DHL Express today presented a major expansion of flights in Asia Pacific and between theAmericas and Asia this month to offer new services and cut transit times, boosting its Japan
business in particular.Jerry Hsu, CEO, DHL Express Asia Pacific, said: “The integration and strategic scheduling ofadditional highly efficient freighter aircraft into our network will directly benefit a largenumber of markets across three continents. We are improving service and adding capacity betweenAsia and the US to support the continued two-way growth we see on the world’s biggest trade lane.By providing more capacity and connections, DHL is helping customers capitalise on thispotential.”
The express operator will launch a daily B747-400 flight between Nagoya (Japan) and its mainAmericas air hub at Cincinnati, with capacity of over 100 tonnes. This will enable a new next-dayservice from Japan to the US while the return flight to Tokyo will set up two-day deliveries fromthe Americas to the Japanese capital and surrounding metropolitan areas.
A second enhancement will see the frequency of wide-bodied freighter connections to Sydney,Australia doubled from two to four days per week. Two new Boeing 767-300ERF wide-bodied freighterswith a capacity of over 55 tonnes will operate on the route. DHL said that by optimising itsintercontinental network and routing shipments via Japan, it will be able to reinforce its dailyUS-Australia connection, while at the same time offering additional and strategically timed dailycapacity from key North Asian markets into Australia.
Stephen Fenwick, CEO, DHL Express Americas, added: “A new direct connection from DHL’s AmericasHub to Japan, as well as links between Japan and the broader Asia Pacific region, will furthersupport the many customers in the US, Canada and Latin America who are exploiting tradeopportunities across the Pacific. The US-Australia trade lane, for example, grew at over 13% in2012. The additional frequencies we are adding on this lane will ensure that trade between thesetwo countries can continue to flourish over the coming years. These changes are aimed directly atresponding to the market, improving DHL’s service to our customers throughout the Americas to AsiaPacific.”
The Boeing 747-400 and Boeing 767-300ERF flights will be operated by partner airline Polar AirCargo Worldwide, which already flies numerous transpacific routes for DHL Express, its 49% minorityshareholder.
The third enhancement is the launch of daily wide-body flights between Nagoya, Taipei and Seoul,to speed up deliveries between the three markets. By connecting to the Nagoya-Cincinnati service,it will also provide additional capacity for customers shipping to the US from all three Asianmarkets.
Sean Wall, recently-appointed Senior Vice President of network operations and aviation, DHLExpress Asia Pacific, said: “The network developments will allow later handover times for shipmentsto the US from three of Asia’s major markets – Japan, South Korea and Taiwan. The changes willenable next-day delivery capabilities to the US for all locations serviced by DHL in Japan. We arealso significantly improving our connectivity to Japan and Australia. Beyond these benefits, thisinvestment will provide a platform for continued growth within Asia Pacific itself.”
Charlie Dobbie, Executive Vice President, Global Network Operations, DHL Express, commented: “ DHL is constantly seeking to optimise its global network in order to deliver additional value forour customers. With the launch of our North Asia Hub, the expansion of our Americas Hub inCincinnati and significant investments in our intercontinental air fleet in 2012, we significantlyreinforced DHL’s high quality service proposition for customers trading between the Americas andAsia. The latest changes build further on this platform, adding capacity and transit timeimprovements to meet our customers’ growth needs and exceed their service expectations.”
