A world of opportunities are open to the UK
On 5 June the UK Government gave its backing to the expansion of Heathrow Airport through developing a new north-west runway, writes David Craik. Transport Secretary Chris Grayling declared that the airport’s third runway would lead to more jobs, greater economic growth and be an important milestone in building a ‘global Britain’. The Government hopes […]
Cargo at Heathrow grows for the 22nd consecutive month
Cargo at Heathrow Airport has grown for the 22nd consecutive month, passing the 144,000 tonne mark in May. The airport handled 144,171 tonnes of cargo in May, a year-on-year increase of 0.5 per cent. In the first five months of 2018 cargo volumes have increased 3.1 per cent to 702,120 tonnes, and are up 7.9 […]
Cabinet approves Heathrow runway, MPs to vote within weeks
A third runway at Heathrow Airport has been approved by the Cabinet, ready for a vote in parliament in the coming weeks. Speaking to members of parliament in the House of Commons, transport secretary Chris Grayling stressed the importance of expanding Heathrow, highlighting its significance to the national economy. Addressing MPs, Grayling said that the […]
China Southern connects Heathrow with Wuhan and Sanya
Heathrow Airport has gained new connections to China with flights to Wuhan and Sanya, adding over 6,000 tonnes of cargo capacity. China Southern Airlines launched its thrice-weekly service to Wuhan, a mega-city known as ‘Chicago of China’ on 30 May, and will start flying to Sanya on Hainan Island twice a week from 12 July. […]
Cargo at Heathrow grows for the 21st consecutive month
Cargo volumes at Heathrow Airport have grown for the 21st consecutive month with a 2.3 per cent year-on-year increase in April. In April, cargo volumes were up 2.3 per cent to 141,215 tonnes and on a year-to-date basis, cargo increased 3.8 per cent to 557,950 tonnes between January and April. The fastest growing cargo markets […]
IAG Cargo to connect Heathrow with Durban
IAG Cargo will increase capacity to and from South Africa by 90 tonnes a week with direct flights between London’s Heathrow Airport and Durban. The Boeing 787-8 service will be launched on 29 October, operating on Mondays, Thursdays, and Saturdays offering up to 15 tonnes of cargo capacity per flight. The British Airways service will […]
Virgin Atlantic Cargo granted Wholesale Distribution Authorisation
Virgin Atlantic Cargo has been granted a Wholesale Distribution Authorisation (WDA) for its global headquarter operations and its Pharma Zone at Heathrow Airport, confirming compliance with Good Distribution Practices (GDP). WDA was established by the UK government’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), which works closely with the European Medicines Agency (EMEA) and other […]
Heathrow first quarter profits rise along with cargo volumes
Heathrow Airport’s first quarter profits have grown to £187 million with passenger numbers and cargo volumes growing during the period. Cargo volumes were up 4.3 per cent between January and March to 416,734 tonnes and by 1.5 per cent in March to 150,565 tonnes, while passenger numbers increased 3.1 per cent to 17.7 million. Revenue […]
Cargo volumes at Heathrow grow for the 20th consecutive month
Cargo volumes at Heathrow Airport have grown for the 20th consecutive month, with volumes increasing 1.5 per cent in March. During March, 150,565 tonnes of air cargo passed through Heathrow Airport, with the strongest growth on routes to the USA and Japan. From January to March cargo volumes increased 4.3 per cent to 416,734 tonnes […]
Kangaroo Route’s giant leap opens up express cargo opportunities
Qantas’ direct services between Perth and London could open up opportunities for freight customers, particularly for e-commerce, the airline says. The historic flight, number QF9 carried more than 200 passengers and 16 crew, with the Boeing 787-9 leaving Perth, Western Australia just before 7pm on Saturday evening and landing in London at 5am on Sunday […]
IAG Cargo conducts first self driving vehicle test at Heathrow Airport
IAG Cargo has undertaken the first airside trial of a self-driving vehicle at a UK airport to understand how they could be used in an airside environment. The CargoPod vehicle was designed by Oxbotica – an Oxford based company specialising in self-driving software, and it spent three and a half weeks running autonomously along a […]
Issues need resolving before Heathrow expansion can be approved
A third runway at Heathrow Airport has been endorsed by the Transport Select Committee but only if it resolves issues including noise, costs and regional connectivity. The Airports Commission approved a third runway to the northwest at Heathrow in July 2015 and the Prime Minister, Theresa May gave the scheme the green light in October […]
Heathrow gains Chinese links to Changsha, Xi’an and Qingdao
Heathrow Airport will gain new connections to China with direct services to Changsha and Xi’an, providing an additional 6,700 tonnes of cargo capacity for British exports. Hainan Airlines will fly to Changsha on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays using a Boeing 787-800 from 23 March, before being upgraded to a larger 787-900 on 1 September. Tianjin […]
Pharma and e-commerce help Virgin Cargo volumes hit five year high
Revenue at Virgin Atlantic Cargo increased nine per cent in 2017 and volumes have reached a five year high driven by strong demand in pharmaceutical and e-commerce shipments. The airline carried 230,500 tonnes of cargo in 2017, up six per cent thanks to particularly strong westbound business to the USA with daily Heathrow-Seattle services performing […]
Cargo at Heathrow flies high with 19th consecutive month of growth
Cargo volumes at Heathrow Airport have grown for the 19th consecutive month with a year-on-year increase of five per cent in February. The London airport handled 133,140 tonnes in February on the back of growth in North American and East Asian markets. In the first two months of 2018, Heathrow has handled 266,170 tonnes, up […]
