Issue 315, September 13, 2001
As of 11 a.m. EDT September 13, the U.S. government reopened most U.S. airports to commercial airline traffic, enabling airline and all-cargo service to resume on what will initially be a limited basis. It appears at this time that any cargo carried on international flights to/from the United States will initially be limited to U.S. flag carriers only. We expect further clarification on this issue during the day on Friday. U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta said that all-cargo carriers will have certain requirements placed on them for safety and security reasons. He did not elaborate. Many airlines planned to devote most of their efforts Thursday to completing flights that were diverted Tuesday.

Below is the capacity situation as of 5 p.m. EDT on September 13:

• United Airlines said it would not begin operating scheduled flights until 9 a.m. EDT Friday.
• Southwest said it would resume scheduled flights at noon EDT Friday.
• Continental Airlines said it was suspending its regular schedule for Thursday, but will fly its diverted flights.
• Delta began very limited operations at noon EDT Thursday. Only 5% of its regular daily frequencies at Atlanta were being flown.
• American Airlines said it would resume operations on scheduled flights no sooner than 4 p.m. EDT Thursday.
• Northwest Airlines said its flights would not resume until 7 p.m. EDT Thursday.
• LaGuardia, Kennedy and Newark closed at approximately 6 p.m. ET Thursday
• Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) remains closed. Washington Dulles is open.
• Boston Logan and O'Hare airports remain closed

Each individual airlines and airport must meet stringent security requirements. Flights will resume on a case-by-case basis, resulting in delays due to aircraft/crew repositioning. All cargo carriers that have received their security certification can fly to airports who have also received their certification.

Airports and supporting facilities around the country are beginning to open, however, with very strict flight limitations. Domestic air carriers (passenger and all cargo) are expected to operate on a very limited basis. Most passenger airlines are indicating that their primary focus will be the movement of flights diverted on Tuesday. As previously communicated, the movement of freight and mail on passenger flights will not be permitted for at minimum of 48 hours.

Any cargo currently in the possession of a passenger airline should be recovered and PREPARED for export cargo flights this weekend.

* Domestic Transportation: Our surface transportation network in the USA, Canada and Mexico is on the schedule to operate for Thursday / Friday a.m. We will operate our full all-cargo air schedule tonight, giving us overnight air freight capability to most major USA markets.

* Ocean Freight: Port of New York/New Jersey opened on Thursday. The U.S. Customs office in the port of New Jersey has opened up again today. Shipments are being cleared again. Some terminals in the port have also started to operate again. Any customers (FCL and LCL) with shipments that are currently at the port that were scheduled to sail mid-week will be notified directly along with revised shipping data.

* Customs Clearance Status: Customs activities in the NYC area have resumed. Delays due to heightened number of inspections are evident in all ports of entry. Customs is meeting with brokers as needed on a port-by-port basis to review any changes or modifications to current processing and handling of cargo and documentation. At this time, there are no significant changes to report.

Northern and Southern Border crossings continue to experience significant delays from time-to-time. We are encouraging customers to utilize Border Express and other means to fax documentation to our offices prior to the arrival of freight so that delays are kept to a minimum.

Crossing wait times from the Canadian Border to US can be viewed at http://www.ccra-adrc.gc.ca/customs/general/times/menu-e.html. This site is being updated every 4 hours. Southbound from Canada is experiencing heavy delays and are experiencing upward of 18-hour delays through Windsor/Detroit.

Any goods which are bonafide rescue or relief equipment are eligible for duty free treatment (no entry required). This provision is outlined in CFR 19 10.107. Any goods of this nature should be handled carefully and require discussion with Customs at each port.

The challenges affecting the movement of air freight both domestically and internationally are expected to continue to over at least the next couple of days. Danzas AEI Intercontinental is developing contingency plans based upon known and anticipated operating factors. We expect to finalize these plans once the operating environment is more clearly known. We will continue to update our customers as information is made available by government and the FAA, as well as airline and airport administrations.

Please note that due to the complex nature of the subject matter, Danzas AEI cannot be responsible for actions taken by the reader in reliance on the information contained herein without prior consultation with Danzas AEI.