Air cargo vet Palmer starts consulting firm

Air cargo vet Palmer starts consulting firm

   Don Palmer, a former Panalpina executive and director of intermodal operations at the inland port of Huntsville, Ala., has formed his own consulting firm, Air Cargo Logistics Services.

   A veteran airline executive, Palmer said he will help air cargo operators with business development and operational decision, from analyzing markets and starting new services to expanding ground facilities.

   He confirmed that one of his clients is Denmark’s SAS Cargo, which has a facility at Newark International Airport in New Jersey.

   Palmer previously served as director of business development for Swiss forwarder Panalpina, helping the company provide international cargo transport    for Alabama’s automotive and electronics industries as well as the U.S. military to Iraq. Panalpina leases Boeing 747 freighters that make daily flights to Huntsville from Luxembourg and Hong Kong.

   He served more than three years as the primary cargo official at the Port of Huntsville, where he helped expand rail and air cargo operations. Prior to that Palmer worked overseas in various capacities running international airlines.

   Palmer had a long career at Dutch carrier KLM, where he held management positions in airline operations, and cargo and passenger marketing. He opened flights and routes for the airline as a general manager in Scandinavia, Yemen, Saudi Arabia and the United States.

   Palmer also has experience with airport operations, working to gain U.S. concessions for British Airports Authority. The private airport operator manages Indianapolis Airport.

   As a start-up specialist, Palmer got Philippine carrier Cebu Pacific Air off the ground in the 1990s and helped Air Philippines acquire its fleet of Boeing 737s.

   Palmer serves as president of the North Alabama International Trade Association and on the Industrial Development Board for the city of Madison.