In 2011, despite the general slowdown in global air transportation, Beijing Capital International Airport’s BGS bucked the trend and experienced remarkable growth. The airport handled a total of 663,900 tons of cargo and mail for the year, representing a year-on-year increase of 10.2%—nearly double the average growth rate of 5.4% recorded by Beijing Capital International Airport as a whole. This marked a perfect three-year streak of consecutive growth in cargo volume.

Innovative services kick off 2012 freight transportation with a strong start.

— A Glimpse into the Creation of a One-Stop Logistics Hub Center

As of February 4, 2012, BGS had handled a total of 40,403.388 tons of cargo and mail during the Spring Festival travel period, including 7,226.86 tons transported by dedicated freighters. On January 13, 2012, its daily domestic cargo volume reached as high as 1,615 tons, an increase of 103 tons over the previous single-day record of 1,512 tons, marking a strong start to the year’s cargo and mail handling efforts. In 2012, BGS will continue to actively accelerate its strategic transformation. On one hand, it will step up business development and product innovation, focusing on building the “Guomen Ground Services” brand and launching two major service brands: ground-to-air transit and integrated freighter services. On the other hand, it will speed up resource integration and process optimization, introducing a range of enhanced services such as international import distribution and operations for domestically supervised goods. By comprehensively strengthening its service capabilities and continuously improving operational efficiency and service quality, BGS will significantly enhance its capacity to handle cargo and mail.

Establish an Apron Transit Operation Center

In 2011, BGS launched its ground-to-air transit service as a key initiative and, in the second half of the year, began piloting apron extension services based on ground-to-air transit resources. The cargo ground-to-air transit service marked BGS’s first attempt to handle transshipment operations directly on the apron, representing a groundbreaking advancement in the ground-to-air transit business. This development is of great significance for BGS as it seeks to establish itself as an international cargo hub and transition from a purely cargo-focused operation toward a modern logistics center. Compared with traditional transit handling methods, the launch of ground-to-air transit services has significantly reduced cargo handling times and the duration of goods’ stay at transit stations. Moreover, the rates of missed shipments and errors will further decline, while flight safety and on-time performance will be maximally enhanced. In 2011, BGS partnered with Hainan Airlines to carry out the initial pilot phase of ground-to-air transit, which spurred a substantial increase in domestic transfer cargo handled by Hainan Airlines. In 2012, BGS will continue to deepen its ground-to-air transit business. Building on the ongoing refinement of ground-to-air transit operational procedures, BGS will gradually expand its ground-to-air transit services to include not only domestic airline-to-airline transfers but also international route connections. At the same time, BGS will integrate operations involving apron handling, intensify the development of extended ground-to-air transit services, and establish an apron operations center centered around ground-to-air transit. New services will be introduced, including direct ground-to-air cargo pickup subsidies, rapid ground-to-air direct pickup, apron sorting and transportation for international connecting flights, three-warehouse transit, and guaranteed delivery on revenue flights. By providing high-quality services to customers and meeting the demands of modern logistics, BGS aims to achieve win-win outcomes for both the company and its clients.

Open a green channel for cargo aircraft operations.

With the number of cargo flights increasing year by year in recent years, airlines have been increasingly demanding specialized teams and highly efficient services. In 2011, after BGS launched its North Zone International Cargo Terminal, leveraging its geographical and customs clearance advantages, it introduced an “integrated cargo aircraft service.” As a pilot project, it began the first phase of integrated cargo aircraft operations with Russia AirBridge Cargo Airlines (two-letter code RU). The integrated cargo aircraft service breaks away from the traditional segmented approach to cargo handling by establishing a dedicated team specializing in cargo aircraft operations, thereby achieving seamless integration—from cargo reception and warehousing through consolidation to transportation and loading onto aircraft. In 2011, BGS handled a total of 101,600 tons of international cargo aircraft inbound and outbound, representing a 44% increase over the 70,100 tons handled during the same period last year. This accounted for 33% of the total international cargo volume, making it a key growth driver supporting the expansion of international cargo traffic. Meanwhile, as cargo aircraft operations continue to expand, domestic express delivery companies have significantly increased their demand for cargo flights. In 2011, the volume of cargo aircraft flight agency services rose by 21.9%. During the 2012 Spring Festival travel season, the daily number of all-cargo aircraft arrivals and departures within China reached as many as 15 to 20 flights. To meet the challenges posed by the growing domestic cargo volume, BGS established a temporary dedicated task force for domestic cargo aircraft operations, implementing a “one-stop” approach covering cargo acceptance, departure, reweighing, and handover. This enhanced control over flight operations, reducing the average processing time per flight by nearly 20 minutes and providing solid support for high-quality service during the Spring Festival travel season as well as setting new records for daily domestic cargo volumes. In 2012, building on its accumulated experience in cargo aircraft operations, BGS will further consolidate and refine its cargo aircraft handling procedures, continue strengthening its specialized workforce, and gradually complete the safe transfer of all outbound cargo from the cargo warehouse to the corresponding aircraft positions. Additionally, BGS will expand its direct sales and transit business between domestic and international routes, thus accelerating the advancement of its integrated operational model. At the same time, as domestic airlines’ cargo aircraft businesses continue to grow, BGS will fully open green channels for cargo aircraft operations, boosting operational efficiency and providing even more convenient and faster services, thereby driving the comprehensive and in-depth development of BGS’s freight logistics sector.

Value-added services meet customer needs.

Following visits and surveys conducted among customers in 2011, we found that there is currently a significant demand for direct transit and customs clearance operations—both domestic and international—in the express delivery sector. In response to this market need, in 2012, BGS will carry out a comprehensive overhaul of the express delivery process once the Express Delivery Center in the Comprehensive Bonded Zone becomes operational. This overhaul will make the Express Delivery Center more rational, smoother, and scientifically designed in terms of its functional use, operational procedures, and production support, thereby highlighting the advantages of fast and efficient circulation of express goods. At the same time, BGS will also launch a direct transit and customs clearance service for express deliveries, enabling direct transfers between warehouses—meaning express goods can be transported directly from domestic sources to the Express Delivery Center. This new service not only reduces customers’ labor, material, and financial investments in picking up and delivering goods but, more importantly, dramatically increases the turnover speed of express items and streamlines the entire logistics process. It will truly leverage the cargo station’s strengths as a logistics hub and lay a solid foundation for building BGS’s platform for developing express logistics services. Distribution services represent a convenient and efficient logistics model introduced by the port operation zone to facilitate swift customs clearance for businesses. In 2012, BGS will fully leverage the comprehensive customs clearance platform of the Comprehensive Bonded Zone to vigorously promote and expand air-side distribution services. On the international front, BGS will specifically launch 24-hour rapid distribution services and “emergency and expedited” service offerings, particularly adopting an on-aircraft distribution model for fresh, special, and high-value goods, thereby shortening service times and ensuring compliance with service standards. Meanwhile, on the domestic front, taking advantage of the Customs’ updated regulations on the handling of supervised goods, BGS will promptly introduce air-side distribution services for domestically supervised goods. This initiative not only meets the Customs’ regulatory requirements but also addresses the needs of agency companies for handling supervised goods.