Source: AIA
Athens International Airport (AIA) has been recognized by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) for its valuable support and contribution to local cargo community members receiving IATA’s CEIV Pharma [i]certification. This joint approach includes ramp and cargo handlers, freight forwarders and a trucking company covering the entire air cargo supply chain.
With five companies, namely Goldair Handling S.A., Skyserv S.A., Swissport Greece S.A., DHL Global Forwarding (Hellas) S.A., and Talos Attikis Ltd., under its umbrella, and in close collaboration with IATA, AIA and its partners, proactively addressed the increased requirements needed for the handling and transportation of pharmaceutical products by air: the cargo handlers invested heavily in upgrading their terminal cool facilities, while all stakeholders enhanced their operational procedures to ensure product integrity by meeting global standards for the handling and transporting of pharmaceuticals by air and complying with national and international regulations.
Capitalizing on this development, the Athens International Airport and all members of the local cargo community aim to contribute further to the increase of export volumes of pharmaceutical products by providing value added services to the pharma industry.
Alexis Sioris, Manager Ground Handling and Cargo Development of AIA added “We are extremely proud of IATA recognizing our role in bringing together the members of our cargo community to achieve the prestigious CEIV Pharma Certification. The certification is evidence that the handling and transporting of pharmaceuticals by air across key partners in the air cargo logistics community at Athens Airport is in line with the highest global standards. This project was planned, engineered and concluded during challenging times due to the severe turmoil caused by Covid-19, in a truly synergetic manner. We greatly appreciate our local cargo partners’ “look-into-the-future attitude” and jointly aim, along with the local pharma industry, to lead the already significant traffic of pharmaceutical products through AIA, to new heights.”
“Congratulations to Athens International Airport for playing an instrumental role in helping its airport community partners achieve CEIV Pharma certification. This milestone not only exemplifies commitment to excellence but also ensures the integrity of pharmaceutical transport through one of Europe’s key hubs. With this certification, Athens International Airport and its cold chain partners are demonstrating their dedication to safeguarding the quality of life-saving medicines, making them trusted partners for pharma logistics,” said Brendan Sullivan, IATA’s Global Head of Cargo.
The award ceremony took place on September 21st during the Airfreight Pharma Conference, organized in Athens.