Brussels Airport Company (BAC) and Changi Airport Group (CAG) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on 2 March 2023 to augment the strategic partnership between the two airports in the area of air cargo development. With the goal of deepening cargo competencies, both airports will jointly drive initiatives to enhance capabilities in pharmaceutical logistics, undertake studies and trials in the fields of digitalisation and sustainability and exchange information and best practices. The MOU was signed by Mr Geert Aerts, Chief Cargo & Real Estate Officer of BAC, and Mr Lim Ching Kiat, Executive Vice President of Air Hub & Cargo Development of CAG at the annual Let’s Talk Cargo industry seminar in Singapore. BAC and CAG have collaborated on various projects since 2016. One of their first joint initiatives was the co-founding of Pharma.Aero with Miami International Airport. Pharma.Aero is a non-profit organisation where members exchange best practices and collaborate to enhance the industry’s pharmaceutical handling capabilities. This joint initiative was vital for the development of capabilities and know-how by both airports in handling temperature-sensitive cargo, which eventually enabled the transport of much-needed vaccines between Brussels and Singapore in the thick of the Covid-19 pandemic. It also augmented Singapore and Brussels as trusted air pharmaceutical hubs in Asia and Europe.
Read more: Cargo volumes down 12% at Brussels Airport, as passenger number climb
Where Changi Airport has extensive experience and expertise in the operations and management of airports in Singapore and overseas, Brussels Airport offers not only a well-established passenger network, but also a unique cargo platform (BRUcargo) with strong community-driven expertise in handling pharmaceuticals and life sciences, perishables, ecommerce and live animals.
Under the MOU, the two airport companies will jointly explore and undertake trials and initiatives in areas of growing importance, such as sustainability. One of the projects both airports will be involved in is a Green Air Pharma Corridor study, undertaken together with other Pharma.Aero members, to establish a green lane with a set of sustainability standards to be achieved throughout the end-to-end supply chain. On the air connectivity front, CAG and BAC will also work together to strengthen passenger and cargo connectivity between Singapore and Brussels.
Read more: Brussels Airport handled 776,000 tonnes of cargo in 2022
“We are happy to sign this Memorandum of Understanding with Changi Airport and to further enhance our longstanding partnership. By exchanging expertise and building on our alliance to tackle the challenges and opportunities of today together, we can leverage the best practices and become more interconnected between our hubs,” Geert Aerts, Chief Cargo & Real Estate Officer at Brussels Airport Company, said. “The industry has witnessed how the Covid-19 pandemic has transformed the air cargo supply chain. More than ever, handling capabilities are key to the competitiveness of the air cargo ecosystem. As CAG pushes forward with our digitalisation efforts to enhance Changi Airport’s air cargo processes for higher handling efficiency, we look forward to exchanging insights and learning from Brussels Airport and Air Cargo Belgium,” said Lim Ching Kiat, Executive Vice President of Air Hub & Cargo Development of CAG.
