Air Cargo on the Move: The Air Cargo Conference 2025 in Frankfurt
4 Sep 2025
The future of air freight is taking shape in Frankfurt: yesterday, the 10th Air Cargo Conference kicked off at the Adler Business Club in Deutsche Bank Park. For two days, the international air cargo community is gathering here to discuss the future of logistics – digital, sustainable, and globally connected.
The conference is moderated by Felix Toepsch, Managing Director of Air Cargo Community Frankfurt. Together with Susanne Klingler-Werner, President of UPS Supply Chain Solutions Europe and a member of the Air Cargo Community Frankfurt board, he welcomed the participants on the opening day. Both emphasized the enormous dynamism of the industry and made it clear: transformation and cooperation are the keys to mastering current and future challenges. Klingler-Werner underlined: “The conference is particularly important right now because we are working together as an industry – with an incredible number of interfaces that are increasingly being tested by macroeconomic and trade policy influences. That is why it is so crucial that we use innovation and digitalization to simplify processes together.”
Highlights from Day One
The opening day offered a program full of high-profile voices and highly topical issues:
Dr Vincent Stamer, Senior Economist at Commerzbank, provided insights into global trade flows and geopolitical challenges. “We observe that real trade flows in Europe have declined over the past years. Since 2018/2019, there has been more of a downward trend, and that has a lot to do with protectionism being back in vogue, as seen with Donald Trump.” Not only have tariffs risen significantly, but competition from Asian – and especially Chinese – exporters has also sharply increased.
“In the automotive sector in particular, we see that Chinese companies have changed – from being good customers of the German industry to becoming very tough competitors.”
Stamer continued: “Many countries are already importing fewer cars from Germany and more from China.” Yet he also sees new export opportunities, especially for Germany’s Mittelstand: “Of course, there are also new growth markets – in East Asia, India, or Latin America, for example.”
Glyn Hughes highlighted how global trade is enabled by air cargo logistics and emphasized that world trade is becoming increasingly complex, yet also highly resilient: “Because whenever the flow of goods is restricted, people will always look elsewhere,” said Hughes.
Rick Penders offered fascinating insights into UPS’s partnership with Liverpool FC. “It’s definitely more than just pick & pack,” he noted. UPS handles the entire end-to-end logistics – from customized jerseys to delivery to fans worldwide. Peak moments occur not only during Christmas, Black Friday, or Cyber Monday, but also when new kits are launched, with demand sometimes spiking by as much as 700 percent. Sustainability is also a major focus: UPS uses energy-efficient robots in its warehouses, powered by solar panels.
Brigadier General Lungershausen of the German Armed Forces Logistics Command stressed the crucial role of military infrastructure and strategic resilience in an increasingly uncertain world: “Logistics does not win wars, but without logistics wars are lost.”
Rolf Lucht (CEVA Logistics) spoke about the challenges of Formula 1 logistics for their client Ferrari. Read the full interview here.
Fokko Doyen and Norbert Pahlsmeyer presented their initiative Cargo Human Care, which has been supporting people in Kenya with aid projects since 2007. These include the Mothers’ Mercy Home, which provides a home for 99 children, and the Cargo Human Care Medical Centre, where up to 2,000 patients are treated every month. Each year, around 30 German doctors travel to Nairobi on a voluntary basis to provide medical care. The initiative is currently looking for volunteers and sponsors. Find out more here:
The second day of the conference also promises a varied program: experts such as Alexander Laukenmann of Fraport, Stefan Dürr of Lufthansa Cargo, and Carsten Hernig of Pudong International Airport Cargo Terminal will delve into topics such as artificial intelligence in logistics, sustainable supply chains, and new infrastructure models. The spotlight will also be on the Innovation Award, where creative start-ups will present their ideas for the future of air cargo.
The Air Cargo Conference 2025 makes it clear: the industry is on the move – agile, digital, and connected. Those who join today still have the opportunity to be part of this international gathering in Frankfurt and help shape the future of air cargo.
