World Cargo confirms commitments to GF-X (29/11/2000)

British Airways World Cargo has confirmed its strategic commitment to Global Freight Exchange (GF-X), the internet marketplace for airfreight transactions, following a pilot programme involving major freight forwarding customers.

Paul Burton, General Manager Business Development at World Cargo, said: " We have completed a pilot across a limited number of services using GF-X as a distribution channel. We are satisfied with the results and with new organisations joining the GF-X trading community, we believe there is long-term potential for this industry portal.

British Airways World Cargo is committed to offering choice and ease of access to our products and services. E-business enables us to exploit new business opportunities and we see GF-X as a key component of our distribution strategy, supporting the airline's existing sales channels."

GF-X is targeting the US$50 billion a year airfreight sector through the development of a neutral on-line wholesale market for freight capacity. This enables members to trade on-line and creates the potential for improvements in transactional efficiency, dynamic pricing and faster access to global business.

E-business is recognised and endorsed as a key business tool by British Airways. Gareth Kirkwood, Managing Director of World Cargo, added: " We have been involved with GF-X since its early days. This new industry portal supports our objective of being easy to do business with. It will ultimately enhance the cargo business system and provide added value to our customers."