September 21 - UK-based air freight broker Air Charter Service (ACS) has appointed a new cargo sales director at its Frankfurt office while the company has organised a vital relief goods flight into North Korea in response to the devastating floods in tha

In Frankfurt, 20-year industry veteran Stephan Blank has joined as cargo sales director of the company's Frankfurt office. Blank started his career in 1990 at MSAS Cargo International, followed by a career as a charter broker and in management for a number of German logistics companies.

Meanwhile, ACS has been involved in a major charity relief effort in one of the world's most secretive states. 

The broker sourced a B747F carrying vital relief goods into North Korea on behalf of UK-based international relief charity, Samaritan's Purse.

Torrential rain caused the flooding, with 600,000 ha of land reportedly washed away or under water. Samaritan's Purse has so far contributed about USD 1.2 million toward the relief effort, and members of the organisation were in North Korea to meet the aircraft and observe the distribution of emergency items. 

The task of chartering an aircraft for this particular job was made more difficult than usual for Richard Thompson, ACS New York cargo sales director, by having to use an American B747 to perform the flight. 

Thompson said: "The North Korean authorities have only ever granted three permissions to fly a US-registered B747 into the country, so this was a real coup. 

"We had to utilise the contacts of Air Charter Service, Samaritan's Purse and the airline in order to obtain a landing permit to fly into Pyongyang. Coincidentally, one of the two other times that a permit was granted into the country was for an ACS/Samaritan's Purse charter. The flight left from Charlotte Douglas International on the original planned schedule." 

Air Charter Service has 14 offices across North America, South America, Europe, Africa, the CIS, the Middle East and Asia and arranges almost 6,000 charters a year.

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