Appendix 4
ROUTING FOR SHIPMENTS OF ORNAMENTAL FISH FROM MOZAMBIQUE TO EUROPE

The question of routing the exports from Mozambique to the importers in Europe was considered very important by all dealers. They feel that improper handling or ornamental fish shipments by airlines at transit points and terminals is one of the main problems of successful imports. They are not ready to accept shipments which will have to be:

1. Travelling more than 30–36 hours

2. Transported on aircraft which are not suited for the transportation of ornamental fish (not pressurized and/or unheated holds)

3. In transit through airports which are noted in the trade as giving careless treatment to the ornamental fish consignments (among these airports London Heathrow, Rome Leonardo da Vinci, Paris Roissy are considered among the worst and to be avoided)

Given the choice of several possible routings from Maputo to Europe, the dealers generally opted for Lisbon as the transit point, although Johannesburg in South Africa was considered as a good second alternative.

The choice of Lisbon as a transit point for fishes flown in from Mozambique was based on the following considerations:

1. The airport is not congested, so fast and proper handling might be expected once TAP airlines has been duly instructed on procedures

2. The flight from Mozambique with few if any stopovers would be shorter than from Johannesburg and avoid handling in other African countries whose reliability did not prove sufficient in the past

3. Lisbon has a milder winter than most transit points in Europe and fewer fishes should be lost through cold weather than if they were shipped via transit points further north

4. Lisbon also offers excellent connexions to all dealers involved

5. It would probably be easier to obtain an IATA special commodity rate (No. 1024) for the direct shipments from Mozambique to Europe via Lisbon than via Johannesburg

It remains to be seen however if, during the winter months, some of the airlines which would be involved in transporting the fish to their final destination from Lisbon, would not apply their winter embargo on transport of livestock. The airlines which apply this embargo are SAS, KLM, and Lufthansa. These airlines refuse all livestock shipments on their aircraft when carried on an intercontinental flight by another airline from 1 October to 31 March.

Airline Companies Contacted

Routings from Maputo to Europe and USA

The author visited the TAP HQ/Cargo Division in Lisbon to evaluate Lisbon as a transit point for ornamental fish shipments from Mozambique. An interview with the TAP Sales Promotion Manager covered the various aspects of the problem.

Routings from Maputo to European or American markets:

1. via Johannesburg
2. via Lisbon on TAP flights
                    on DETA flights

Securing proper bookings for space on flights

Handling requested in Lisbon for transit

Freight rates

1. Routings from Maputo

1.1 Via Johannesburg

The weekly flights leaving Maputo for Johannesburg are (at October 1979):

Only the Friday TM 300 flight has a good freight-loading capacity.

Direct flights leaving Johannesburg for the main European and US markets are:

Amsterdam (Netherlands)

The Thursday flight takes too long.

The Friday flight would leave the fish in Johannesburg for 8 and 1/2 h before take off.

Minimum elapsed time from Maputo to Amsterdam would be on Tuesday (21 and 1/2 h) but shipments would be small.

Brussels (Belgium)

The Wednesday flight SA 145 would miss the connexion with SN 328.

On Tuesday the elapsed time between Maputo and Brussels would be ± 28.00 h of which more than 9 h grounded in Johannesburg.

Frankfurt (Federal Republic of Germany)

Several routings to Frankfurt appear possible either on SAA or Lufthansa, the best being SAA 250 (time 21 and 1/2 h). If SAA were chosen one has to keep in mind the winter embargo by Lufthansa, which would prevent the airline from accepting shipments, for Düsseldorf and Munich once they have landed in Frankfurt. Only if Lufthansa were to accept the shipments in Johannesburg (which is not at all certain) could the shipments to Düsseldorf and Munich be shipped from 1 October to 31 March, via Johannesburg.

Another possibility would be on Friday by LH 541 which would give an elapsed time of 21 and 1/2 h but shipments would stay 9 h on the ground in Johannesburg and land during the weekend at the final destination, which should be avoided.

Stockholm (Sweden)

There are no direct flights from Johannesburg to Stockholm, only to Copenhagen.

This offers fast connexions to Stockholm but waiving of the winter embargo by SAS is problematical.

London (United Kingdom)

There are no problems to reach London from Maputo via Johannesburg.

New York (USA)

The connexions are possible via Johannesburg, an elapsed time travel between Maputo and New York of about 26 h.

1.2 Via Lisbon

The two weekly flights from Maputo to Lisbon are:

The TAP flight on Tuesday is a freight/passenger version of the Boeing 707, with three cabin-loaded pallets.

The connexions to the European and US destinations for these two flights are:

Elapsed times from Maputo to destination

Amsterdam: ± 23 hours on Wednesdays
Brussels : ± 20 hours on Wednesdays
Frankfurt: ± 20 hours on Wednesdays
Stockholm: eventually possible only on Wednesday if SK accepts livestock in winter
New York : ± 26 hours on Wednesdays or Saturdays

Transit Problems

To ensure enough time for the handling of priority cargo such as livestock at the best transit airports the airlines in charge commonly request a minimum of 4 hours between the incoming and outgoing flights. This time can be cut by one hour if the cargo is in bulk (loaded in 707-727-737 holds) and not on pallets (707) or containers (747-DC10).

