Amazon Air cargo service launches in India even as company cuts costs

Amazon on Monday announced it is bringing its air cargo operations to India, marking recent development for the company’s logistics arm even as it appears to chop costs in different divisions.

The e-retailer is utilizing two Boeing 737-800 plane flown by Quikjet Cargo Airlines to ship packages between Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Delhi and Mumbai. Amazon Air will allow the company to supply sooner deliveries to clients in India, mentioned Sarah Rhoads, vice chairman of Amazon Global Air, in a press release.

The launch of Amazon Air in India comes as Amazon CEO Andy Jassy is undergoing a broad review of the company’s bills as it stares down a worsening financial outlook and slowing retail gross sales. Last week, Amazon began the latest phase of the most important layoffs in its 28-year historical past, that are anticipated to end result in 18,000 staff being laid off. Jassy has regarded to slash costs in different methods, together with instituting a hiring freeze throughout Amazon’s company workforce, axing some projects and pausing warehouse enlargement.

Even as he appears to trim bills, Jassy has previously said the company intends to maintain pursuing long-term alternatives and proceed to speculate in its shops, promoting and cloud-computing companies, amongst others.

Amazon Air, which debuted in 2016, outsources operations to a number of airways. The service permits Amazon to have larger management over the velocity and price of deliveries, which the company has labored to speed up from two days to one- and same-day in extra elements of the U.S.

Amazon Air launched in the U.S., then expanded to Europe. India is the third market and Amazon Air’s first operation in Asia.

Amazon has for years been working to grow its presence in India, which is poised to turn out to be one of many fastest-growing e-commerce markets in the world.

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