A quick look at the top 10 busiest cargo airports in the world

Ever since the container crisis and the hike in ocean freight rates, the transportation and logistics industry has become increasingly dependent on air freight services. As the Christmas season draws near, manufacturers, suppliers, and freight forwarders are trying to get their items moved via air freight. The air freight industry is trying to recover from the effects of the pandemic and cope with the rising demands for space from the e-commerce sector. In today’s post, will talk about the top 10 busiest airports in the world in terms of cargo handling capacity.

• Hong Kong Airport

Hong Kong International Airport has been ranking as one of the busiest airports on the planet since 1996. Last year, this airport handled the sheer volume of 4.5 million tonnes of cargo. This made up around 43% of the net international trade of Hong Kong. Between January to May this year, HKG moved approximately 1.9 million tonnes of cargo. Some of the factors that make the HKG one of the top cargo airports are the presence of a free economy, locational advantage and connectivity, superior facilities, huge cargo handling facility, and efficient workforce for cargo handling and security. However, the capacity of this airport has somewhat dwindled because of the pandemic.

• Memphis International Airport

Memphis International Airport (MEM) is the busiest airport in the content in terms of cargo volume. Presently this is the second busiest cargo airport in the world. This is primarily because of the significant presence of two American multinationals- FedEx and UPS. FedEx alone operates around four hundred flights every day moving 180,000 packages from Memphis Airport. UPS operates an area of 134 acres within the airport. Additionally, the upcoming expansion of their airport facility will allow them to handle 59,800 parcels per hour.

• Shanghai Pudong International Airport

Shanghai Pudong Airport (PVG) is the largest cargo airport in China and the 3^rd largest in the world. The cargo terminal of Shanghai Airport was jointly set up by Shanghai Airport Authority, JHJ Logistics Management Co, and Lufthansa Cargo in 1999. This airport mostly handles international cargo to/from China. The Shanghai Pudong airport which handled over 1.5 million tonnes of cargo in 2021 immensely contributes to the growth of the aviation as well as the transportation and logistics industry in Shanghai.

• Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport

The Anchorage Airport in the state of Alaska in the USA lies just 8 Km southwest of Anchorage. One of the major cargo hubs of the world, it was ranked as the 4^th busiest airport in the world by cargo traffic. Moreover, UPS and FedEx also have a strong presence in this airport. They use this airport as a hub to move cargo to the Far East. FedEx which makes for the largest cargo facility in the Anchorage Airport handles 13,400 parcels every hour.

• Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport

This civil-military airport in Kentucky, USA, is one of the top 5 busiest international airports for cargo operations. The presence of the UPS hub makes it an important economic driver in the Louisville region. As one of the busiest cargo hubs on the planet, this airport is busier than the airports in Taipei, Doha, or Seoul. Even in 2020 when cargo operations went down considerably this airport handled 6.43 billion pounds of cargo. Furthermore, the UPS Worldport at Louisville Airport played a major role in vaccine distribution across the country.

• Incheon International Airport

Incheon International Airport which is connected to over 50 cities worldwide, is the world’s 6^th largest cargo airport. With around 2 million square feet of cargo terminal area, this airport can handle 2.7 million tonnes of cargo per year. Being an important hub for the transportation and logistics industry in Northeast Asia, the Incheon Airport has received numerous awards and accolades ever since it started its operations.

• Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport

The Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport is the 7th largest airport on the planet in terms of net cargo traffic. Located just 40 km from Taipei, this airport is an important gateway for cargo with destinations across several Asian countries. Last year this airport handled a record volume (2.323 million tonnes) of freight. The most important freight that are moved through this airport consist of petroleum, steel, coal, computers, and mobile phones. Presently this airport is undergoing a major expansion of facilities which will further add to the status of this airport.

• Los Angeles International Airport

The Los Angeles International Airport is presently the 8^th largest cargo airport in the world. Over a thousand flights carrying cargo depart and arrive at this airport on a regular basis. It is one of the key transportation and logistics hubs of the United States that is responsible for more than $118 billion in imports and exports. Moreover, its proximity to some of the biggest industrial corporations makes it an important distribution center for air freight shipments.

• Doha Hamad International Airport

The Doha Airport that is located at the juncture between East and West is an important cargo hub catering to the booming economy of Qatar. The sophisticated air cargo facilities at the Doha Airport make the HIA the hub of Qatar Airway Cargo’s increasing international air freight business. The HIA can process 1.4 million tonnes of freight every year. Moreover, the large cargo facility includes massive warehouse space, retrieval systems, and automated storage.

• Miami International Airport

Last on our list of 10 busiest cargo airports, Miami International Airport is the gateway of the world to the Caribbean and Latin America. This airport boasts 7 freight handles with both national and international reach. With more than 100 airlines operating from the MIA, it connects the USA with the markets in Europe, the Middle East, and the Gulf countries.