World's Busiest Cargo Airport in 2021, HKIA Reports March 2022 Traffic

(18 Apr 2022, 12:22 +07)  Hong Kong International Airport handled 94,000 passengers in March 2022, a year-on-year increase of 61.3%, though still significantly lower than the pre-pandemic level in March 2019.

Cargo throughput and flight movements recorded during the month were 352,000 tonnes and 9,870, representing year-on-year decreases of 11.4% and 7.3%, respectively.

The growth in passenger throughput was mainly attributed to the growth in travel by Hong Kong residents. During the month, departure passengers to Southeast Asia and Mainland China experienced the most significant increases.

Cathay Pacific Cargo Boeing 747F taking off from HKIA. Picture by Steven Howard of TravelNewsAsia.com

Cargo throughput has declined due to flight reductions since the emergence of the Omicron variant of COVID19. Exports and imports experienced double-digit year-on-year declines, compared to the same month last year. Overall cargo to and from North America and Europe experienced the most significant decreases during the month.

Over the first three months of the year, passenger volume increased 41.7% to 251,000 while cargo throughput and flight movements dropped by 9.2% and 1% to 1 million and 30,210, respectively.

On a 12-month rolling basis, the airport handled 1.4 million passengers and 144,505 flight movements, recording a growth of 70.4% and 13.1%, respectively. Cargo throughput rose 7.1% to 4.9 million tonnes.

The HKSAR Government lifted restrictions on arrival flights from nine countries on 1 April. From 1 to 13 April, a total of 251 flights carrying passengers operated at HKIA, representing an increase of 77 passenger flights from the 19 to 31 March period.

HKIA Ranked World’s Busiest Cargo Airport in 2021

Airports Council International has ranked Hong Kong International Airport as the World’s Busiest Cargo Airport in 2021.

HKIA handled 5 million tonnes of cargo, representing a growth of 12.5% compared to 2020.

Cissy Chan, Executive Director, Commercial of Airport Authority Hong Kong, said, “We are delighted that HKIA maintained its leading position as the World’s Busiest Cargo Airport in 2021. The pandemic has had a serious impact on flight operations globally, but it has also generated high demand for e-commence and transportation of medical supplies. With the airport’s extensive freighter network, high efficiency and dedicated cargo operators, we saw double-digit growth in cargo throughput during 2021. AAHK is confident in the long-term development of HKIA’s air cargo business, and will continue to work closely with our business partners to enhance our performance.”