Amazon, the world’s biggest E-commerce retailing giant has scented growth opportunities amid the ongoing COVID crises.
Amazon Air, formerly known as Amazon Prime Air, is a cargo airline operating exclusively to transport Amazon packages. It has added 12 new boring aircraft 767- 300 bringing the total Amazon air fleet to over 80 aircraft, thanks to increased online shipments. These planes were leased from thee Air transport services group. One of them will begin operations this month and the rest will be delivered next year.
With a majority of America relying on its contactless delivery for online orders, the company has further brought its 175,000 temporary workers to meet demand related to the pandemic, and the good news is that nearly 70 percent of these, about 1,2500 are likely to be reinstated full time during this month.
The company is also open with regional air hubs at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Austin, Texas, and Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and in Florida this summer, and San Bernardino International Airport next year.
Furthermore, it also will open a new central Amazon Air Hub at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport next year.
“Amazon Air is critical to ensuring fast delivery for our customers — both in the current environment we are facing, and beyond.” Amazon Global Air vice president Sarah Rhoads quoted.
Amazon is building a delivery network to service its own business and potentially rival those of major carriers such as Fed EX, United Parcel Service, and Deutsche.
However, of late a coalition of 13 state attorneys general have called on Amazon to bolster protections for workers after eight of its warehouse workers died from COVID 19. The company has not disclosed how many of its workers have tested positive for the virus. It has come under scrutiny for the safety of its employees and is said to have enforced strict social distancing norms and alerts from other staff if any suspected case of COVID 19 is found.
