Budapest, Hamburg and Dusseldorf Airports join forces to ‘Connect Differently’

Oct 11, 2018: European airports trio Budapest (BUD), Dusseldorf (DUS), and Hamburg (HAM) airports have joined forces to promote their cargo operations under the slogan “Connect Differently”.

The second-tier hubs all have a special focus on cargo, offering flexible operations 365 days a year and all are investing in new facilities and equipment, as cargo volumes at the three airports continue to grow.

Budapest Airport in Hungary last month started construction of its 20,000 square metre Cargo City, part of its EUR160 million Development Programme called BUD2020. Last year, BUD opened two state-of-the-art express facilities with a total area of 16,000 sq m in order to process increasing volumes from the express and e-commerce sectors.

“Budapest is emerging as the leading Central European cargo hub, within reach of almost 20 countries,” said Rene Droese, executive director Property and Cargo at Budapest Airport.

“Cargo-friendly airports, and particularly regional hubs, which often enjoy less congestion and more flexibility, have an important role to play in airfreight’s future.

“Our 24/7 operations allow us to cater to business all over the globe, and our continuous expansion means more businesses view us as the ideal location, with world-class facilities, able to capitalise on this growth.”

Dusseldorf Airport Cargo GmbH is a 100 percent subsidiary of DUS in Germany, which is restructuring to be able to handle up to 200,000 metric tonnes of cargo a year. The hub is also investing in two customised airside temperature controlled dollies for the transport of pharmaceutical goods from its 12,700 sq m Cargo Processing Area (CPA) to the aircraft. Dusseldorf Airport Cargo Gmbh was the first company in Germany to be certified by IATA’s Center of Excellence for Independent Validators (CEIV).

DUS has a 450 square metre cool storage for perishables and pharmaceuticals with temperature ranges from 2C to 8C and from 15C to 25C, with another 800 sq m storage facility under construction.

“Our regions represent strong industrial power, and the logistics market is looking for new direct solutions to distribute air cargo on time and cost efficiently,” said Gerton Hulsman, managing director, Dusseldorf Airport Cargo.

Hamburg Airport in Germany has invested around EUR50 million in the new Hamburg Airport Cargo Centre (HACC).

With efficient operational processes, a direct connection to the apron, and a multi-user concept, the HACC, which opened in 2016, is ideally suited to provide efficient, tailored logistics solutions – with a total capacity for around 150,000 tonnes of freight per year.

“Hamburg as the third largest aviation centre in the world and with its third largest container port in Europe is also one of the largest business regions in Germany. In cooperation with Dusseldorf and Budapest airports our position is optimal,” Alexander Mueller, head of Cargo, Hamburg Airport.

“There are possibilities to bundle the flow of goods among the three airports, so-called triangular transports, as well. It is important to talk about different options and I look forward to many shared conversations at the Air Cargo Forum in Toronto.”

At the upcoming TIACA 2018 ACF event, the three airports will be exhibiting under the Slogan “Connect Differently” on booth 5313.

In an interview at Air Cargo China held in May this year, Gerton Hulsman of Budapest Airport speaks at length about three major European gateways - BUD, DUS and HAM linking up to 'Connect Differently'. He talks about the European air freight industry and much more