Pharma at IAG Cargo remains in good health
The growing investment and activity behind vaccine development and production around the globe will be a key driver for pharma airfreight activity in the next five years, that is the claim of IAG Cargo global head, pharmaceutical and life sciences, Alan Dorling (pictured). He says: “There will be significant growth in vaccines shipments in 2018 […]
British exporters being held back by lack of capacity on key routes
Exporters in the UK are being held back by the lack of capacity on key trading routes from Heathrow Airport, new data has revealed. The data shows that key routes to Shanghai, Delhi, Mumbai, Los Angeles, Tokyo Haneda and Dubai, which represent nearly 18 per cent of Heathrow’s total cargo volumes, are full and unable […]
Heathrow starts the new year with record breaking cargo volumes
Heathrow Airport has started 2018 with cargo volumes continuing to break records, with a 6.9 per cent increase in January. The London airport handled 133,030 tonnes of cargo in January, with the US top the list of destinations seeing growth, followed by Spain and China. Since February 2017, Heathrow Airport has handled 1.7 million tonnes […]
UK missing out on growth due to lack of Chinese connections
Direct flights from Heathrow Airport to China are worth £510 million per year but the UK is missing out due to a lack of connections, a report claims. As Prime Minister Theresa May flies off on a trade mission to China, the report from New Frontier Economics says direct flights contribute £510 million per year […]
Brunel experiences life in the fast lane with a Lamborghini
London Heathrow-based freighter forwarder Brunel Air Cargo has handled the repatriation of a Lamborghini Aventador for its royal Kuwaiti owner from London to Kuwait. The exotic car, with a £270,000 price tag when new, was handled by the forwarder’s dedicated vehicle transportation division, says Brunel Air Cargo Services commercial director, Mark Scanlon. He says: “We […]
ACI Europe: Strong growth continues in November
Freight traffic has remained consistent across Europe with growth of 8.6 per cent in November, Airports Council International (ACI) Europe reports. The association says growth has been stronger at non-European Union (EU) airports, up 12.7 per cent year-on-year, with EU hubs also performing well, up 7.9 per cent. Freight volumes have been strong throughout the […]
Heathrow ends 2017 as Europe’s fastest growing major cargo airport
Heathrow Airport has ended 2017 as the fastest growing major cargo airport in Europe with volumes almost reaching 1.7 million tonnes. The London airport handled 1,698,455 tonnes of cargo in 2017, up 10.2 per cent compared to 2016, which it says is the equivalent of 134,000 London buses. The key markets for growth were the […]
Heathrow flies cargo around the world in time for Christmas
Heathrow Airport is expecting to fly over 143 million kilos of cargo around the world for Christmas, with goods including lighting sets, frozen lobster and dried flowers. The London airport, which is the biggest port in the UK by value, has released data showing the spike in cargo and some of the interesting exports transported […]
ACI Europe: freight grows 6.2% in October at European airports
Freight traffic across the European airport network averaged year-on-year (YOY) growth of 6.2 per cent in October, according to the latest figures published by the Airports Council International (ACI) Europe. The European airport trade body says so far this year cargo traffic is up 8.9 per cent – 7.9 per cent at European Union (EU) […]
CCS-UK User Group works to resolve Heathrow truck queues
Recent truck congestion at London Heathrow’s Cargo Terminal underscores the pressing need for a universal advance information system that will alert handling agents to arriving vehicles, and speed up their processing, according to the CCS-UK User Group. This is the key message that will be delivered in a series of road shows being organised around the […]
Cool chain training courses proving a success for IAG
IAG Cargo is seeing strong demand for cool chain training courses it has been running in partnership with Exelsius – focused on upping supply chain standards. The two-day course at the ‘GDP Academy’ aims to improve industry compliance to GDP standards for healthcare and life science products – an ever-growing sector for airfreight. The two-day […]
Virgin and Delta’s LHR pharma traffic set for bright future
The new joint Virgin Atlantic Cargo and Delta Cargo Pharma Zone at Heathrow Airport is already paying dividends for both belly carriers. The facility was opened in September and developed in response to customer requirements and to support the growing pharmaceutical volumes moved by both and to capture further pharma business on the world’s busiest […]
IAG: huge demand for capacity in run up to Black Friday
IAG Cargo says it has seen the highest ever demand for airfreight capacity across its network in the lead up to ‘Black Friday’ especially on its Hong Kong and Indian routes. The shopping event takes place today, the day after Thanksgiving Day in the US and sees consumers come out in their droves to take […]
Cargo on the rise at Jet Airways and an integral part of business
Jet Airways is carrying more cargo than ever and the belly carrier is set to see this rise further as the Indian market grows and it expands its network and capacity. Speaking on 15 November to Air Cargo Week in London when the carrier launched its third daily Boeing 777-300ER flight from Mumbai International Airport […]
Doncaster Sheffield shortlisted to be one of Heathrow’s logistics hubs
Doncaster Sheffield Airport has been recognised as a prospective site for Heathrow Airport’s expansion scheme as a key ‘Logistics Hub’ in the North of England. The next stage of the shortlisting process will begin in January 2018. Leeds Bradford Airport is also on the list for the Yorkshire and Humberside region. 65 sites have been named on the list […]