One has to keep in mind that incoming flights can be and often are delayed, especially in winter months, and that it is prudent policy to have a later second flight to fall back on should the first connexion be missed.

In this respect, Lisbon offers more safety than Johannesburg.

Customers' Preferences

As all importers cut down the staff during the weekends either totally or to a strict minimum, they do not like or refuse to receive shipments on Saturdays and Sundays. The ground handling crews and custom clearance offices are also working with less personnel and delivery to the consignee is slower at weekends. Routing arriving on Saturdays or Sundays should thus be avoided as much as possible.

Total Elapsed Time

It is important to remember that the shipments are packed and then delivered to the airport several hours before the actual departure time of the initial flight. Moreover the fish are stored in the importer's quarters several hours after the actual landing time of the flight at the final destination. Altogether these operations add between 10 to 12 hours to travel time. It is obvious that not only the packing density per container but also the choice of the routing will depend on the time the fish can stay under stress in their bags.

2. Comparison Between the Lisbon and Johannesburg Routings

2.1 Elapsed Time

Recommendations

As TAP flies 707 palletized freighters on which the shipments can be loaded in the wellheated cabin between Maputo and Lisbon with often several backup flights available in Lisbon, the Lisbon transit should be preferred whenever the elapsed times via Lisbon or Johannesburg are close.

Thus Lisbon should be chosen over Johannesburg for shipments to Brussels, London and New York; and Johannesburg preferred to Lisbon for shipments to Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Stockholm and Düsseldorf, provided that: (1) the KLM, Lufthansa and SAS winter embargo can be waived, and (2) the loading capacity of the Fokker Friendship and Hawker-Siddeleys aircraft flying between Maputo and Johannesburg is large enough to accommodate 20–30 boxes.

It should be noted that shipments to the Dortmund consignee (M. Dreier) are usually picked up by consignee in Brussels in which case shipments sent normally to Düsseldorf could travel to Brussels and transit via Lisbon.

As a general rule it is advisable for a shipper to concentrate his shipments on one or two airlines which, because of the volume of freight involved, will be more amenable to the exporter/importer joint leverage when they request reliable service.

2.2 Reservations/Booking for Shipments

It is essential to have confirmed reservations of all flights from point of departure to the final destination before preparing to despatch live animals. This is an assurance demanded by the shipper from the airline in charge of the first part of the journey. This airline telexes via the S.I.T.A. telex network to the airlines concerned at all the intermediary connecting points and final destination the following request:

• Date and number of flight
• Number and total weight of cartons
• Nature of consignment
• Routing and number of airwaybill
• Address and telephone number of consignee

The airlines confirm by return telex that all connecting flights are booked. This confirmation is usually secured within 3 days or less.

The TAP sales promotion manager in Lisbon insisted:

1. that in no case can a shipment be sent from Maputo should the confirmation of bookings not be received beforehand

2. that it is better to book a week in advance

3. that Deta airlines are not connected to the S.I.T.A.

4. that Deta flights were often very late

In the author's experience, every time a shipment is sent without prior confirmation of a booking and suffers heavy delays no compensation is received from the airlines for eventual losses. Bookings are more secure when the same airline carries the consignment from the point of departure to final destination.

Handling in Lisbon

The TAP sales promotion manager was asked if the consignments of ornamental fish could be stored under shelter and in a heated room pending their loading on the connecting flight. He replied that clear instructions could be given to the cargo department. The author advises that such personalized service cannot be expected during first shipments from the airline ground crews and that an indifferent attitude is more often encountered. However, repeated visits to the transit points and explanations to the airline staff concerned should result in excellent, fast and safe handling once the airline has understood the interest it has in the regular transport of ornamental fish.

Servicing by the Airline

It is not always an easy matter to assure the collaboration of the airlines. For them, ornamental fish transport is often an accident-prone commodity, and airline personnel have to be trained how to handle the fish. It is thus best to concentrate the shipments and the training on those airlines to be used regularly. In this respect it should be borne in mind that TAP and Lufthansa are the companies which can bring the fish from Maputo to all destinations of importance for exports.

Freight Rates

The problem of freight charges for ornamental fish shipments has been raised with the TAP sales promotion representative.

Whenever livestock is shipped by air the normal rate is set as follows:

• Rate for shipments of less than 35 kg
• Majoration of 150 percent to be added to basic rate.

To develop exports of tropical fish from several countries especially in Africa, special specific commodity rates have been quoted by the first carrier at the request of the shipper. The author has been personally involved in the establishment of such specific commodity rates for tropical fish from Zaire (1955), Burundi (1970) and Zambia (1976).

