Air Cargo volume decreases as jet fuel prices continue to rise
Passengers aren’t the only ones getting hit with fuel surcharges by the airlines. Air cargo carriers, who also must deal with an increase in jet fuel prices, are passing the cost to those who ship with them. As a result, cargo volumes across the United States (and other parts of the world) are decreasing as companies are looking harder at how they ship their goods.
At Portland (Oregon) International Airport (PDX), for example, cargo volume decreased 8.3 for this fiscal year compared to last fiscal year. FedEx, the largest cargo carrier at PDX, saw a decrease of 3.6 percent in tonnage through June 2008. UPS, the second largest at PDX, reported a decrease of 4.4 percent.
Robert Dahl, project director for Seattle-based Air Cargo Management Group said that “air freight has been growing globally by about 4 percent a year, while domestically it has remained mostly flat for the past three years.”
Pia Welch, president of the Portland Air Cargo Association and a project engineering specialist with FedEx Express in Portland, however, believes that the decline in Portland may only be a seasonal decline. She may be right.
In a study done by Air Cargo World, out of the Top 50 Airports in the world, only 15, or 30 percent, saw a decline in cargo volume in July 2008. 17 of the top 50 are in the US, and of those 17, only eight saw a decrease in volume.
Memphis International (MEM), FedEx’s main hub and the number one airport in world for cargo volume, saw an increase of 4 percent compared to last year. Louisville International (SDF), UPS’ main hub, ranked number nine, saw an increase of 4.8 percent compared to last year.
The biggest gainer is Liege in Belgium. It’s cargo volume increased by 20.6 percent. Its total tonnage doubled since 1999. The biggest loser is San Francisco, which saw a loss of 5.8 percent.
To download the report in PDF format from Air Cargo World, click here. To see the full report, click here.
You may also be interested in these articles
Comments
Please share your thoughts...