aBr May 2014 | Page 97

Mov in g Matters Comair Goes for the MAX I t was announced on March 19th that South African airline group Comair Limited had placed an order on Boeing for the supply of eight future generation 737MAX 8 airliners for delivery in the 2019/21 timeframe, and has reportedly secured options for an additional eight airframes. The firm order is valued at $US 830-million at list price level, and these new aircraft will follow a further four Next-Generation Boeing 737-800’s that are due for delivery to Comair’s British Airways and Kulula-branded fleets in the 2015-16 period. the most successful airliner family in history. At the end of 2013, total 737 deliveries stood at 7 865 units, with a further 3 680 on order! Aesthetically, the 737 has also improved with age, growing progressively longer, and the latest variants have achieved a substantial degree of elegance. South Africa’s Deteriorating Logistics Ranking T he World Bank has ranked South Africa 34th out of 160 countries in its 2014 Logistics Performance Index. This global survey ranks individual countries in the areas of customs, infrastructure, international shipments, logistics competence, tracing/tracing and timeliness. South Africa’s 2014 performance was worse than the country’s ranking in the equivalent 2012 survey, when it occupied 23rd position. Other significant 2014 rankings include Malaysia in 25th position, China in 28th, Thailand in 35th, Vietnam in 48th, India in 54th, Brazil in 65th, with Russia in 90th spot. The top ten ranked performers were listed as Germany, followed by the Netherlands, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Sweden, Norway, Luxembourg, the United States and Japan. However, in a separate earlier report, the World Bank had reportedly identified high logistics costs and price distortions as impediments to this country’s export competitiveness. When read in conjunc F