Below are examples of the difference in freight cost for a 100 kg consignment of tropical fish from Malawi (Blantyre) without and with the No. 1024 SCR:

¹ US$ 1.00 = Kwacha 0.80 (December 1979).

The difference in freight costs with or without the No. 1024 specific commodity rate is substantial particularly when considering that freight even with the cheap rate represents between 30 and 50 percent of the f.o.b. value of any shipment.

This is why importers would refuse to order from Maputo if the No. 1024 SCR were not granted by the IATA quarterly conference following the first carrier request to apply such rates. The first carrier has to be convinced by the shipper (or his agent) that it is very much in the carrier's interest to do so. Having agreed, that carrier will have to present the case at the IATA meeting and convince all the other carriers with an interest in the aerial zone to agree unanimously on the proposed rate.

Final Recommendations on Routings

1. Following the various requests of potential customers it is apparent that Rome cannot be considered as a transit point, but that Lisbon and to a lesser degree Johannesburg are acceptable to them.

2. It is apparent that DETA does not have the telex network needed for bookings and eventual follow-ups

3. The DETA flight to Lisbon on Friday would bring the shipments to the consignee during the weekend which presents difficulties

4. The TAP flight gives excellent connexions to several of the most important markets and a reliable telex service throughout

5. Provided the Maputo-Johannesburg flights can carry 25/30 boxes, it might be advisable to ship via Johannesburg those shipments which flown by Lufthansa to Frankfurt would have to connect with flights to Düsseldorf-Munich-Stockholm

6. It is recommended to concentrate all shipments on TAP and Lufthansa airlines.

Annex to Appendix 4

Report on Air Transportation Problems Within and From Mozambique
(November 1979)

The international air routes from Maputo have been investigated. Two routings were considered as providing fast and reliable service to the main markets:

• Maputo-Lisbon by TAP airlines.
• Maputo-Johannesburg by DETA or SAA with connexions with SAS and Lufthansa airlines.

The problems of an eventual winter embargo of live animals by SAS and Lufthansa remained to be solved during the author's stay in Johannesburg with a view to securing transportation of the Mozambican ornamental fish in winter (1 October - 31 March). The author met with cargo representatives of airlines directly serving the main foreign markets.

SABENA - for Belgium no winter embargo.

LUFTHANSA - for Federal Republic of Germany, the waiving of the winter embargo would be considered if requested by the Mozambique authorities.

SAS - for Denmark and Sweden, winter embargo would be waived.

SAA - no winter embargo to London.

A rapid survey of the South African ornamental fish market showed that it operated on a very small scale. The author reached the conclusion that previous contacts had not been made in South Africa with a view to introducing Lake Nyasa cichlids onto the South African market but rather with the intention of re-exporting them elsewhere. It is obviously less profitable for the Mozambique authorities to use intermediaries to sell to markets which they can reach directly.

AUSTRALIA

The Australian market could be investigated and be a source of orders for the Lake Nyasa cichlids. However, the distances involved and the fact that Australian regulations forbid many species of cichlids to be imported will probably prevent a substantial volume of exports to this country and those which might be made will be at higher risk than is acceptable for a new undertaking.

Inland Airlines in Mozambique

From personal experience and discussions with contacts the author reached the following conclusions:

1. At the moment the DETA flights between Lichinga (Nyasa Province) and Maputo are not entirely reliable. There are presently two scheduled flights a week, one of which by a Fokker Friendship F27 aircraft with a limited freight capacity. All too often one of the weekly flights is cancelled. Should the ornamental fish project on Lake Nyasa start at an early date, it is probable that the consignments, after their gruelling journey by road from Metangula to Lichinga, would be stranded at the airport. As long as the Metangula airstrip has not been re-surfaced (and part of it is now flooded by the rise of the lake waters) the fish would have to travel by road (one of the worst seen by the author).

   At one point it was considered that a charter plane could be hired in Malawi to come and fetch the fish to Blantyre. A study of the first exporters' diary revealed that it involved great cost and was unreliable. It might also be considered that for a low-cost operation geared to securing hard currencies through exports, paying expensive charter fees in foreign currency lies in direct opposition to the whole purpose of the project.

2. Pemba Coral Reefs Projects:

   There are twice-weekly flights between Maputo and Pemba, capital of Cabo Delgado Province. The flights are aboard a Boeing 737 and last about 4 hours. This aircraft has ample storage in holds No. 1 and 2 which are heated.

   The aircraft land in Maputo in early evening and the consignments from Pemba could thus be stored by 20.00 or 21.00 h in the Maputo transit station. As the Pemba station is close to the airport, there are no major problems in consignments reaching the airport in due time. Should a flight be cancelled there would be no problems in unpacking and restoring the fish in the Pemba station.

   With regard to simplicity of operation and other aspects already considered, the marine fish and invertebrates project is easier and thus safer to undertake especially given the lack of previous experience of those who would be in charge.