Coyne Airways CEO Larry Coyne talks about what makes his company profitable when rest of the world is caught in economic turbulence

Reproduced with kind permission from Air Cargo Update

What is unique about Coyne?

We were one of the first companies to develop the NABA (Non Asset Based Airline) model, which has been much copied since. We believe that the risk of aircraft ownership can be unnecessarily high, particularly when there is a lot of excess capacity on the market, and that is why we stay short on asset commitment. For the past 16 years we have managed to fulfil our schedules without any difficulty by developing a series of close relationships with a number of aircraft suppliers for the use of their aircraft on specific routes. That way we can concentrate our energies on the business, making our Operations and Customer Service functions efficient so that the customer gets an outstanding service.

Has the ability to move inbound shipments on a single waybill from virtually anywhere in the world using your interline partners helped you get more business?

I think some of our customers definitely turn to us for the one-stop shop of a through-AWB from origin to destination, as this generally helps us move freight with much less hassle than if it was necessary to re-document the cargo at our hubs. This can be particularly important with high value, urgent and/ or sensitive material – which is generally the type of cargo that goes by air. It has also helped us to set up SPA and Interline agreements with a number of major carriers to feed our network without having to get involved in the more competitive mainstream lanes of the business - like the transatlantic sector.

How did you manage to fly so well through what was such a turbulent year for many of your competitors?

It’s not over yet but our business model has served us well this year. The key is to keep the customer at the core of everything you do: to provide the service they require at the price they need. This is not rocket science, but it is important to commit to tried and tested principles like maintaining the integrity of your schedule. We are constantly looking for ways to improve our product and go that extra mile, while also seeking ways to do things more efficiently and cost effectively.

How would you explain the success of Coyne Airways in terms of providing services to the Middle East market? Is the focus more on speed, price or range of services, or all of them?

We try to provide the service that the customer is looking for. Middle East customers are keen on lower prices while others tend to be interested in service or speed. You cannot do that with a single product offering and that is why we are differentiating our offering to customers.

How big is Coyne’s presence in the Caspian region?

We try to provide the service that the customer is looking for. Middle East customers are keen on lower prices while others tend to be interested in service or speed. You cannot do that with a single product offering and that is why we are differentiating our offering to customers.

How big is Coyne’s presence in the Caspian region?

We pioneered scheduled freighters into Baku, Tbilisi, Yerevan, Ashkhabad, Aktau, Atyrau and Uralsk and continue to serve those destinations today. This was a market we started to serve 17 years ago with charters. However, soon after, we decided that we could better serve our customers with scheduled freighter services although we still do offer charter services in the region.

A lot of freighter companies find it difficult to service difficult to reach markets whereas you have been supplying neutral air cargo services to Afghanistan since 2006 and to Iraq since 2004.

What are the key reasons contributing to your success in these troubled markets?

New markets are always difficult to begin with and just when you think you have them figured out, they start to change. It’s a constant job for us to keep up with the many changes that have occurred since 2004. We have seen many major changes including the banning of AN12’s from UAE, the IL76’s from our base in DXB and the introduction of new regulations to do with security and documentation etc. In the face of these difficulties we have always tried to preserve our flight schedule and to be straight with customers when we were not able to keep to it.

What are the concerns/primary challenges you are currently facing?

Suppose all carriers are concerned at what’s happening to the market. The China market is down and may get worse in the new year and that is hurting some of the carriers we work with. There is also a lot of uncertainty regarding Iraq and Afghanistan. We are waiting to see how open the Iraq market will become, but right now it is not looking good. In Afghanistan, we see the market trailing off in the run-down to the US withdrawal in 2014.

In your opinion what does 2012 hold for Coyne?

It’s going to be a difficult year for us because of the challenges referred to above. We will meet those challenges by doing what we do well even better.

Which regions are you willing to expand your foothold into next year?

It’s difficult to see where the next opportunities will lie. As of now, our main goal is to improve our performance and penetration in existing markets whilst looking for other areas where we could develop and sustain a level of business and service to our customers that would make it worthwhile.