Airfreight's new group
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A NEW functional group for airfreight carriers has been set up by the Road Haulage Association.
Membership of the new group is open to all RHA members who carry air cargo by road for hire and reward. Chairman of the group is Roy Bowles, managing director of Coln brook-based airfreight carrier Roy Bowles Transport.
The object of the functional group is to encourage co-operation between members and to develop better contact between airfreight carriers and trade bodies whose decisions are likely to affect them.
For example, the group is to establish formal contacts with bodies such as the airport authorities, the Institute of Freight Forwarders, and the British Shippers Council.
A directory of the group's members is being prepared, listing names and addresses and the particular type of service offered. The group will advise the RHA on all matters likely to have any effect on airfreight road transport. can't implement it on our own". He also says that his proposals would in fact create fair trading because at the moment trading is unfair.
The BAOD says that there are operators going bankrupt and that they are taking other people with them. The problem arises when a customer expects a job to be done for the same price as he previously paid, says BAOD.
Hugh Wilson of the BAR felt that some customers may consider minimum rates as maximum rates and said that there could be problems with the practicalities of actually producing a minimum rate schedule — let alone implementing it. In reply, it was suggested that a range of tariffs would be needed to cover the different aspects of haulage.
RHA's Mike Diacono will now be circulating the minutes of the meeting to the Association's commercial committee and reserved judgment by saying that he had no feelings on the proposals either way. He emphasised that all members of the RHA are concerned at rate cutting and the state of the industry, and gave this advice to operators: "You've got to know what your own costs are. Many operators have no idea whether they are making a profit or loss."