As the air cargo industry faces even more than the usual challenges due to the Middle East crisis, operators are searching for every advantage they can find to keep their heads above water. As does Swissport in Amsterdam, which emphasizes that on-time performance (OTP) is the most important factor, particularly when it comes to exports. To achieve higher punctuality, it is currently testing a trucking CDM platform. The tool combines data provided by airlines, RFS companies and ground handling actors, and coordinates their activities. The acronym CDM stands for ‘Collaborative Decision Making’.

At just about every TIACA or IATA Cargo event, it is repeated ad nauseam that the digitization of air cargo processes is still proceeding too slowly. It is unclear whether Swissport in Amsterdam interpreted these complaints as a call to action. But thanks to the CDM platform, it has found a solution that uses electronically transmitted data to simplify, combine, and accelerate ground handling and road feeder activities while making processes less prone to errors.

RFS is still cargo’s main bottleneck
As is well known, delays do not occur once shipments are airborne but are caused by uncoordinated or flawed ground operations, including road feeder services. Due to the chronic congestion of the highway or Autobahn network in many EU countries, or traffic jams around major airports – RFS represent the bottleneck within the supply chain. Consequently, the ability to control trucking services can improve the process in many ways. This has been proven by a pilot of CargoHub’s CDM platform at Swissport Amsterdam that improved the punctuality of supplies.

“We wanted to move away from a situation where external parties were effectively driving the planning. Amongst the various operational challenges such as waiting times, congestions, staffing unpredictability, it was mainly truck waiting times and congestion at the warehouse causing delays and violating OTP, a critical factor for customer satisfaction, loyalty, competitive advantage and operational efficiency,” reasons Hajji Yassine, Manager Cargo at Swissport’s Service Department at Schiphol Airport.Carriers often send their planning late in the day for the next day, while they are not the only party involved.

Ground handlers grow their influence
By introducing fixed slots linked to that planning, Swissport AMS has created more structure and control forexport RFS, meaning trucking flows departing to other European airports. In the past, airlines and trucking companies largely determined the flow themselves. Thanks to CDM and slot planning, the ground handling agent is now in control of the process and able to deliver according to plan.

“When we started taking more control, we did experience resistance from airlines and truckers, mainly because they wanted to keep their flexibility. We were seeking to control the request and allocation of slots across different operational areas, so we can better manage the flow,” illustrates Hajji Yassine.

“First come, first served” is out
To safeguard the Delivered-as-Promised (DAP) performance for airline customers, more areas would need to be included before full DAP performance is accomplished. At present, only a small part of the RFS export flow works with slots. “We don’t want to overcomplicate things by making every step visible. For RFS export, OTP is the most important factor. That gives enough insight and keeps it practical. The success of the pilot will be measured by reducing waiting times, ideally to the point where they are no longer an issue,” reasons the executive.

The outcome of the pilot will be measured by the extent to which waiting times have decreased, ideally to the point where they are no longer an issue.

From chaos to structure
For a long time, the “first come, first served” principle worked well. The issue is that at certain moments, multiple parties choose the same time to arrive, which leads to peaks and waiting times. To deal with that, Swissport AMS had always allowed a high level of flexibility. Introducing a slot system now changes this. It puts structure in place, but at the same time reduces flexibility and requires all parties to adapt to fixed time windows. On the one hand, there is a clear need for more control to manage volumes and avoid congestion. On the otherhand, there is still a strong need for flexibility in day-to-day operations. Finding the right balance between those two will be key, especially if the digital slot system is expanded further.

Each week, CargoForwarder Global’s ‘Spotlight On…’ brings a different segment of the air cargo industry to the fore, to show just how varied the careers in this industry are. Air cargo cannot exist without aircraft which, in turn, require fuel to function. Aviation fuel is one of the defining factors in air cargo’s cost, reliability, and sustainability, therefore research, development, education, and consulting in this field are vital to the industry’s future. As fuel prices, supply chains, decarbonization mandates, and Sustainable Aviation Fuel requirements become increasingly complex, cargo operators need expert insight to make informed commercial and operational decisions. Resilient fuel infrastructure can directly influence trade growth, network connectivity, and logistics capacity. Through specialist knowledge-sharing and practical advisory work, aviation fuel experts help the air cargo sector manage risk, reduce emissions, and build more secure, future-ready supply chains. This week, Bernard Omboto Onguso (BO), independent Aviation Fuel Strategist and Founder of Fueling Africa Aviation, gives insight into his role, and shares views and advice to those looking to enter the industry.

CFG: What is your current function and company? And what are your responsibilities?

BO: I operate as an independent Aviation Fuel Strategist, Deal Originator, and Author via my advisory platform, fuelingafricanaviation.com. My overarching goal is to push Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) development and accelerate overall aviation sector growth across the continent by driving stakeholder awareness and integrated educational frameworks. In line with this, I actively collaborate with the East African NM-AIST PhD hub to mentor and cultivate ‘T-Shaped’ professionals who can expertly bridge academic research with the commercial realities of aviation, air cargo logistics, finance, policy, and the agro-industrial energy sector. Professionally, I also serve as the independent verification authority for institutional investors looking to navigate and de-risk fuel asset infrastructure entry across frontier markets.

