Last month the Suez Canal was blocked by a 400m container ship, the Ever Given, after it was blown off-course by strong winds that lodged it in the canal bank.
Hundreds of ships were unable to pass through, which equated to $9.6bn/£7bn of goods per day. As a result of this, companies had to decide their course of action: would they wait for the blockage to pass, re-route their ships or find another way to transport their cargo?
Chapman Freeborn was contacted by a customer that needed to deliver 280 tons of essential raw materials to Europe from the US, instead of from South East Asia, enabling them to avoid the disruption at the Suez Canal. After presenting them with multiple options, the customer opted to charter three fully-loaded 747 aircraft.
This unique solution saw the cargo loaded onto aircraft belonging to three different operators, after which multiple trucks delivered the cargo directly to the customer.
The world of cargo can be unpredictable, as proven by the Suez Canal blockage. However, the Chapman Freeborn cargo team will work with you to find a solution to perfectly suit your requirements to ensure your cargo will arrive in both a safe and timely manner.
To find out more about what happened last month at the Suez Canal, read our blog.