E-commerce company Amazon in a bid to hasten its deliveries has launched a dedicated air cargo fleet in India called “Amazon Air”.
Amazon partnered with Bengaluru-based cargo airline Quickjet to launch its maiden air freight in the country, which it disclosed will enable the firm to be quicker in the delivery of goods.
Reports disclose that Amazon, which is currently making use of the Boeing 737-800, launched in India as it seeks to enhance its deliveries due to tough competition it is facing from Walmart-owned Flipkart.
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The company’s launch of Cargo fleet in India makes the country the third in the world to get an air freight facility, which will deliver goods to cities such as Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad.
Amazon first launched its freight service in 2016 with the U.S. market, before it eventually launched in the U.K., thus making India the third country.
An executive at the company described the launch of Amazon air as a huge step forward for the aviation industry without explaining how.
Also, speaking about the launch of freight services in India, Vice President of Customer Fulfilment Operations, APAC, MENA & LATAM, Amazon Akhil Saxena said,
“This marks a very important step for our sellers and our customers, as well as a huge step forward for the aviation industry. We are celebrating a significant milestone in our global mission to transform the future of logistics.
“Over the last few years, we have taken many positive steps to build our fulfillment, transportation, and logistics infrastructure in the country.
“We continue to invest in speed. We have invested in delivery infrastructure to strengthen the delivery network. Today, we are launching Amazon Air.
Taking note of the firm’s network of fulfillment centers which is spread over 50 locations across the length and breadth of the country, he said, “This will help ship goods faster from our fulfillment centers to last-mile deliveries.
It would be recalled that last year, Amazon made certain notable movements in India where it opened up its transportation and logistics services to third-party merchants, enabling the firm’s shipping arm to deliver various non-Amazon products.
As a result, this saw it become a major competitor to delivery giants in the country. Following the launch of its Amazon air, it will further support 1.1 million sellers in India, thus enabling growth for ancillary businesses such as transportation and packaging.
Amazon Air which was launched in 2016, has continued to see Amazon invest hundreds of millions of dollars in air logistics capabilities. While continuing to expand globally to meet the needs of its growing customer base, Amazon air has also invested in environmentally-conscious solutions to power its network.
Meanwhile, the e-commerce giant plans to cut a massive number of 18,000 jobs, as it continues to strategize to navigate the economic downturn. Also, the company has revealed plans to discontinue its charity donation program, AmazonSmile amid a worsening economic outlook.
The company on its website disclosed that it will shut down the program on February 20, 2023, while noting that after almost a decade, the AmazonSmile program has not grown to create the impact it had originally hoped for.
The company’s net income for the third quarter of 2022 fell 15% to $2.9 billion, compared with $3.2 billion for the same period a year earlier.