Cargolux CEO Richard Forson on air cargo's next priorities

By Elena Vasquez

Richard Forson has 36 years of aviation experience across passenger and cargo, a tenure that dates to 1990. Forson began working in 1984 after completing university and later qualified as a chartered accountant through articleship. His aviation career began six years later in passenger and cargo operations.

Forson dates his own entry into airfreight to 2011, when Qatar Airways took a shareholding in Cargolux. He joined the carrier as chief financial officer in February 2012, served as interim chief executive and president from 2012 to 2014, and became permanent chief executive in August 2016.

What is changing in air cargo?

Forson’s clearest diagnosis of market change is the consolidation of forwarders, with sizeable players absorbed into major groups. More groups also bring their own capacity into the market, linking forwarding services more closely to assets they control.

For shippers and carriers, that pattern points to fewer independent sources of forwarding services and greater concentration among major groups. Forwarders owning capacity can exercise more control over procurement and service design, although Forson gave no merger totals, capacity percentages or rate changes to size the shift.

He also rejects industry buzzwords because they obscure rather than clarify. His hardest-won operating lesson is direct: “Never take anything for granted.”

What was Cargolux’s strangest shipment?

Forson’s most unusual consignment involved two beluga whales moved from Shanghai to the world’s first open-water beluga whale sanctuary in Iceland. The Shanghai-to-Iceland movement stands apart from routine freight because the cargo required an exceptional end-to-end operation.

Forson did not disclose the aircraft, tonnage, rate or schedule, so the shipment demonstrates exceptional project execution rather than a measurable capacity trend. For shippers, it illustrates how far an air carrier’s operating proposition can extend beyond ordinary cargo.

He selects the 747 as air cargo’s mascot, calling it the iconic Queen of the Skies. The aircraft therefore serves as his preferred symbol for the sector he has led since 2016.

How should airports treat cargo?

Forson’s proposed air-cargo regulation is simple: “For all airports to consider cargo with the same importance as passenger services.” It is a personal proposal, not an adopted rule, and he provides no implementation timetable, funding mechanism or rule text.

For airport operators, that principle would put cargo policy on the same footing as passenger traffic. For shippers, carriers and forwarders, the potential effect is the priority given to freight facilities and services; Forson offered no handling-volume or rate data to show the cost.

He names Singapore Changi Airport the world’s best because it is clean, user-friendly, continually upgraded and supported by widespread English. His recommendation focuses on passenger-facing attributes, without a disclosed cargo-performance metric.

What shaped Richard Forson?

Forson wanted to become a fighter pilot as a child, and his passion for military history remains absent from his CV. He identifies Sanaa, Yemen, before the conflict as his most exciting work location, while visiting Kabul, Afghanistan, was his most adventurous experience.

He is married, and his daughter and son both work in Luxembourg. His answers outside freight run from strong preferences to personal loyalties, providing context for a long executive career spanning 36 years.

• Asked to swap jobs for a day, he would not exchange his position with anyone.
• He prefers an aisle seat and coffee, and names Person of Interest as his guilty-pleasure television show.
• Asked to describe his job in three words, he says it is the best; his hidden talent is always agreeing with his wife.
• The skill he would master instantly is bringing people together.
• His desert-island kit would include air conditioning, a solar-powered generator and all his military aviation books; flying an F-15 remains on his bucket list.
• He would invite his father, General George S. Patton and Jesus to dinner, to thank them for wisdom, leadership and support.
• His father’s guiding instruction was to do his best and more, while the best advice he received was not to solve everybody’s problems.

Across his answers, Forson links personal consistency with a clear view of an industry moving toward concentrated forwarder groups and greater ownership of capacity. For shippers, carriers and forwarders, his forward-looking message is that consolidation and owned capacity will remain decisive in sourcing, while airports must decide whether cargo policy catches up with passenger-service priority.