Los Angeles, CA (May 18, 2012): Mercury Air Cargo, Inc., the largest third-party air cargo handler at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), has announced the promotions of Rafael Valencia and Juan Munoz to top cargo management positions at LAX. Valencia is now Terminal Manager for Mercury’s flagship 200,000 square foot warehouse at 6040 Avion Drive and Munoz is now Terminal Manager for Mercury’s 68,000 square foot warehouse at 5908 Avion Drive.

Mercury’s 6040 Avion warehouse facility includes the largest on-airport refrigeration unit on the West Coast and is home to LAN, Emirates, ANA, Air New Zealand and Pacific Air Cargo. The 5908 Avion Drive facility is home to Cathay Pacific, Frontier Cargo and Rock-It Cargo. Both warehouses are Transportation Security Administration (TSA) certified cargo screening facilities.

Valencia started working for Mercury Air Cargo in October 1996, as an Import Agent for various airlines and was quickly promoted to assistant office trainer and later to a Customer Service Lead Agent position. He moved to 6040 Avion when Mercury opened the facility in 1996 and he became a Customer Service Supervisor. He was promoted to Cathay Pacific Account Manager in 2004, in charge of the import and export operation and then promoted to Terminal Manager at 5908 Avion in November 2010.

“Rafael is a wonderful example of how someone can start out working on the docks and rise through the ranks to run the entire warehouse. He has the technical and people skills that make him an obvious choice to run Mercury’s largest and most complex terminal operation at LAX,” said John Peery, Vice President of Mercury Air Cargo.

Munoz started his career in the air cargo industry at Qantas Freight over 10 years ago, working in many different positions within cargo operations and then he became a regional operations coordinator for Qantas with responsibilities in the Western U.S. and South America. He joined Mercury Air Cargo in July 2010 as Manager of Cargo Process and Procedures, working on process improvements for Mercury’s cargo operations and leading consultancy projects for major airlines such as American Airlines and Delta. Recently, Mercury Air Cargo launched a cargo acceptance and screening software system that Munoz developed in coordination with Mercury’s IT Department. The system dramatically streamlines cargo acceptance and cargo screening, automating what was previously a paper intensive process.

“Juan is a rising star. His hands-on experience in cargo includes customs compliance, safety, facilities, IT support, systems training and operations. Additionally, having worked directly for an airline, he well understands our customers’ needs and the teamwork required to keep cargo moving,” said Peery.