Cathay Pacific Airways has signed an agreement for electronic data interchange with DHL Global Forwarding as part of a move that will take air cargo shipments towards a paper-free environment.

The agreement is based on the e-freight model developed by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) for agreements on data exchange.

IATA's e-freight initiative aims to eliminate the need to produce and transport paper documents for air-cargo shipments by moving to a simpler, industry-wide, electronic and paper-free environment.

Currently, the average cargo shipment generates more than 30 documents that are used and/or handled by the various parties involved including shippers, freight forwarders, handling agents, export and import brokers, airlines, customs and other government authorities.

The new agreement with DHL Global Forwarding will eliminate the need for printing air waybills - documents made out by the shipper which confirm the contract between the shipper and carrier. Cathay Pacific is the first airline to sign an electronic air waybill agreement with a freight forwarder in Hong Kong.

Cathay Pacific was chosen as one of the pilot airlines for the IATA e-freight project. It is estimated that the move to a paper-free environment will save the airfreight industry worldwide US$1.2 billion annually upon full implementation.

Present at the signing ceremony for the data interchange agreement were Mr. Edwin Tsang, General Manager, Airfreight Operations Support of DHL and Mr Albert Lo, Manager Cargo Services of Cathay Pacific.

Photograph: Mr. Albert Lo (left), Manager Cargo Services of Cathay Pacific, and Mr. Edwin Tsang, General Manager, Airfreight Operations Support of DHL Global Forwarding, exchange contracts at the signing for the new electronic data interchange agreement between the airline and the freight forwarder.