Growth in e-commerce in India could lead the way for air cargo expansion, according to a report by Knowledge Chamber of India, an Indian industry body, and PwC India.
The Evolution of e-commerce in India report found that while 90 per cent of goods being ordered online in India are being delivered by air, the country is still operating at a very low level of air cargo penetration.
The report says this is largely due to only a few airports in India having the capability to handle the large volumes of express delivery parcels.
However, this situation is expected to change with the report citing infrastructure spending to improve the situation. According to the Knowledge Chamber and PwC, the whole e-commerce industry in India could spend between $950 million to $1.9 billion on logistics and warehousing from 2017 to 2020.
The report says: “A day may not be too far off when there is an increasing demand of expanding cargo connectivity to small towns through various merry-go round aircraft using charter airplanes and general aviation.” It concludes that airport operators, including the Airport Authority of India (AAI), need to look at this category of air cargo alongside others when it comes to airport infrastructure development.
