Red Star Freight, a subsidiary of Red Star Express, has achieved great success in recent years; something this Nigerian multimodal forwarder partly attributes to fellow IFLN members around the world.

    Just this year, Red Star handled an aircraft-on-ground (AOG) shipment weighing 4.5 tonnes, which was just a small part of the more than 50 tonnes of cargo shipped by Red Star Freight between Lagos and Italy this year.

    The AOG was needed by the client, AgustaWestland, within four days. Red Star worked with Matras to ensure the urgent shipment was delivered six hours prior to the agreed deadline. "Surpassing the customer’s expectations, this strengthened our customer’s trust in us, which resulted in more volumes and referrals," said Nasir Turajo, COO of Red Star.

    Vito Lionetti, Matras' airfreight manager, added that Matras has also handled large volumes of spare parts and some out-of-gauge shipments such as helicopter blades on behalf of Red Star for shippers.

    Another IFLN member collaborative effort involved Red Star and U.S. based Cargo Logistics Group. The job was for a new client who was shipping motorbikes from the U.S. to Lagos, and delivery had to take place within five days. Collection and flight booking was organized immediately and Cargo Logistics Group was on hand to handle the shipment out of the U.S.

    Cargo Logistics Group's director of operations, Brandon Hart, explained, "On behalf of Red Star Freight in Nigeria, we contacted the shipper in the San Francisco area of California and made arrangements to export the motorbikes. The job was unique in that the motorbikes are electric, running only on battery power and yet are very fast. Moreover, the bikes are hazardous due to the batteries they carry, which added another dimension to the export."

    The cargo was trucked to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), where customs was more equipped to inspect air export vehicles. Cargo Logistics Group collaborated with customs and the relevant airline to clear the freight for export.

    "This was more difficult than usual due to the unique nature of the cargo," Hart noted. "Classifying an electric motorcycle for export proved to be slightly challenging since no classification existed at the time for an electrically powered motorbike."

    David Cook, CEO and president of the U.S. forwarder, explained that his team is a seasoned group of logistics professionals, one that is very adept at identifying innovative ways to move unusual cargo. "Air, ocean or ground, my staff can make it happen," he said.

    "We have developed a good partnership with Red Star and look forward to working them in the future. In the coming year I intend to work on getting much closer to our IFLN partners. It's a strong, well-managed network full of opportunities if we work together," Cook enthused.

    Once the shipment arrived, Red Star ensured that customs clearance and delivery to the end customer in Nigeria was carried out swiftly and efficiently.

    "These and many other achievements wouldn’t have been possible without the services of our fellow IFLN members," Turajo observed, adding that he would be delighted to work with any IFLN members looking to ship into Nigeria.

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