Durban - Dube Tradeport Cargo Terminal has reported that Durban’s air cargo business had recovered by 55% from April 2022 to present.
The terminal attributes this to the return of both international and domestic airlines which has seen a 67 % rebound in network traffic at King Shaka International Airport.
Ricardo Isaac, senior manager of Cargo Development and Operations, said this had led to the terminal processing 10 997 tons of cargo from April 2022 to date, showing an increase of 31% from the previous year.
“We have always maintained that once we have the airfreight capacity, freight forwarders and shippers will choose to fly cargo directly into Durban. This positive movement reaffirms our understanding of the KZN air cargo market.”
Isaac said that the terminal had been making strides in KwaZulu-Natal air cargo.
“If you look at the historical trends, between 2015 and 2020, Dube TradePort Cargo Terminal managed to capture over 60% share of the KwaZulu-Natal air cargo market effectively doubling cargo volumes, being processed through Durban, which was a direct result of increasing air freight capacity with the introduction of new passenger services.”
He said re-establishing more of Durban's domestic and regional air services remained a priority for both cargo and passenger volumes to grow.
Isaac said when Comair exited the market, it left a capacity gap of around 38% for King Shaka International Airport.
“Fortunately, operators like FlySafair, Airlink, CemAir and Lift have come in to fill the void on the domestic routes adding much-needed capacity. The resumption of SAA on the route also contributed to available capacity. While on the regional front Airlink successfully relaunched the Durban-Harare route last year.”
He added that moving into the second quarter of 2023, the terminal was working with ProFlight Zambia to re-establish the Durban - Lusaka route.