Fundamental change in the air cargo booking process accelerated by COVID is here to stay due to the uptake of digitisation Awery’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Vitaly Smilianets told delegates at the CNS Partnership Conference 2022 in Phoenix, Arizona, USA.

“A side effect of the COVID pandemic was a fundamental shift away from long term contracted rates over to spot booking as capacity shrunk and demand increased,” said Smilianets.

“At the same time, the uptake of digitisation by airlines introduced huge efficiencies making pricing quicker and more responsive.

“Because of this, we anticipate that even as air cargo capacity increases, either through increased passenger flights or investment in freighters, the airlines won’t return to fixed rates.”

Awery’s suite of services includes CargoBooking, which automates booking processes and provides instant quotes.

It converts inbound email quotation requests into instant quotes and its Quotation Management System delivers published rates, contract rates and allocations, as well as spot or promo rates.

“The change began because of COVID, but the change is here to stay because of tech,” said Smilianets.

“The airlines have done a fantastic job in adapting to new processes, embracing digitisation to adapt to the changing business landscape. By adopting digitisation, the industry is building business resilience and future proofing against the next challenge.”