The International Air Transport Association (IATA) World Cargo Symposium (WCS) 2022 will focus on building resilience to further strengthen air cargo's post-pandemic prospects.  

Taking place in London from September 27-29, 2022, the WCS will tackle various resilience-related topics facing the air cargo market including digitalization, sustainability, air cargo safety, attracting and retaining talent, e-commerce, air cargo market dynamics, digital distribution and booking, as well as Digital Cargo and ONE Record.

The Symposium will feature plenary sessions, specialized streams, workshops and executive summits, tackling aspects related to Technology & Innovation, Security & Customs, Cargo Operations and Sustainability.

Speakers in this year's WCS include Brendan Sullivan, IATA's global head of cargo; David Shepherd, managing director, IAG Cargo; Marie Owens Thomsen, IATA chief economist; Dorothea Von Boxberg, Lufthansa Cargo's chief executive; and Turhan Ozen, chief cargo officer at Turkish Cargo.

"COVID-19 tested the resilience of the air cargo business. Despite challenging conditions, air cargo delivered critical medical supplies and vaccines across the globe and kept international supply chains open," IATA said.

It noted that for many airlines, as passenger numbers plummeted, air cargo was a crucial source of revenue.

IATA added that in 2021, air cargo revenues reached a record US$204 billion, which was more than double compared to 2019 and accounted for some 40% of total airline revenues in 2021. 

"Air cargo proved its resilience during the pandemic, and it is emerging stronger," said Brendan Sullivan, IATA's global head of cargo. "The challenge now is to retain the momentum achieved in digitalization and other customer-centric efficiency gains."

The IATA executive signalled optimism for air cargo prospects as airlines emerge from the pandemic years and despite ongoing risks to the industry's full recovery.

"There is good reason to be optimistic. Air cargo is maintaining its strength even as economic and geo-political uncertainty grows," Sullivan added. "This year’s WCS will focus on how the industry can capitalize on this resilience to build an even more promising and sustainable future for global air cargo."

Meanwhile, the WCS will also include a first-time workshop focused on improving the efficiency of billing settlements between airlines and freight forwarders and will incorporate IATA’s new internet-based data processing and customer management system CASSLINK (the Cargo Accounts Settlement System).

There will also be a workshop focused on improving performance in key market segments using IATA CEIV programs (CEIV Pharma, CEIV Live Animals, CEIV Lithium Batteries and CEIV Fresh); and the Future Air Cargo Executives Summit (FACES) a forum for future air cargo executives to network and share insights on career development.

Asia Cargo News is a media partner for the IATA WCS to be held at the ExCeL exhibition centre in London, UK.

IATA WCS 2021 was held on October 12-14, 2021 in Dublin, Ireland after originally being scheduled to take place on the same dates in Istanbul, Turkey.