VZCZCXRO1743
RR RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHGI RUEHJO RUEHMA RUEHMR RUEHPA RUEHRN RUEHTRO
DE RUEHSA #1135/01 1561403
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 051403Z JUN 09
FM AMEMBASSY PRETORIA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8722
INFO RUCPDC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC
RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AF DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY COLLECTIVE
RUEHZO/AFRICAN UNION COLLECTIVE
RUEANHA/FAA NATIONAL HQ WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PRETORIA 001135 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED 
SIPDIS 
 
DAKAR FOR FAA REP MO KEANE 
FAA FOR NANCY ANGELO 
DEPT FOR EEB/TRA 
ROME FOR TSA REP ANTHONY GIOVANNIELLO 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAIR ECON EINV ETRD SOCI SNAR SF
SUBJECT: AIR CARGO TRADE GROWS AS AIRLINES EXPAND SERVICE BETWEEN 
U.S. AND SOUTH AFRICA 
 
REF: A. 09 PRETORIA 333, B. 09 PRETORIA 129 
 
This cable contains company proprietary information. 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary.  Charge La Lime hosted a lunch on May 14 for Delta 
officials and representatives of the Commercial, Consular, Economic, 
and Management sections of the mission.  Delta Southern Africa 
General Sales Manager Margaret Copeland and outsourced Cargo Manager 
Anne Sanders provided an update on cargo volumes and security issues 
related to Delta's South Africa operations.  Copeland was pleased 
with cargo volumes on its South African services and noted that 
Delta has had to upgrade its aircraft to deal with baggage and cargo 
demands on its new Nigeria service.  She cited improvements in 
baggage and cargo security measures at South African airports, but 
thought there was significant room for improvement of crew screening 
procedures.  Increased air service between Africa and the U.S. will 
allow countries in the region to take better advantage of the trade 
promotion incentives provided by the U.S. (See Septel for discussion 
of Delta's expansion strategy in Africa and an update on the impact 
of the global economic crisis on Delta's passenger volume growth). 
End Summary. 
 
¶2. (U) Charge La Lime hosted a lunch on May 14 for Delta Southern 
Africa General Sales Manager Margaret Copeland    and Delta Cargo 
Manager Ann Sanders.  Representatives of the Commercial, Consular, 
Economic, and Management sections of the mission also attended the 
luncheon. 
 
------------- 
CARGO VOLUMES 
DOING WELL 
------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) Copeland was pleased with cargo volumes on Delta's 
Johannesburg and Cape Town services to Atlanta.  Sanders explained 
that because of altitude-related weight restrictions, the flight 
from Johannesburg is limited in the amount of cargo it can carry. 
This is not a concern for the Cape Town flight since that starts 
closer to sea-level.  Delta carries some cargo for U.S. courier 
services such as UPS, but that business is a small percentage of 
their operations since most U.S. couriers do not have hubs in 
Atlanta.  Sanders said Delta was now also getting business from the 
U.S. Embassy community.  Delta is carrying the Embassy's 
unaccompanied baggage. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Sanders said 60 percent of the outgoing cargo volume on the 
Johannesburg flight was composed of stuffed hunting trophies.  The 
majority of cargo on the Cape Town flight consisted of perishable 
goods such as fruit, flowers, and both fresh and frozen fish. 
Products such as ink bottles and wine taps (for cardboard wine 
dispensers) were also transported in large quantities from Cape 
Town.  She noted that automotive components such as catalytic 
convertors were usually sent via maritime cargo, but occasionally 
Delta receives large shipments in Johannesburg for U.S. auto 
manufacturers who have adjusted their inventory strategy to a 
just-in-time inventory approach due to the global economic slowdown. 
 Textile products from Lesotho and Mauritius are also transported to 
the U.S. on the Johannesburg flight. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Sanders explained that the final destination for incoming 
cargo on the Delta flights is for the South African market.  In 
comparison, most of the incoming cargo on South African Airways 
(SAA) is destined for other countries in the South African 
Development Community (SADC) region because of SAA's regional air 
QDevelopment Community (SADC) region because of SAA's regional air 
network.  Major cargo shipments from the U.S. include high-end 
products such as pharmaceuticals. 
 
---------------- 
ADAPTING SERVICE 
---------------- 
 
¶6. Copeland explained that Delta has already had to upgrade the 
aircraft for its new direct service to Nigeria to deal with cargo 
and passenger luggage demands.  Shortly after launching the service, 
a passenger arrived at the Delta ticket counter in Lagos with 125 
suitcases.  Delta had to send an additional plane to accommodate 
this additional demand and charged $55,000 in excess baggage fees. 
She also explained that stowaways at its hub in Dakar and other 
smaller airports in Africa were a cause for concern due to the lack 
of adequate fencing at these airports.  The vast majority of the 
stowaways died after being crushed to death in the external wheel 
compartments by the contracting wheels after take-off. 
 
 
PRETORIA 00001135  002 OF 002 
 
 
----------------- 
BAGGAGE AND CARGO 
SECURITY CONCERNS 
----------------- 
 
¶7. (U) Post inquired about the status of cargo and baggage security 
upgrades at the Airport Company of South Africa (ACSA), which runs 
all of the international airports in the country.  Copeland and 
Sanders said Delta enforced a 100 percent screening policy for its 
cargo, but agreed that passenger baggage theft has historically been 
an area of concern at the ACSA airports.  Copeland explained that 
the use of subcontractors had been one of the major causes of 
baggage theft and the use of shrink-wrap did not reduce theft. 
Equity Aviations, which used temporary staff and subcontractors, has 
lost its ACSA permit.  Baggage handling companies are now required 
to hire permanent staff to receive an ACSA permit, which has reduced 
baggage theft. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Sanders stated that drug trafficking has also been a 
concern at the airports.  Delta screening has found marijuana in 
cargo destined for Miami.  Delta notifies the South African Revenue 
Service and other appropriate authorities whenever this occurs. 
Sometimes the authorities let the cargo proceed to see where it 
winds up in order to follow-up at the final destination.  Post also 
inquired about status of the additional security measures instated 
after two SAA crews were detained in the UK for drug smuggling 
(Reftels A and B).  Copeland believed that SAA crew screening was 
still inadequate to deal with the drug trafficking threat. 
 
----------------- 
STATUS OF AIR 
MARSHAL AGREEMENT 
----------------- 
 
¶9. (SBU) Post informed Copeland that progress on implementation of 
the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Air Marshals 
Agreement has been slow.  Agreement has been reached on the text of 
the memorandum of understanding.  However, administrative delays at 
the South African Department of Transport (DOT) have held up the 
signing on the South African side.  Implementation can only begin 
after the DOT Director General signs the final agreement. 
 
------- 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶10. (U) Increased air service between Africa and the U.S. allows 
countries in the region to take better advantage of the trade 
incentives provided by the African Growth and Opportunities Act 
(AGOA), which allows exports from the region to enter the U.S. 
market virtually free of tariffs.  Trade in perishable products and 
manufactured products for just-in-time inventory needs is expected 
to increase as a result of Delta and SAA's recent Africa-wide 
service expansions and aircraft upgrades.  Security will remain a 
concern as air traffic and cargo movements continue to increase 
between the U.S. and Africa. 
 
LA LIME