CFG: What does a normal day look like for you?

BO: There is no ‘normal’ day, only a balance between operational fire-fighting and legacy building. I spend my day looking at how we expand aviation, SAF, logistics, and technology in light of emerging world trends. A significant portion of my time is dedicated to mapping out and orchestrating local, regional, and global partnerships to move these critical initiatives forward.

I have authored the first two practitioner books in this genre: ‘Fueling African Aviation: The Definitive Guide’ and ‘Fueling African Aviation: The Deal Maker’s Guide’. Rather than static text, these first two books serve as a practical, commercial operating system designed to bridge Western technology, patient capital, and blended finance with Africa’s massive feedstock potential. By organizing these multi-layered elements, we are setting up a framework that directly strengthens regional trade and expands air cargo logistics capacity.

CFG: How long have you been in the air cargo industry, and what brought you to it?

BO: I have spent over 31 years engineering the ‘Refinery-to-Wing’ fuel lifecycle. I spent 18 years running front-line operations, supply chain logistics, and airport joint ventures for energy majors across North, East, and West Africa. Around 2009/2010, I was directly involved in the pre-commissioning of the jet fuel assets at Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC) in the UAE. That massive project perfectly demonstrated the absolute importance of deep stakeholder collaboration across different sectors in aviation – bringing together fuel infrastructure, airport authorities, energy majors, and cargo operators to launch a world-class logistics hub. What brought me into this space was the raw, undeniable math of freight logistics: fuel constitutes roughly one-third to a half of all airline and cargo operating costs. I realized early on that if you do not master the molecular and financial mechanics of fuel logistics, your cargo network is functionally grounded.

CFG: What do you enjoy most about your job?

BO: The radical independence to navigate the high-stakes intersection of aviation, air cargo logistics, and energy, allowing me to focus entirely on passing on critical industry knowledge. Energy, air freight, and aviation markets are inherently volatile – constantly shifting under seasonal demand surges, macroeconomic risks, and sudden global trends like the tightening of CORSIA and EU mandates. I thoroughly enjoy helping operators adapt to these macro risks in real-time, mapping out the precise hedging, logistics routing, and price-risk frameworks needed when sudden geopolitical shocks or supply bottlenecks disrupt global freight networks. My ultimate goal is to inspire, pass on knowledge, and prepare a broader, highly capable generation of cross-functional professionals to successfully step into this vital sector.

CFG: Where do you see the greatest challenges in our industry?

BO: The ultimate challenge is the collision between aggressive decarbonization mandates and the massive costs associated with supply disruptions. In frontier markets, cargo operators are penalized by a crushing up-to 51% fuel cost burden and fragmented regional logistics, an operational constraint felt severely by African carriers like Kenya Airways, Astral Aviation, and other regional networks. When you layer on top of that the massive capital expenditures required for the green energy transition, along with sudden systemic disruptions – like geopolitical conflicts or refinery bottlenecks – the cost of supply failures becomes catastrophic for cargo margins. If we keep importing expensive SAF, the green premium will crush regional trade. The industry’s hurdle is building localized, resilient ‘waste-to-wealth’ refining networks that buffer against global disruptions while systematically hitting Net-Zero milestones. Key focus is also SAF production within Africa with book and claim to benefit EU and other carriers – a win-win for all in lieu of the upcoming JAN27 mandate.

CFG: What advice would you give to people looking to get into the air cargo industry?

BO: You must be dynamic, ready to constantly learn, execute, take initiative, and engage in practical, hands-on work. To mitigate the financial impacts of SAF mandates and ensure the survival of the entire logistics chain, aspiring professionals must know how to design sophisticated solutions – such as price support balancing mechanisms, limited government guarantees, and international carbon market integration. At the same time, you must keep your eyes on the massive new growth sectors created by adopting SAF, particularly across the agro-industrial value chain, modular refining infrastructure, and decentralized logistics.

Furthermore, you must align your strategies with continental integration. The Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) is creating massive, unified network demand across its 38 signatory countries, while the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is actively eliminating 90% of tariffs to massively accelerate intra-continental trade and airfreight volume.

Air cargo logistics, aviation, and energy are no longer separate silos; they are completely intertwined with finance and policy. Build a ‘T-Shaped’ skillset. Anchor yourself deeply in a hard technical baseline like chemistry, engineering, or logistics, and supplement it with specialist commercial tools like Price Risk Management and Hedging. You must look outside the warehouse, understand global macro-dynamics, and learn how political events or regulatory changes shape fuel availability and freight rates overnight.

CFG: If the air cargo industry were a film/book, what would its title be?

BO: It would be: ‘Soaring Through the Sunsets.’

Because despite the brutal costs, geopolitical headwinds, and intense logistics, the air cargo industry is about pushing boundaries, overcoming gravity, and building the pan-African and stakeholder collaborations we need to elevate Africa’s aviation share far beyond its current 2% of the global market.

Thank you very much, Bernard!

If you would like to share your personal air cargo story with our CargoForwarder Global readers, feel free to send your answers to the above questions to cargoforwarderglobal@kopfpilot.at We look forward to shining a spotlight on your job area, views, and experiences.