Boom in air cargo continues in Anchorage

The boom in international cargo continues in Anchorage, at Ted Stevens International Airport. Airport officials said freight shipments by air were up 40 percent in the first quarter of 2021 compared with the same period of 2020.

Year-over-year data comparing 2020 with 2019 showed a 15 percent growth In air cargo, which compared favorably with 3 percent growth in 2020 among the world’s top 10 air cargo airports and a 8.9 percent decrease for the global air cargo industry.

In 2020 nearly 3.16 million tons of cargo moved through Ted Stevens International Airport in Anchorage.

The growth in 2020 was enough to push Anchorage’s ranking in handling air cargo traffic to fourth in the world, from sixth in 2019. “Alaska is open for business, and we expect this economic hub for the state to keep growing,” Gov. Mike Dunleavy said in a statement.

Much of the air freight traffic is on planes that just stop for refueling, taking advantage of th favorable economics of an enroute fuel stop in Alaska on Asia-North America flights by cargo planes.

However, substantial amounts of freight in unloaded, sorted and shifted to other planes at cargo hubs operated by Federal Express and United Parcel Service. Air cargo operators are planning substantial new investments in cargo handing in Anchorage and Federal Express is hiring more employees to support increased flights.