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FedEx: Giving generously, and hoping to receive more

By Li Yang (China Daily Tianjin Bureau)
Updated: 2009-09-21 21:10

FedEx, the American express delivery giant, made its first aircraft donation in China on September 10th, delivering a retired Boeing 727-200 freighter to the Civil Aviation University of China (CAUC).

"We hope that our aircraft will enhance CAUC's education program and will help their students—who are the future of our aeronautics industry—learn and develop," Eddy Chan, head of FedEx China, said at the donation ceremony.

The Boeing 727-200, named "Jakob" after the son of Anchorage hub manager Rodger Finley, was produced in June 1975 for Air Canada, and has recently retired after 25 years of service at FedEx. As CAUC's first American type freight, "Jakob" will be used in the training of Chinese aviation mechanics, and is expected to elevate the education standard at CAUC by providing its young mechanics-in-the-making with more practical experience.

"The ability to supplement our students' advanced aircraft hands-on training with this type of aircraft is a dream come true," said Wu Tongshui, president of CAUC. "We are grateful that FedEx has given this opportunity to our students.

Experience working on a real aircraft will provide our students with a competitive advantage when they graduate."

The donation of the Boeing 727 was only part of a series of public welfare programs that FedEx has carried out in recent years. As the head of the express delivery giant that is best known in China as the sponsor of the gold-medalist Chinese badminton team, Eddy Chan stressed at the donation ceremony FedEx's long-time devotion to the implementation of its corporate responsibility schemes.

The latest FedEx public welfare program was carried out in June, in which FedEx staff and school kids in Guangzhou created "Green T-shirts" to promote environmental protection.

However, while the donation is depicted as a part of the FedEx retirement program for its 727-200F fleet, some still believe it is not as simple as it looks. Many industry insiders, including Dai Dingyi, vice chair of China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing, take FedEx aircraft donation to Civil Aviation University of China, which is directly affiliated to the Civil Aviation Administration of China, as an act of "government lobbying" expected to win more space and convenience for FedEx's future development in China. Before the donation, FedEx has had a long time cooperation with CAUC, with CAUC students doing internships at FedEx or receiving FedEx scholarships.

And FedEx's efforts are beginning to work. It is reported that FedEx has been granted favorable policies in Baiyun International Airport's Asia-Pacific Transfer Centre, one of FedEx's most important outpost in the region.

Behind FedEx's active engagement in public relations is its confidence in the future development of China's economy. With the Chinese economy growing at a dizzying pace, China has become a leading player in the rapidly-expanding Asian-Pacific airfreight market.

According to the prediction of Randy Tinseth, Boeing's vice-president, a quarter of the world's airfreight will be carried out in the Asia-Pacific region by 2028, and as an leading economic market in the region, China is poised to see a fast-expanding aviation market and more vigorous competition in the airfreight industry.