London Canada secures cargo investment

CANADA’S federal government has approved London International Airport’s application to join its International Air Cargo Trans-shipment Programme.

Joining the programme will mean a large federal investment specifically to attract overseas air cargo activity to the airport.

“The government has been very restrictive in granting this international air cargo transhipment program,” said Steve Baker, chief executive officer of the airport. “You have to put forward a business case on how you will use this opportunity. Almost all air cargo goes to Toronto and is distributed and then shipped back to Toronto and flown out.

“We’re saying we’re more cost effective than Toronto and our cost are one tenth of Toronto’s. Toronto has invested but has debt of $4.4 billion. That relates to many of the fees and charges at the airport.”

Combined with the recent signing of Canada’s and the European Union’s (EU) open skies policy, Baker expects most of the traffic to come from and to the EU – the EU imports and exports US$84.2 billion to and from Canada.