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Budapest Airport posts 11.3pc air cargo growth, credits Qatar volume

AIR cargo volume through Budapest Airport has increased 11.3 per cent since the beginning of the year with most being freighter-borne though posting more bellyhold cargo too.

Budapest has handled 6,770 tonnes of air cargo every month so far in 2016 while revenue increased to an extent not seen throughout Europe. said an airport press release.

A growth of only 2.7 per cent was recorded on the continent in May, while cargo volumes declined on the American continent and in Africa. The 11.3 per cent growth rate at Budapest Airport from the beginning of the year is unparallelled, said the airport communique.

Meanwhile Hong Kong actually went down 1.1 per cent, Frankfurt -1.7 per cent and Beijing -5.1 per cent, it said.

Credited for the gain was the re-launch of Qatar Cargo this March. The carrier's Airbus A330F can carry as much as 60 tonnes of goods to Doha on a single flight, and onwards, to almost any point on the globe via the network of Qatar Airways, said he airport authority.

"Additionally, cargo airlines such as Luxembourg-based Cargolux and Turkish Cargo, which have been operating in Budapest for a long time, also put in strong performances," it said.

"Long-haul passenger flights contributed significantly to the volume uplift too, for example the Beijing flight of Air China or the Toronto flight operated by Air Canada Rouge," said airport cargo chief Jozsef Kossuth.

"It is also an indication of the performance of the Hungarian economy that on the Air China flight to Beijing almost the full cargo compartment is booked, which means 10-12 tonnes per flight.

"According to our forecasts, all conditions are pointing towards Budapest evolving into the air cargo hub of Eastern Europe within a short period of time." said Mr Kossuth.

Based on traffic forecasts - as part of the HUF50 billion (US$179 million) development programme BUD 2020 - Budapest Airport has commenced construction of a new logistics base right next to Terminal 1 for one of the major European parcel services.

Physical construction is underway; the value of the project is close to HUF3 billion. In addition, Budapest is preparing for the construction of a new air cargo base - Cargo City - in the close proximity of Terminal 2, towards Vecses, where warehouse and office capacity for handling up to 200,000 tonnes annually is going to be implemented in the next few years.