UK government approves Heathrow Airport third runway
Heathrow Airport has received approval for expansion by a committee of UK government ministers, with parliamentary approval expected by the end of next year. Members of parliament are unlikely to vote on the decision until the winter of 2017-18 and then there are likely to be legal and political challenges. The Government appointed Airports Commission chaired […]
Gatwick warns of ‘Groundhog Day’ if Heathrow gets runway nod
Gatwick Airport says the choice before the UK Government on airport expansion is stark – “it’s either growth and certainty with Gatwick or Groundhog Day at Heathrow”. The government is reportedly set to make a decision tomorrow on whether Gatwick gets a second runway or Heathrow Airport a third runway. Heathrow is rumoured to be set […]
IAG Cargo boosts US network with New Orleans service
IAG Cargo will start a new bellyhold route to New Orleans International Airport from 26 March, 2017, becoming the only carrier to fly direct from Heathrow Airport. The new Louisiana state service will be served by a British Airways Boeing 787-8 aircraft, which has a bellyhold hold capacity up to 15 tonnes four times a week to and […]
Heathrow plans 25,000 more flights a year as revenue increases
Heathrow Airport is planning an extra 25,000 flights per year from 2021 on its existing runways to give the UK a ‘Brexit Boost’ as nine month revenues rise. Revenue rose by 1.2 per cent to just under £2.1 billion ($2.6 billion) with adjusted profit before tax rising 11 per cent to £202 million. Heathrow made […]
FTA: Dover and Europe to benefit if Heathrow is not expanded
The port of Dover will benefit if a decision is not made on expanding UK runway capacity, as freight will travel to European airports, the Freight Transport Association (FTA) warns. The UK government is expected to make a decision on whether it supports expanding either Heathrow Airport or Gatwick Airport though a final decision may […]
WFS to provide PIA with UK cargo handling and trucking services
Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) has signed a three-year contract to provide Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) with cargo handling and trucking services in the UK. WFS will handle import and export cargo on PIA flights from London’s Heathrow Airport, Birmingham Airport and Manchester Airport, connecting UK customers with Islamabad, Karachi and Lahore. WFS operations director, UK […]
Heathrow third runway essential following Brexit vote
Following the UK’s vote to leave the European Union (EU), Heathrow Airport head of cargo, Nick Platts insists trading links to growing markets are now more essential than ever, further strengthening the case for a third runway, writes James Muir. Platts says the result of the EU referendum has not had a noticeable impact on […]
Heathrow cargo soars in the wake of Brexit vote
Heathrow Airport’s cargo volumes soared by just under six per cent in September on the back of growth to East Asia and Latin America. The hub says freight traffic to was Brazil was up 18per cent, to China by 13 per cent and to Mexico by seven per cent. Heathrow handled 126,109 tonnes in September a 5.9 […]
Scottish government backs third runway at Heathrow Airport
The Scottish government has added its voice of support in backing a third runway at Heathrow Airport, saying it could create up to 16,000 new jobs in Scotland and develop Glasgow Prestwick Airport into a logistics hub. It says it backs the expansion because expanding Heathrow offers significant job creation and major investment opportunities as […]
Gatwick submits fresh evidence to UK Government
Gatwick Airport has submitted new evidence to support its case for a second runway – to members of the UK Government’s Government’s Economy and Industrial Strategy (Airports) sub-Committee. As the sub-Committee starts to consider where to expand aviation capacity in the South East, Gatwick says its new report contains substantial additional analysis – including information […]
Finnair Cargo and IAG Cargo improve connectivity
Finnair Cargo and IAG Cargo is to enhance connectivity for its customers with five weekly Airbus A350 flights between Helsinki Airport and London Heathrow Airport. This is an additional three extra widebody aircraft flights per week as there was previously only two and the new frequency will start from 3 October. The carriers will share capacity […]
New Premia facility at Heathrow Airport for IAG Cargo
IAG Cargo is to construct a new £55 million ($71 million) premium facility at Heathrow Airport to cater for ever growing demand for products such as express shipments and pharmaceuticals. The new building will be twice the size of IAG Cargo existing Premia facility and will include a larger dedicated Constant Climate Quality Centre for […]
UK runway decision needed now, says FTA’s Welsh
The importance of Heathrow as a world-class hub for UK imports and exports was highlighted by the Freight Transport Association’s (FTA) director of global and European policy, Chris Welsh on Wednesday. He addressed the ‘Shaping the Future Heathrow’ Conference at the Royal Institute of British Architects in London – which explored the airport’s future development and stressed the need […]
ACI Europe: Growth at EU hubs makes up for non-EU decline
Freight volumes grew by 2.3 per cent in July with European Union (EU) airports making up for declines at non-EU hubs, Airports Council International (ACI) Europe says. The association says that freight traffic across all European airports were up 2.3 per cent, with EU hubs registering growth of 1.3 per cent while non-EU airports were […]
Heathrow pushing for gold medal in cargo
Heathrow Airport is hoping to replicate Team GB’s Olympic medal success by pushing cargo volumes and services to standards worthy of a gold medal. In August volumes rose by 0.3 per cent to 122,909 tonnes though fast growing markets were very strong, with Latin America up 12 per cent, the Middle East by 5.7 per […]
