Asia's first professional cargo airport expands to 100 operational routes

(ECNS) -- A cargo flight operated by SF Airlines loaded 90 metric tons of lobsters from Halifax, Canada, landed at Ezhou Huahu International Airport in central China's Hubei Province on Sunday, marking the official launch of the "Ezhou–New York–Halifax" cargo route.

It is the first direct cargo route from Huahu airport to Canada, and also the 100th cargo route launched from the airport.

The new route connecting air cargo hubs from China to the U.S. and Canada will run once or twice a week. The outbound flights mainly carry apparel and accessories, electronic products, machinery, and electronic components, while the return flights transport fresh seafood, machinery, parts, footwear, clothing, and health products.

Since the beginning of this year, Huahu airport has launched three new domestic cargo routes, including Ezhou to Bozhou and Heze, as well as 12 new international cargo routes to destinations such as Bangalore in India and San Salvador in El Salvador. The cargo and mail throughput reached 529,000 metric tons (including 423,000 metric tons of air cargo and mail), an annual increase of 84.9 percent.

Ezhou Huahu International Airport is the fourth cargo airport in the world and the first in Asia.

The airport has attracted 35 airlines and launched a total of 100 cargo routes, including 58 domestic and 42 international routes linking 15 countries in Asia, 10 in Europe, 4 in the Americas, and 1 in Africa, and laying the foundation for a global air cargo network in three years.

The newly launched routes will handle a diverse range of cargo in the future, including traditional cross-border e-commerce goods, fresh produce, pharmaceuticals, and high-end equipment.

(By Li Yan)