For the eighth consecutive time, Air Cargo News Awards have adjudged dnata the ‘Ground Handler of the Year’ at their 2022 awards ceremony.
The awards, which are considered very prestigious in the air cargo industry and instituted by Air Cargo News, were presented at a gala event in London. The 38th edition was presented by actress, writer and comedian Lucy Porter at the Runnymede on Thames hotel in Surrey.
The awards are based on a mix of direct voting by supply chain professionals and company submissions judged by a panel of industry experts.
Founded in 1959 in Dubai and known as Dubai National Air Travel Agency then, dnata offers ground handling in 86 airports across the globe, catering service in 64 airports and cargo services in 48 airports. It is part of the Emirates Group.
Alex Doisneau, Managing Director of dnata UK (Airport Operations), who accepted the award on behalf of dnata globally, said: “We are proud to receive one of the most coveted industry awards for the eighth consecutive time.
“This is a testament to our team’s relentless commitment to consistently deliver quality and safe services. We continue to invest in our people, innovation and sustainability to be an employer of choice, and the world’s most admired air and travel services provider.”
Over the past year, dnata has continued to scale up operations to support its airline customers’ increased flight operations across more than 120 airports around the world. This included the opening of new, state-of-the-art cargo centres in London and Erbil in Iraq and the expansion of its existing facility in Dallas in the USA.
In addition, dnata expanded its cargo operations into Cologne, Germany, through a strategic acquisition and announced a major, $200 million investment in a fully automated cargo centre, dnata Cargo City Amsterdam in the Netherlands.
dnata also invested in cutting-edge technologies and digitalisation to further enhance efficiencies across its operations. Key milestones include the rollout of its digital cargo management system, OneCargo, the development of an e-commerce platform, and the launch of autonomous drones in its warehouses.
The company has also continued efforts to optimise resources and reduce its environmental footprint across its global network. Most recently, it has installed renewable energy tech, such as solar panels, heat recovery units and electric vehicle charging, at its existing facilities in the UK and Singapore. dnata will also incorporate carbon reduction initiatives in the construction and operation of its new cargo centres in Iraq and the Netherlands.
dnata became the first global air and travel services provider to join the IATA 25by2025 initiative that aims to advance gender diversity in the aviation industry. It also enhanced its corporate social responsibility strategy by creating programmes globally that support the health and wellbeing of its employees and communities.
dnata offers ground handling, cargo, travel, catering and retail services in 37 countries across six continents. In the financial year 2021-22, its customer-oriented teams handled over 527,000 aircraft turns, moved three million tonnes of cargo, uplifted 39.9 million meals, and recorded a total transaction value (TTV) of travel services of $632 million.
Among other winners, in the judged categories, the Air Cargo Environment Award was won by DHL Global Forwarding, while LATAM Cargo was named winner of the Air Cargo Pharma Award.
Qatar Airways was adjudged winner of the Best Freighter Operator category. Budapest Airport was recognised as the Cargo Hub of the Year. CargoAi won the Innovation Award – Digital.
The Best Cargo Airline – Middle East was won by Emirates SkyCargo.
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