Pharma investments made by IAG Cargo paying off
IAG Cargo’s Constant Climate (CC) product has been running for 10 years and continues to go from strength to strength, providing a boost in a challenging marketplace. The temperature-sensitive pharmaceuticals market is a growing area of premium cargo and has seen 8-10 per cent growth. IAG Cargo’s global head of pharmaceuticals and life sciences, Alan […]
Gatwick CFO said there was flaws with commission’s runway expansion report
Gatwick Airport’s chief financial officer, Nick Dunn said yesterday there were flaws with the Airport Commission’s figures concerning the potential economic benefits the UK would gain from expansion at Heathrow Airport over Gatwick. He was speaking at the Westminster Energy, Environment and Transport Forum seminar – ‘What now for airport expansion in the South East?’ […]
Heathrow CEO sure it will get the backing of UK Government
Heathrow Airport chief executive officer John Holland-Kaye said yesterday he feels it has finally come to a point where the government will make a decision to back Heathrow expansion, while also questioning whether Gatwick can meet the needs of British exporters. He was speaking at the Westminster Energy, Environment and Transport Forum, which held a […]
New Heathrow hub for DHL Express completed
Construction of DHL Express UK’s new South East operation and Head Office close Heathrow Airport has been completed and will be fully operational in early 2017. The 150,000 square foot facility developed by Airport Property Partnership (APP), a joint venture between SEGRO and Aviva Investors is based in Colnbrook, on the Western edge of Heathrow […]
Airbus A350 to provide Ethiopian with extra cargo capacity
Ethiopian Airlines will receive up to another five tonnes of capacity by upgrading London – Addis Ababa services to an Airbus A350, director global cargo sales & services, Berhanu Kassa tells Air Cargo Week (ACW). Speaking to ACW in Addis Ababa following the inaugural A350 flight between Heathrow Airport and Bole Addis Ababa International Airport, […]
Virgin Atlantic Cargo welcomes capacity uplift from A350
Virgin Atlantic Cargo says its new $4.4 billion order for 12 Airbus A350-1000 aircraft will boost its cargo capacity and in turn provide added benefits to customers. The airline says the investment demonstrates the strength of its commitment to customer experience as it continues to focus on delivering sustained profit in the long term. It is part […]
New short-haul European freighter routes for IAG Cargo
IAG Cargo is starting two new short-haul freighter routes operating from Madrid to Amsterdam and Frankfurt to London via Paris. The Airbus A300 freighter Madrid – Amsterdam service was launched on 18 August and will enable easier access for shipments between the Dutch capital and Latin America. The A300 has a 42 tonne payload and […]
Record freight day for American Airlines at Heathrow Airport
American Airlines Cargo shipped more than 575,000 pounds (260 tonnes) of freight and mail from Heathrow Airport in a single day, setting a new daily record for the station on Sunday (14 August). The previous busiest day for the London cargo team was in October 2015 when they shipped 565,857 pounds (256 tonnes) from the facility. Key […]
Finnair Cargo to use A350s five times a week on Heathrow route
Finnair Cargo is to operate Airbus A350s on its London Heathrow – Helsinki route five times a week from 5 October. It already uses A350s on its Monday, Friday and Sunday services between the UK and Finland, and the additional services will operate on Wednesdays and Thursdays, replacing the Airbus A320s it currently operates. Finnair […]
ACI Europe: EU airports growing, non-EU hubs struggling
Airports across Europe saw freight volumes increase by 2.1 per cent in the first half of 2016, with European Union (EU) hubs making up for non-EU ones struggling, Airports Council International (ACI) Europe says. EU airports saw growth of 3.2 per cent in the first half of 2016 but non-EU hubs were down 3.9 per […]
Ethiopian to operate first A350 on Heathrow – Addis Ababa route
Ethiopian Airlines will launch Airbus A350 XWB operations on its daily London Heathrow – Addis Ababa route from 14 August. Airbus says the aircraft, Ethiopian’s first A350 and the first one for Africa, which has been named ‘Simien Mountains’, improves performance with its airframe and simplified systems to optimise fuel burn, maintenance costs and reliability. […]
Lack of capacity causing ‘substantial damage’ to UK
The UK is losing up to £6.7 million ($8.8 million) a day due to lack of capacity, and the UK Prime Minister, Theresa May, should make expansion her top priority, the British Infrastructure Group (BIG) says. The cross-party group of 40 members of parliament (MP), headed up by Grant Shapps MP, says the lack of […]
Heathrow picks Grimshaw for expansion design
Grimshaw have been chosen as the concept designers to bring Heathrow Airport’s vision for its £16 billion ($21 billion) expansion project to add a third runway and develop facilities. The airport says it sends the clear signal to the UK Government it is “ready-to-go” – privately financed infrastructure project. Shareholders in Heathrow also said in […]
BIFA urges UK Government to make some “big decisions”
The British International Freight Association (BIFA) says it is time for the new UK Government to get on with making some decisions. UK Prime Minister Theresa May took over from David Cameron on Wednesday, she immediately appointed a new Transport Secretary, in Chris Grayling and new Secretary of State for International Trade, in Liam Fox. Grayling and […]
Heathrow urges expansion again, as cargo grows in June
Cargo volumes at the UK’s largest port Heathrow Airport grew 2.1 per cent in June, with strong growth to China which was up 11 per cent, India up 3.3 per cent and Turkey up three per cent. In June, the gateway handled 125,636 tonnes, and so far in 2016 after six months it has processed […]
