FedEx Express is planning to move 68 pilots from its hub at Anchorage, Alaska, to other locationsaround the world in response to lower volumes.
The Anchorage Daily News cited a company spokesman as saying that the transfer of 12 captainsand 56 first offices to other positions across the globe would take place later this month. Thetransfer is part of the company’s ongoing effort to cut costs and improve operational efficiency byadjusting its network, he said.
About 425 cargo plane pilots regularly fly to and from the hub, which FedEx uses as astopover on routes between North America and Asia. FedEx operates about 500 flights a month toAnchorage, where goods are sorted and transferred to other flights.
The 500,000 sq ft FedEx Express hub, which opened in 1990, employs about 1,350 staff.Operating round the clock, it handles an average of 60,000 packages daily, according to companyinformation. Volumes have increased more than 30% over the past ten years. The automated sortingsystems can handle up to 15,000 pieces an hour.
UPS also operates a 90,000 sq ft hub for North America – Asia flights and a pilot base atAnchorage, with some 400 locally-based crew members. The company opened a flight training facilitythere in August 2008 to reduce the amount of time that locally-based pilots had to spend away fromhome for training.
Due to its geographical location mid-way between Asia and the rest of the USA, Ted StevensAnchorage International Airport is a strategically-located cargo airport and counts as one of theworld’s largest in volume terms. As well as the FedEx and UPS hubs, it also hosts cargo flightsfrom carriers such as Northwest Airlines, Japan Airlines and Korean Air.
