19.4% globally - e-AWB thunders down the runway!

Since the beginning of 2014, the adoption of e-AWB has been steadily on the rise, with more industry participants taking it on and adopting it. Even more remarkable has been the progress in the recent months. August 2014 was the single fastest e-AWB growth in one month, with +2% achieved globally in that month alone. Adoption speed is now four times that of the same period last year, and this acceleration is felt across the board, with strong recent growth in Africa, Americas, Europe and North Asia.

• Crossing the 20% mark: 20 airlines have now achieved over 20% e-AWB penetration. Only 7 airlines were in that situation at the beginning of 2014.

• Airports are showing the way: in airports such as Hong-Kong, Singapore, Doha, Addis-Ababa and Dubai, e-AWB penetration (all airlines combined) now exceeds the 50% mark! And many other airports show penetrations in the 30s and 40s.

• Top 10 airlines contributing to the recent sharp rise include South Africa Airlines, Saudi Arabia Airlines, EgyptAir, Sri Lankan, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, China Airlines, Air France, Air Canada, IAG.

Contributing to this acceleration are joint industry initiatives launched in the Nordics, India, USA, Germany and others are driving this trend. More than ever, industry collaboration is a key component of success. And with more than 77 airlines and 1300 freight forwarders signed, the multilateral e-AWB agreement has also been a significant catalyst making it easy for forwarders large and small to implement e-AWB with their airline partners.

This new growth puts the industry firmly on track to achieve its 22% penetration target for 2014. This would truly be a significant achievement, demonstrating our collective commitment to modernize air cargo. Let's keep the momentum going!