Heathrow Airport 3rd runway expansion vote postponed again
A vote by Members of Parliament (MP) in the House of Commons on whether a 3rd runway will be built at Heathrow Airport has been postponed again – to the first half of 2018. In October last year the government formally gave its approval to building a new runway at the UK’s biggest port, but […]
Cargo continues to rise at Heathrow with 13% growth in June
Cargo volumes continue to rise at Heathrow Airport with growth of over 13 per cent in June, with cargo to and from Latin America seeing the biggest increase. Heathrow handled 142,349 tonnes of cargo, a year-on-year increase of 13.4 per cent, with cargo to and from Latin America up more than 38 per cent, with […]
ACI Europe: impressive freight performance in May
Freight traffic posted impressive monthly year-on-year (YOY) growth of 12.2 per cent in May, according to the Airports Council International (ACI) Europe. The airport trade body say this surge was on the back of improved economic conditions globally and a rebound in international trade. Big movers YOY in May included London Heathrow Airport at 10.7 […]
Emirates celebrates 30 years of UK operations
Emirates is celebrating 30 years of UK operations, providing UK passengers and cargo links to the world since the first flight from Gatwick Airport on 6 July 1987. The airline started the service in 1987 using an Airbus A310, at a time when it had six aircraft in its fleet and six other destinations. The […]
American Airlines Cargo opens new pharma facility at Heathrow Airport
American Airlines Cargo has opened its new Controlled Room Temperature facility at the Heathrow Airport cargo centre. The 1,700 square foot room can accommodate up to 16 times more standard euro skid pallets than the previous room, providing customers with greater capacity when moving temperature-sensitive healthcare freight to and from Heathrow. It is a fully […]
BIFA urges for Brexit uncertainty not to delay key logistics decisions
British International Freight Association (BIFA) director general, Robert Keen has urged the UK Government not to let Brexit uncertainties delay key logistics infrastructure decisions. The association was commenting ahead of news about whether there will be a Queen’s Speech and the planned start of Brexit negotiations on Monday with the European Union. Keen says: “The goalposts […]
ACI Europe: freight traffic up 5.6% in April
Freight traffic saw solid year-on-year (YOY) growth of 5.6 per cent in April as European gateways continue to see a positive start to the year, according to the Airports Council International (ACI) Europe. ACI Europe says in the first four months of the year cargo was up YOY by 7.4 per cent across Europe’s gateways […]
Virgin adds 7th daily New York flight with Manchester service
Virgin Atlantic Cargo is now operating seven flights a day, seven days a week to and from New York with the addition of daily flights from Manchester to New York JFK. The Manchester flight is in addition to five daily services from Heathrow Airport to New York John F. Kennedy International Airport and the daily […]
Heathrow welcomes Qatar Airways Cargo freighter service
Heathrow Airport has welcomed the first freighter flight operated by Qatar Airways Cargo, the airline’s second freighter aircraft service to London. The Airbus A330 Freighter landed at Heathrow on 3 June and will depart weekly from Doha on Saturdays returning via Basel, bringing the carrier’s total cargo capacity out of the UK to 1,500 tonnes a […]
FTA: Heathrow expansion vital to UK’s global trading position
The Freight Transport Association (FTA) says increasing airport capacity in the South East of England is vital if the UK is to retain its position as a global trading hub. The association was responding to the UK Government’s Draft Airports National Policy Statement, and called for a swift resolution to discussions over the construction of a […]
Jet Airways expands cargo capacity on Heathrow belly route
Jet Airways is to add a third daily flight between Mumbai International Airport and London Heathrow Airport using a Boeing 777-300ER. The Indian carrier says the new service will boost cargo capacity between the UK and India by almost 33 per cent, allowing the airline to capitalise on the growing round-the-year demand being witnessed between the UK […]
VIDEO: Heathrow Airport’s head of cargo Nick Platts
AZura Productions speaks to London Heathrow Airport’s head of cargo, Nick Platts at air cargo europe in Munich this week to discuss engagement and collaboration across the air cargo supply chain. Heathrow is the largest UK port by value, handling 30 per cent of UK exports and its ambition is to become one of Europe’s best […]
Heathrow cargo volumes keep rising with 8.6% growth in April
Heathrow Airport’s strong growth has continued into April with cargo growing 8.6 per cent to 137,979 tonnes. Exports grew by 12 per cent in April, with Latin America seeing the strongest growth at 27 per cent, Asia up 19 per cent, with Europe up 11 per cent, while North America, the most important market, grew […]
ACE: Qatar to open a new cool chain facility and start Heathrow freighter
Qatar Airways Cargo will open a new Climate Control Centre (CCC) next month and is to start a weekly Airbus A330 Freighter service to London Heathrow Airport on 3 June. The announcements were made at air cargo europe in Munich today where the carrier held a press conference. The CCC is 2,470 square metres airside […]
Heathrow launches cargo consolidation app to reduce emissions
Heathrow Airport is inviting trucking companies and freight forwarders to reduce emissions by using its new load consolidation app, part of Heathrow CargoCloud. Cargo operators will be able to consolidate freight loads coming in and out of Heathrow, with the aim of not only improving efficiency but also reducing the number of trucks and emissions […]
