Air Cargo couldn't reverse losses

For 60 years, Air Cargo Inc. ruled the cargo industry's trucking service with the help of the 17 major airlines that owned it.

The not-for-profit ran under the radar in Annapolis, getting little publicity while serving as the monopolistic middleman for its members, which included American, United and Delta airlines. It shipped the airlines' boxes from one location to another.

But as competition stiffened from names such as UPS, FedEx, trucking firms and even the airlines themselves, profits dwindled. In 2001, the company sought help from outsiders in an attempt to bring it into the 21st century.

"We had a nationwide team...