• East Midlands Airport handled 345,800 tonnes of cargo in the past ten months, a 15 percent year-on-year increase, despite a 7% reduction in freight aircraft movements.
• The shift reflects greater use of larger long-haul aircraft, including Boeing 777s, and a rise in intercontinental services to Asia and the US.
• EMA is expanding stand capacity and earmarking additional airfield plots for development to support further cargo growth while reducing noise impact on surrounding communities

Significant growth in East Midlands Airport’s cargo operation is being achieved with fewer aircraft movements and less impact on local communities, it can be revealed.

A combination of changing routes and new aircraft means that since the start of the new financial year in April, the airport – the UK’s number one express air freight hub – has seen a fall of more than 1,300 freight aircraft movements while recording an overall rise in cargo of 44,280 tonnes.

There were 18,400 freight aircraft movements at the airport across the past ten months – a fall of 7% or on average 133 fewer per month than in prior years – while 345,800 tonnes of cargo of cargo was carried, up 15% on the previous year.

This corresponds with an increase in inter-continental flights to Asia and the US and a drop in shorter flights to Europe. This in turn means larger aircraft carrying more freight per flight operating on these routes.

The largest operator based at East Midlands Airport, DHL, has been investing in its fleet and is increasingly using new Boeing 777 aircraft. A much smaller operator at the airport, One Air, has also recently added two new 777s to its fleet and some of the new airlines that started operating from East Midlands last year, including Etihad and Central, also use 777s. Newer aircraft bring the extra benefit of being less noisy than older models – some of which have been banned under the airport’s Noise Action Plan.

The latest statistics are revealed as the airport looks to further expand its cargo operation, with four key airfield plots earmarked for development to help satisfy the growing demand. Medium-term measures have already increased stand capacity for cargo aircraft, increased the number and capacity of cargo handlers and future-proofed security checkpoints onto the airfield in anticipation of more cargo activity.

East Midlands Airport’s Managing Director Steve Griffiths said: “It’s pleasing to see that our cargo growth is not happening at the expense of local communities. The changes in routes and types of aircraft are driving this, which helps us continue to be a good neighbour to our surrounding communities.

“This is a trend we expect to continue as operators invest in modernising their fleets and increasingly focus on long haul global services from East Midlands.”

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