Airport Competition for Freight

Air transport has involved the transport of both passengers and cargo from its earliest days. Yet most of the discussion and focus by media, policy makers, airports, and even airlines is on the transport of passengers. Cargo is often overlooked, despite the important role it plays for many carriers around the world. For example, air cargo represents a significant proportion of total revenues for carriers such as Lufthansa (12.2 per cent), Air France/KLM (12.6 per cent) and cargo leader Korean Airlines (28.7 per cent). ¹ Moreover, air cargo plays a critical role in international trade. Although only about 2 per cent of international trade by weight moves by air, this represents more than 40 per cent of international trade by value. ²