Freight volumes at Dubai’s Al Maktoum International Airport rose more than three-fold last year after Emirates Airline moved its cargo operations there.
Freight volumes stood at 758,371 tonnes in 2014, up 262.5 per cent from 209,209 tonnes in 2013, data from Dubai Airports showed yesterday.
Last May, the Dubai-based carrier moved its operations to the new airport located at Dubai World Centre (DWC) to take advantage of the area's proximity to one of the world's busiest shipping ports at Jebel Ali, along with the proximity to Abu Dhabi, which would boost its freight business.
Emirates also started a fleet of lorries to create a "cargo corridor" between Dubai's two main airports and the port at Jebel Ali, with an average of 10 vehicles an hour.
"The scale of DWC's operations and the significance of its role will continue to grow in 2015, particularly as Dubai's main hub for pure cargo operators, as airlines take advantage of the airport's facilities, road feeder service to DXB [Dubai International Airport] and bonded link to the Jebel Ali port," said Paul Griffiths, the chief executive of Dubai Airports.
Meanwhile, freight volumes at Dubai International (DXB) dropped 3.4 per cent last year from 2013 to 2.3 million tonnes, the airport said last month.
Al Maktoum reported 845,046 passengers passed through its gates in its first full year of operations.
The number was mainly boosted by the 80-day period of runway closure at Dubai International, during which many airlines temporarily moved their operations to Al Maktoum International
Last year from May 1 to July 20, Dubai International operated from a single runway as part of a refurbishment project. At the time, Emirates had to ground part of its fleet.
Dubai International topped London Heathrow as the world’s busiest airport by international travellers for 2014. The airport’s passenger numbers grew 6.1 per cent to more than 70.4 million last year. It is targeting 79 million passengers this year.
selgazzar@thenational.ae
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