of shipments to over 135 destinations across 31 countries, including major hubs such as Frankfurt, London, New York, Tokyo, and Seoul. More markets will follow soon.
SAS Cargo operates a strong network out of its hubs in Copenhagen, Oslo, and Stockholm, making use of SAS’ belly capacities and deploying a modern wide-body Airbus fleet to provide efficient and sustainable cargo solutions. It carries around 60,000 tons of cargo every year. SAS Cargo is no stranger to digitalization having launched its own direct booking portal in 2015. To date, more than 80% of bookings on SAS Cargo are done online. Now, with its additional move onto cargo.one, that is set to increase even further, since the digital platform has a user base of some 25,000 forwarders across the globe.
Markus Ek, CEO of SAS Cargo, commented: “Partnering with cargo.one will deliver added convenience to customers in many markets worldwide. Freight forwarders will enjoy a seamless booking experience and an even stronger ability to utilize SAS Cargo capacity as a winning element of their daily work.” Moritz Claussen, Founder & Co-CEO of cargo.one, stated: “SAS Cargo stands out as having a strong alignment with cargo.one’s vision and ambition for digital procurement. It makes every sense for SAS Cargo to broaden its access to forwarding teams globally with the platform that is relied upon the most for daily quoting and booking. Our combined teams will apply cargo.one technology and sales best practices to ensure SAS Cargo remains fully responsive in the market.”

Navigating the increasingly volatile air cargo market requires speed, precision, and clarity – principles that underpin CargoTech’s growing portfolio of digital solutions. Michael Teoh, Head of Strategy at CargoTech, explains: “The air cargo market has always faced volatility. Inflation, regulations, interest rates, consumer demand, and trends all affect the flow of goods. Where human experience and intuition were once relied upon, growing data histories and technological developments now enable fast, effective digital solutions to predict and react to shifting variables.”
Since 2022, CargoTech has aimed to mitigate unpredictability in the sector caused by factors such as capacity constraints, geopolitical uncertainties, and evolving trade regulations. Cédric Millet, President of CargoTech, highlights its mission: “CargoTech set out as a one-stop-tech-shop to unite and digitally fortify the air cargo industry at a time of global upheaval.” By investing in specialized technology providers across the supply chain, CargoTech empowers stakeholders with tools for better decision-making.
Key innovations include Rotate’s fleet and sales steering software, which enables airlines to optimize their networks and generate actionable sales leads using market data. Wiremind Cargo deploys AI to translate complex datasets into tailored recommendations for capacity and revenue management. “AI can quickly react to volatile environments and provide impactful recommendations,” CargoTech emphasizes.
Aerios addresses challenges in the air cargo charter niche by streamlining carrier responses to fluctuating demand through its app. Meanwhile, CargoAi delivers real-time data on airline capacity, pricing, and disruptions via API integrations. This ensures users adapt swiftly to changing market conditions with tools for instant quoting, booking, payment, and tracking. Millet concludes: “With the wide range of AI-enhanced, data-powered digital solutions our CargoTech members offer, we’ve pretty much become a one-stop-digital-crystal-ball—constantly polished for better clarity and decision-making.” By integrating advanced technologies across the air cargo ecosystem, CargoTech equips businesses to thrive amid volatility while fostering innovation and resilience.

Qantas Freight has opted to publish its capacity on CargoAi’s digital marketplace in what is another key win for the booking platform, as the airline is Australia’s biggest air freight provider. The airline gains too – from greater booking efficiency and channel choice of its customers, and a larger network of forwarders seeking capacity. Selected Qantas and Jetstar flights are now available on CargoAi’s CargoMART and CargoCONNECT solutions, providing capacity access on major trade lanes between Australia and the United States (US), United Kingdom (UK), and South Africa (ZA). More destinations will be published in due course. For now, the benefits for e-bookers are access to more global air freight space on flights to and from Australia, improved response times, real-time rate information, and an overall simpler, more streamlined and efficient booking process.
With CargoAi, the airline now offers a selection of four booking channels to choose from. The others being its own website, WebCargo by Freightos and cargo.one.
Igor Kwiatkowski, Executive Manager Qantas Freight, said: “We’re proud to partner with CargoAi to digitize and simplify the air cargo procurement process for our customers and expand our global reach to CargoAi’s growing community of 18,000 freight forwarders. The platform’s innovative model will give our customers instant access to many of our international passenger and freighter services in and out of Australia and real-time visibility of our schedules, capacity and rates for a more streamlined booking experience.” Matt Petot, CEO of CargoAi, stated: “Having Qantas Freight on board is a tremendous milestone for CargoAi. This partnership not only adds significant value and reach to our users globally but also demonstrates Qantas Freight’s commitment to leveraging digital solutions to deliver the best possible service to its customers. The integration will ensure an easy transition for current Qantas Freight customers while offering easy access to its extensive network in critical markets like the US, UK, and South Africa.”