London’s Heathrow Airport processes almost three quarters of all UK air cargo, with an annual value of well over £200 billion.

Over 80 percent of that cargo travels in the holds of passenger aircraft, while the rest goes on cargo-only flights.

So, Heathrow is an enormously important part of the UK’s global trading network and a key part of the national infrastructure.

However, the challenge for an airport like Heathrow is that cargo makes up only a fraction of its revenue. This means that developing a long-term strategy for cargo can be difficult when passenger flights can be so much more profitable.

So it is at moments like this where, perhaps, we need to recognise that critical infrastructure cannot be left simply to market forces. For Heathrow and the UK, it is important to consider how a coherent strategy can be developed that meets the needs of the economy as well as delivering for the airport itself.

Some of our European counterparts have, in recent years, taken a more strategic approach and are now reaping the benefits.

What might such a strategy consist of? What are the constraints and limitations imposed by today’s systems and infrastructure? And what practical steps could be taken now that could help build towards that longer-term solution to what is a critical national problem?  

To start, an airport cargo strategy must involve everyone in the cargo delivery and management ecosystem; without this, inefficiencies will always exist, meaning (ultimately) higher costs somewhere in the system.

Involving everyone means working towards a common goal and, more prosaically, agreeing on a common standard for data-sharing.

That delivery/management ecosystem includes the government, the airport itself, cargo handlers, logistics companies, ground handling agents and the airlines.

With an effective cargo strategy in place at Heathrow, the next logical step would be to coordinate with other airports to optimise cargo movement schedules, giving cargo handlers the ability to plan for the future with confidence.

The lack of this wider UK strategy has created problems at Heathrow; for example, there are very few cargo-only slots, and no ad hoc slots are being provided for cargo operators, which means they’re having to move cargo shipments to other UK airports. These airports have ground handling agents with limited experience in dealing with cargo-only aircraft, which creates challenges.

Heathrow also has an ageing cargo infrastructure and plans for redevelopment have been delayed, which has created significant uncertainty, especially for express operators.

By contrast, in Brussels and Amsterdam, the effects of a long-term strategy have meant that, today, cargo operations are more streamlined and integrated into the overall airport planning process.

Brussels Airport’s BRUcloud platform is used by almost all participants in the cargo handling and processing network.

Schiphol Airport has developed a data-sharing platform for all internal cargo stakeholders and external authorities, such as Customs.

In addition, a slot booking system is being developed that will help reduce incidents of truck queues at peak times.

Both airports’ cargo communities have adopted the IATA ONE Record standard, which means every piece of cargo has a single record that’s used across all parts of the system. Such standardisation is highly effective in reducing paperwork and saving time.

With an integrated strategy in place, traditionally difficult issues – such as the availability of cargo slots – are more easily resolved, though even at Schiphol, where an airport-wide strategy exists, these are still hotly debated.

Mandating a minimum number of cargo slots would be the ideal, but this is likely to be fiercely contested by the passenger carriers as these are generally much more profitable – according to the current model of UK airport economics. In addition, if the airport is not in control of airside cargo property, it will have little incentive to favour cargo flights as it won’t have a revenue stream from renting.

Various relevant UK bodies, including AICES (the UK trade body for the express sector) and Aviation Services UK (ASUK, which represents ground handlers), have been agitating for mandated minimum cargo slots, largely because it allows express couriers, in particular, to plan with confidence. The current situation prohibits that.

At Schiphol, the cargo lobby is trying to get 2.5 percent of flights to be cargo-only; this is based on the percentage of flights of this kind today.