Maximus Air Cargo, the UAE’s largest dedicated cargo aircraft operator, will make further inroads into the ACMI (aircraft, crew, maintenance, insurance) sector in 2010, said a top official of the company.

It will also focus on continued humanitarian work and the positioning of Maximus as a leader in safety standards, said Fathi Buhazza, CEO and president of Maximus Air Cargo.

“Maximus has continued to retain momentum and our actions in 2009 indicate that not only are we the UAE’s largest all cargo operator, but also one of the strictest in terms of safety standards,” said Buhazza.

“In the months ahead we owe it to the UAE to position ourselves as ambassadors of safety exemplifying industry best practice. Our plans for 2010 also include further inroads into the aircraft lease sector and provision of scheduled services together with ongoing support of worthy humanitarian missions and initiatives such as Care by Air,” he added.

Growth continued with sales increasing nearly ten fold to nearly $100 million since the company’s inception five years ago, a statement said.

Staff levels in this period increased from 16 in 2004 to 184 in 2009. The year 2009 saw an increase in the number of airbus pilots to meet wet leasing requirements. In addition, the management of crew and operations were further improved by investment in an AIMS (airline information management system).

Exciting developments included the selection of

Maximus was selected by Etihad Airways, UAE’s national airline, to run scheduled cargo services. This service quickly expanded to 14 scheduled flight rotations a week plus additional ad hoc cargo charter flights.

The service, which is for Etihad Crystal Cargo, uses Maximus A300-600 Airbuses across five continents including historic twice-weekly services to Baghdad.

History was again made with the transportation of the Queen’s cavalry to Abu Dhabi. This was the first time they had travelled outside of Europe.

Ongoing humanitarian work included several relief trips including the transportation of the UAE Search and Rescue Team to earthquake torn Indonesia, culminating in the launch of Care by Air initiative, the statement added.

The initiative, in partnership with Etihad Airways and Abu Dhabi Airports Company (Adac) will provide cargo services to relief and humanitarian organisations at cost across its network of partner organisations and businesses.

During 2009, Maximus Air Cargo also joined forces with Abu Dhabi Aviation Group adding strength, drawing on synergies and marshalling Maximus firmly to the next stage of development, according to the statement. – TradeArabia News Service