| Cargo airlines (or airfreight carriers, and | | | | The company was founded as Federal Express in |
| derivatives of these names) are airlines | | | | 1971 by former U.S. Marine Fred Smith in |
| dedicated to the transport of cargo. Some | | | | Little Rock, Arkansas, but moved to Memphis, |
| cargo airlines are divisions or subsidiaries | | | | Tennessee in 1973 after Little Rock airport |
| of larger passenger airlines. | | | | officials would not agree to provide |
| | | | facilities for the fledgling airline. The |
| Aircraft used | | | | name was chosen to symbolize a national |
| | | | marketplace, and help in obtaining government |
| Larger cargo airlines tend to use new or | | | | contracts. The company officially began |
| recently built aircraft to carry their | | | | operations on April 17, 1973, utilizing a |
| freight, but many use older aircraft, like | | | | network of 14 Dassault Falcon 20s which |
| the Boeing 707, Boeing 727, Douglas DC-8, | | | | connected 25 U.S. cities. FedEx, the first |
| Ilyushin Il-76. Examples of the 60-year-old | | | | cargo airline that used jet aircraft for its |
| Douglas DC-3 are still flying around the | | | | services, expanded greatly after the |
| world carrying cargo (as well as passengers). | | | | deregulation of the cargo airlines sector. |
| Short range turboprop airliners such as the | | | | Federal Express use of the hub-spoke |
| Fokker Friendship and British Aerospace ATP | | | | distribution paradigm in air freight enabled |
| are now being modified to accept standard air | | | | it to become a world leader in its field. The |
| freight pallets to extend their working | | | | company operates much of its U.S. overnight |
| lives. This normally involves the replacement | | | | freight through its Memphis hub. Other U.S. |
| of glazed windows with opaque panels, the | | | | hubs are located in Indianapolis, Newark, |
| strengthening of the cabin floor and | | | | Oakland, Anchorage and Fort Worth, Texas. The |
| insertion of a broad top-hinged door in one | | | | Canadian hub operates from Toronto Pearson |
| side of the fuselage. | | | | International Airport. |
| | | | |
| A number of cargo airlines carry a few | | | | In August 1989 the company acquired Flying |
| passengers from time to time on their | | | | Tigers, an international cargo airline. It |
| flights, and UPS once unsuccessfully tried a | | | | inherited Flying Tigers's U.S. military |
| passenger charter airline division. | | | | transport contract and carried passengers |
| | | | between the continental United States and |
| Notable cargo airlines | | | | overseas military installations until October |
| | | | 1992. In January 1998 Federal Express |
| Atlas Air (IATA: 5Y, ICAO: GTI, and Callsign: | | | | acquired Caliber System, Inc, which owned |
| Giant) [1] is a cargo airline based in | | | | RPS, Roberts Express, Viking Freight and |
| Purchase, New York, USA. It operates | | | | Caliber Logistics. When these companies |
| scheduled freight flights for some of the | | | | combined, the new organization became known |
| world's leading airlines, flying to 101 | | | | as FDX Corp. |
| cities in 46 countries. Its main base is | | | | |
| Miami International Airport (MIA). | | | | The name "FedEx" had been a popular, if |
| | | | unofficial, abbreviation for Federal Express |
| The airline was founded in April 1992 by the | | | | for several years before the company chose it |
| late Michael Chowdry, to specialise in the | | | | as its primary brand name in 1994. The new |
| long-term contract outsourcing of its Boeing | | | | identity was revealed to the world on June |
| 747 aircraft. It started operations in 1993 | | | | 24, 1994. The "Federal Express" name was |
| with one Boeing 747 and contracted by China | | | | eliminated entirely in 2000, when FDX |
| Airlines. In 1995 they began trading publicly | | | | Corporation changed its name to FedEx |
| on the NASDAQ, and in 1997 appeared on the | | | | Corporation and adopted the tagline "The |
| New York Stock Exchange. An initial public | | | | World On Time" [1]. In 2000, FedEx and USPS |
| offering of 4 million shares was made in | | | | signed a 7 year contract to carry all the |
| August 1998. In 2001 the airline introduced a | | | | USPS overnight and high priority mail |
| new program of leasing and services, based on | | | | throughout the FedEx system. The postal |
| the ACMI model. Under this new program, Atlas | | | | contract has recently been extented until |
| Air cargo planes would be available to other | | | | 2012 and USPS continues to be one of the |
| airlines for operations such as charter | | | | largest customers for FedEx. In 2001, FedEx |
| flights. In July 2004 Atlas Air completed its | | | | acquired American Freightways and Viking |
| restructuring plan and emerged from Chapter | | | | Freight, two leading less-than-truckload |
| 11 bankruptcy protection. Recently, Polar Air | | | | carriers in the U.S., and combined them to |
| Cargo pilots ended a 20 day labor dispute | | | | create FedEx Freight. In February 2004, FedEx |
| with its parent, Atlas Air Worldwide | | | | bought Kinko's, a Dallas-based chain that |
| Holdings, Inc. | | | | provides printing and business services, for |
| | | | $2.4 billion. |
| Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: | | | | |
| AAWW) wholly owns Atlas Air, Polar Air Cargo, | | | | In its advertising, the company made famous |
| and a share of Global Supply Systems (49%). | | | | the line "Absolutely, positively" for their |
| | | | overnight service; the original phrase was |
| The airline was named after the famous Greek | | | | "When it absolutely, positively has to get |
| God Atlas, who supposedly carried the world | | | | there overnight." Another slogan, "Relax, |
| on his shoulders. Their symbol on the plane's | | | | it's FedEx", is well recognized. For several |
| tail is a gold man carrying a gold world. | | | | years the company promoted the slogan "Don't |
| | | | panic", particularly on buttons. Throughout |
| FedEx (NYSE: FDX), properly FedEx | | | | Europe, the marketing tag line is "whatever |
| Corporation, is a courier company offering | | | | it takes", referring to the efforts that |
| overnight courier, ground, heavy freight, | | | | individual employees will go to ensure that |
| document copying and logistics services. | | | | the package arrives on time. |
| FedEx is a syllabic abbreviation of the | | | | |
| company's original name, Federal Express. | | | | Major competitors include DHL, TNT, UPS, and |
| | | | the USPS. |