Airport’s cargo operations ‘giving firms an advantage’
185 MAJOR CITIES CONNECTED WITH ONE OR NO STOPS
EAST Midlands Airport says its cargo links are giving regional businesses a competitive advantage.
The airport said research carried out for it by York Aviation found its freight operators, including DHL, UPS, FedEx, Royal Mail and, increasingly, Amazon, mean 185 of the world’s largest cities can be reached from it with one stop.
In March alone, £1.4 billion worth of goods were exported through the airport.
The value of the goods exported through the airport was twice that of imports.
The customs value of exports (per tonne) of £335,000 was 1.9 times higher than the average passing through other UK airports which, the airport said, demonstrated air cargo is used for high-value goods that require speed and/or security of delivery.
Handling more than 448,000 tonnes of goods per year, East Midlands Airport is second only to Heathrow in terms of the total volume of goods it handles.
However, it has the UK’s largest share of the freight-only aircraft market.
Clare James, East Midlands Airport managing director, said: “What this analysis shows is just how critical EMA is to the sectors that generate economic value and employment for so many people locally.
“As the UK continues to establish new relationships with key economies around the world, the airport will play an increasingly important role in the safe and speedy movement of time-critical and high-value goods in and out of the UK.
“In doing so, it will continue to make a significant contribution to strengthening the East Midlands as a globally connected international economy.”
East Midlands Chamber of Commerce chief executive Scott Knowles said: “The East Midlands is an international centre of trade.
“We make, we move, and we innovate – and our airport is central to this story.
“The pandemic accelerated existing trends, such as the growth of online shopping, illustrated perhaps most profoundly at East Midlands Airport as it handled record amounts of freight.
“But this isn’t a new phenomenon. A huge number of businesses across our region and beyond have long relied on the airport’s cargo operation, and still today we’re seeing a growing number of major logistics firms opt to locate themselves in and around the airport.
“The surrounding area is a centre of economic activity, a magnet for inward investment and a driver of key developments of strategic importance, such as the East Midlands Freeport.
“Ultimately, these new opportunities will create jobs and wealth.”
Aviation minister Robert Courts said: “We know how critical quick access to the world’s most important economic powerhouses are to businesses, especially in sectors like advanced manufacturing, and so the links provided by East Midlands Airport will undoubtedly enhance not just the attractiveness of the Midlands, but the UK as a whole.”