Aviapartner solidifies cargo position

Aviapartner Cargo recorded 1,448,000 tons of cargo in 2007, which represents a 48.8 per cent increase on 2006.

The main areas of growth were in the Netherlands, France and Belgium. In the Netherlands, Aviapartner Cargo took over Aero Groundservices in April 2007, which handled 434,000 tons of cargo last year.

In France, Aviapartner Cargo handled 60,000 tons of cargo in 2007 (+14 per cent), with the largest growth rates in Paris (+32.5 per cent) and Lyon (+27 per cent). In Paris, Aviapartner doubled its warehouse capacity in 2006 (currently 6,600 m2), which bore fruits in 2007 by attracting new customers such as Aeroflot, Finnair, NCA, Gollog (ex-Varig) and Aer Lingus.

In Belgium, Avipartner Cargo handled 392,000 tons of cargo in 2007 (+14 per cent), with the largest increase in Ostend (+56 per cent) thanks to the full year impact of the acquisition of MK Airlines as new customer in the summer of 2006.

Peter Oostenenk, chief executive officer of the Aviapartner Group, said: “We are very proud about these growth figures, as this illustrates our capacity to follow a healthy growth strategy, through acquisitions and certainly also through organic growth. We intend to continue in the same direction by further strengthening and extending our network. Our network is recognised as the most comprehensive in Continental Europe by our customers, which enhances our capacity to conclude network deals with all airline segments: flag carriers, low-cost carriers, charters and cargo airlines. Our cargo network, for example, now includes the four major cargo hubs Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Paris CdG and Brussels, which definitely solidifies our position in the cargo market.”