Michael Steen, Executive Vice President & Chief Commercial Officer of Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings Inc, has been elected as the new Chairman of The International Air Cargo Association (TIACA).

He was previously Vice Chairman of the Association during the Chairmanship of Ulrich Ogiermann, former President and CEO of Cargolux Airlines International who has decided to retire from his role as Chairman of TIACA due to personal reasons.

TIACA has also announced Oliver Evans, Chief Cargo Officer at Swiss International Air Lines, and Jason Foote, VP International Air Operations, UPS Airlines as new board members, effective immediately.

'Uli Ogiermann has done an outstanding job during his tenure as Chairman of TIACA by developing the organization into a leading industry platform with a strong focus on the most pressing industry topics. He has been instrumental in forging closer relationships with several industry organizations, work which we now will continue to build on for the future, said Michael Steen. 'On behalf of TIACA's Board of Directors, I would like to thank Uli for his outstanding contribution and we wish him the very best in his future endeavors.'

TIACA enters the New Year on the back of a highly successful 12 months in 2010 which saw its close involvement with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) in support of 100% piece level screening in the US and the signing of a new Memorandum of Understanding with the World Customs' Organization (WCO). The Association also recruited some 100 new members from across the globe and organized a highly successful Air Cargo Forum & Exposition in Amsterdam in November that attracted some 3,300 air cargo industry leaders and customers. At this three-day event, it announced the launch of a new training program for freight forwarders in Africa. It also introduced the Air Logistics Network, a comprehensive online platform for the industry to network and drive commercial relationships on a year-round basis.

As part of its campaign to involve more shippers and cargo agents in the Association, in 2010 TIACA introduced discounted membership fees for freight forwarders and launched a new category of free membership for shippers.

2011 will be another highly significant year for the Association as it works closely on a variety of industry affairs initiatives with IATA, FIATA and the Global Shippers' Forum. In Amsterdam, the four parties signed a Letter of Intent committing to work towards the formation of an industry advisory group facilitated by TIACA to ensure the air cargo industry has a strong, unified voice in its dealings with worldwide regulatory authorities and other bodies whose decisions directly impact on air cargo. The new group, now established as the Global Air Cargo Advisory Group (GACAG), is focusing on areas such as security, customs reform and the environment.