## 5 Conclusions  
This paper has examined, for the first time, the AeroLogic joint venture between DHL Express and Lufthansa Cargo AG. This is the global air cargo industry's largest and most intensive operating collaboration and partnership between an airline and a leading international express and logistics provider. Despite the increasing trend in joint ventures in the global air cargo industry, there has been very limited research undertaken on such initiatives. Thus, this study adds some valuable insights to the literature. The study was underpinned by a case study protocol and research framework that followed the recommendations of [PERSON] [57] and applied [PERSON]'s Five Forces framework for the first time in assessing an air cargo joint venture airline. The case study has highlighted the strategic benefits that a joint venture cargo airline can offer. The study found that the AeroLogic joint venture cargo airline has a unique business model, and this has enabled the carrier, plus it two JV partners, to deliver and capture competitive advantage. A limitation of the current study was that key business performance, such as revenue and freight tonne kilometres (FTKs) were not available in the public domain. Should these data become available then a future study could compare the business performance of AeroLogic vis-a-vis its competitors.  
In conclusion, the AeroLogic joint venture between DHL Express and Lufthansa Cargo AG has grown closer over time, ultimately culminating with the creation of the AeroLogic joint venture airline.  
\begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{p{142.3 pt} p{142.3 pt}} \hline \hline
**Joint Venture Benefit** & **AeroLogic Joint Venture** \\ \hline Overcome ownership restrictions & This was not applicable as both JV partners are based in Germany \\ \hline Increase efficiency & The airline is extremely lean and provides a highly-efficient production platform for the two partners \\ \hline Coordination of flight schedules to reduce fleet size and take advantage of offered capacity & The flight schedules and aircraft fleet size has been optimised for both DHL Express and Lufthansa Cargo. The aircraft operate for DHL during the week and for Lufthansa Cargo on the weekend \\ \hline Shared use of knowledge, competencies and resources & Both partners offer complementary technical skills, in-depth market knowledge and resources and there is a very high level of cooperation between the partners \\ \hline Joint procurement of fuel and amenties & No details of this were available at the time of the present study \\ \hline Cooperative advertising and promotional campaigns & The costs of advertising and marketing are not applicable as AeroLogic only carries cargoes on behalf of the JV partners \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table}
Table 4: _Cont._This new airline has enabled both partners to enhance their competitive positions in the global air cargo industry. The airline operates a fleet of modern, highly-efficient Boeing B777-200 LRF freighter aircraft from its key operational base at Leipzig/Halle Airport to the key global express and general air cargo markets. The airline's route network has changed over time and is customized to satisfy both the DHL Express and Lufthansa Cargo AG requirements.  
[PERSON] conceived the research idea and undertook the case study analysis. [PERSON] wrote the paper. [PERSON] analysed the case study results, edited the manuscript, and prepared the AeroLogic route network figures.  
The authors declare no conflict of interest.