(NEWS) GENEVA, Switzerland, 2026-Aug-20 — /Travel PR News/ — The International Air Transport Association is bringing air cargo specialists to Budapest this September for a conference focused on turning operational expertise into practical improvements across the global cargo sector.
The 2026 IATA Cargo Experts Conference will take place in the Hungarian capital on 23–24 September 2026, with the theme “From Expertise to Execution.”
Based on details shared in IATA‘s official announcement, the event will focus on practical ways to improve day-to-day air cargo operations through global standards, technology and data. The emphasis is not only on discussing industry challenges, but on helping cargo professionals take away ideas they can apply within their own organisations.
For air cargo, that operational focus is important. The sector depends on reliability, speed, coordination and compliance across airlines, handlers, forwarders, airports, regulators and specialist logistics providers. A delay, data gap or handling failure can affect anything from e-commerce shipments to pharmaceuticals, dangerous goods or urgent industrial cargo.
Brendan Sullivan, IATA’s Global Head of Cargo, said the conference is designed to bring cargo experts together to share what works, address common challenges and identify tangible operational improvements. He noted that reliable delivery is central to the air cargo business, making effective operations essential to success.
The conference programme will be built around three specialised tracks: Digital Cargo, Safety & Security, and Pharma & Cargo Operations.
The Digital Cargo track will focus on the adoption of ONE Record, as well as the practical use of digital technologies such as APIs, artificial intelligence and automation. Topics will include cargo security, shipment visibility, data quality and interoperability.
These themes reflect one of the industry’s key priorities: making air cargo data more consistent, accessible and usable across the supply chain. Better digital integration can help reduce manual processes, improve tracking and support faster decision-making.
The Safety & Security track will examine emerging risks, including the safe handling of dangerous goods and the growing problem of undeclared lithium batteries. It will also address risk assessment and oversight, areas that remain critical as cargo volumes and shipment complexity continue to evolve.
Lithium batteries have become a particular concern for the aviation sector because of fire risks when they are misdeclared, poorly packed or shipped without proper controls. By placing the issue within the conference agenda, IATA is highlighting the need for stronger operational discipline and shared safety practices.
The Pharma & Cargo Operations track will focus on ground handling, resilience and cold-chain logistics. It will look at smarter compliance and the use of real-time data to support pharmaceutical shipments, where temperature control, traceability and reliability are especially important.
For pharmaceutical cargo, operational quality can have direct consequences for healthcare supply chains. Vaccines, medicines and other temperature-sensitive products require carefully managed logistics from origin to destination, making data, standards and trained handling teams essential.
The Budapest event will be open to accredited members of the press and is aimed at industry professionals working across the air cargo ecosystem.
IATA represents more than 370 airlines, accounting for around 85% of global air traffic, giving the conference a broad international industry platform.
For the cargo sector, the message behind the 2026 conference is practical rather than abstract. Standards, data and technology only matter if they help improve what happens on the ground, in warehouses, at airports and across daily shipment flows.
By focusing on execution, IATA is positioning the Cargo Experts Conference as a working forum for a sector where operational precision remains one of the strongest measures of performance.