ACI Europe: strong March and Q1 for European airports
Freight traffic across the European airport network grew strongly in March and in the first quarter (Q1), according to the Airports Council International (ACI) Europe. Tonnage grew by eight per cent in Q1 on the same quarter last year and ACI Europe says March was the best monthly performance since April 2011 with growth of […]
Heathrow makes £103 million profit in first quarter
Heathrow Airport has made a £103 million ($132 million) profit in the first quarter of 2017 with growth on both the passenger and cargo sectors. The profit compares to a £36 million loss in the same period of 2016, and revenue has increased two per cent to £655 million. Aeronautical revenue has remained at £389 […]
Heathrow gains new Chinese link with flights to Qingdao
Heathrow Airport has gained a new direct link to China with three flights a week to Qingdao operated by Beijing Capital Airlines. The new route was put in place following the UK and Chinese governments negotiations to significantly increase the number of permitted flights between the two countries last year, and the agreement lifts the […]
John Lloyd to leave Virgin Atlantic Cargo in September
Virgin Atlantic Cargo’s senior vice president for cargo, John Lloyd is to leave the carrier in September for a fresh challenge. Lloyd has spent 30 years at Virgin and joined as cargo operations officer based at Gatwick Airport, and progressed within the company from supervisory and management positions based at Heathrow and Gatwick. He started […]
Emerging markets drive biggest cargo growth in 5 years at Heathrow
Long-haul emerging markets drove the nearly 13 per cent growth in March at Heathrow Airport – the biggest monthly surge in more than five years. Heathrow handled 148,269 tonnes in March, a 12.6 per cent rise on the same month in 2016. In the first three months of the year it has handled 399,481 tonnes, […]
ACI Europe: 3.4% growth in February for European airports
Freight traffic across European airports grew 3.4 per cent in February with the strongest growth coming from non-European Union airports, Airports Council International (ACI) Europe says. It says European Union (EU) airports were up 2.7 per cent in February while non-EU hubs grew 4.7 per cent. Freight volumes grew 5.4 per cent in the first […]
Multimodal 2017: Ground handling remains the problem area
The industry needs to improve what happens to cargo on the ground, delegates were told during the “Air freight – improving air cargo performance” session at Multimodal 2017 in Birmingham (UK) on 4 April. Heathrow Airport head of cargo, Nick Platts says the air component of the supply chain is efficient, with its ability to move […]
IAG Cargo appoints Embleton as chief executive to replace Crawley
IAG Cargo has appointed Lynne Embleton as its new chief executive with immediate effect – replacing Drew Crawley – who becomes chief executive of Avios. Embleton moves from her role as British Airways managing director at Gatwick Airport and will also join the IAG management committee, reporting directly into its chief executive Willie Walsh. She has over 25 years of […]
China Southern to start second daily Heathrow-Guangzhou flight
Heathrow Airport is to get extra capacity to China with a second daily China Southern Airlines flight to Guangzhou from 1 June. Guangzhou is located 75 miles up the Pearl River bay from Hong Kong and is one of China’s most vibrant business markets and its biggest port. The new service will boost trade capacity […]
60 Seconds with Nick Platts
Heathrow Airport looks set for cargo growth in the years ahead if it gets a 3rd runway built and UK exports grow as forecasted by some due to the UK leaving the European Union. The UK hub’s head of cargo, Nick Platts spoke to Air Cargo Week about what Heathrow is focusing on operationally in […]
Strong peak season helps Virgin freight volumes grow 1.8% in 2016
Virgin Atlantic Cargo’s freight volumes rose 1.8 per cent in 2016 helped by a strong second half of the year and high peak season, with revenue of £174 million ($218.4 million). The airline carried 218,000 tonnes but says growth was offset by price pressure driven by overcapacity in the market and weakness of the pound, […]
Urgent beer shipment flown to Texas for Saint Patrick’s Day
Fine quality Irish beer will be flowing for Saint Patrick’s Day after American Airlines Cargo’s Irish GSA helped with the delivery of 13,600 kilos of beer to Texas. IAM was in charge of moving the shipment, which were collected in Ireland and delivered by truck to American’s London Heathrow Airport facility. The barrels were prepared […]
ACI Europe: Europe off to booming start in 2017
Freight traffic in Europe continue to fly high with 8.4 per cent year-on-year (YOY) growth in January, helped by improved macro-economic conditions, especially in the Eurozone, Airports Council International (ACI) Europe. The association says freight has been particularly strong at non-EU airports, with 13 per cent growth YOY and the EU registered a 7.1 per […]
SEGRO acquires full control of APP joint venture
SEGRO has acquired the remaining 50 per cent in the Airport Property Partnership (APP) joint venture from Aviva Investors as part of a £365 million deal. The APP includes the majority of Heathrow Airport’s airside cargo facilities and gives SEGRO total ownership of the £1.1 billion valued APP. The company paid £216 million in cash and the disposal to Aviva Investors […]
dnata gains ISAGO registration at Heathrow station
dnata has been awarded its first IATA’s Safety Audit for Ground Operations (ISAGO) registration for its corporate headquarters and London Heathrow Airport station. This is the 10th key station in dnata’s ground handling operations to receive the certification. The other ground operations which are also ISAGO-registered are Dubai (DXB and DWC), Geneva, Zurich, Manila, Singapore, Sydney, Melbourne […]