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Airlines and logistics groups are competing to catch blond dogs to comply with new regulations to examine cargo flight cargo as part of tougher rules to combat terrorism.
Demand for K9 or police dogs, capable of smelling explosives, has risen with concerns about shipping delays as operators struggle to find animals and X-ray detection equipment in time until the July deadline .
It is the latest threat to supply chains, already tense due to the coronavirus crisis and the rise in online shopping that have driven demand for international shipping.
Air cargo has also spread due to the sharp rise in demand for goods at a time when many passenger planes, which usually carry half the volume of goods, remain on the ground.
The rules, which mean that all cargo on international cargo flights must be examined, have been introduced by the International Civil Aviation Organization.
The deadline is causing particular problems in the United States, where groups were far from complying with ICAO standards and there was uncertainty about whose responsibility it was to examine the burden.
It expands existing requirements to check the carriage of goods in the belly of passenger planes in response to a bomb printer cartridge plot in 2010 that targeted two cargo planes bound for the United States from Yemen.
“It’s going to make canine companies double in size,” said Eric Hare, executive director of Global K9 Protection Group, which hopes to expand its dog handling equipment for air cargo to about 225 of 125 by the end of July. .
Rival company Cargo Screening K9 Alliance said it had received twice as many budget requests for dogs from air cargo carriers, ground handlers and logistics groups in the first five months of the year compared to 2020.
The strength of demand now runs the risk of exceeding supply, according to industry data.
“The question is will there be enough canines and trained equipment ready for the deadline?” Said Brandon Fried, chief executive of the Air Force Association, a commercial body.
While dog providers insist that there are a lot of suitable animals, the sudden increase in interest means that they will prepare them on time can be difficult.
It takes between six and eight weeks and $ 100,000 to train and deploy a dog with its handler. “There are enough canines to do the job, but not enough time to do it,” Hare said.
Express carriers like UPS said they were prepared well before the July deadline, but smaller air cargo carriers and ground handling agents are more likely to have more difficulty than some of their larger rivals.
The lack of dogs or X-ray machines before the deadline could cause significant delays, as the load stacked on pallets would have to be separated for human research.
Exporters and importers face price increases to cover detection costs.
Glyn Hughes, CEO of the International Air Cargo Association, said sniffing dogs were unmatched in their ability to detect dangerous cargo. “Canine detection systems are so accurate,” he said.
While the deadline is too tight to offer timely automatic detection systems, tougher security standards will be set to cause a demand boom for security scanner manufacturers as operators look for long-term solutions. .
Richard Thompson, director of aviation for Smiths Detection’s industry, whose X-ray machines are used in airport security, estimates double-digit growth for his £ 50 million air cargo business due to the regulations of an industry with growing demand.
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