Greenville-Spartanburg, Frankfurt-Hahn airports form cargo partnership

A new partnership agreement between Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport in South Carolina and Frankfurt-Hahn Airport in Germany aims to expand cargo operations at each with joint customers. The Greenville-Spartanburg Airport District (GSAD) and TRIWO Hahn Airport GmbH signed an agreement in which Greenville-Spartanburg (GSP) and Frankfurt-Hahn (HHN) will collaborate on initiatives to enhance cargo and passenger operations at the airports, according to an Aug. 25 release from GSAD. [caption id="attachment_57291210" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Maersk Air Cargo, Magma Aviation and MSC Air Cargo operate at Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport (GSP). (Courtesy/GSP)[/caption] Initially, the airports will work to increase air cargo opportunities between South Carolina and Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, through expansion of existing lines of trade and development of new cargo business, the release said. GSP and HHN already work together to serve shared customers transporting automobiles, helicopters, power turbines, aircraft engines, concert tour equipment and more, Tom Tyra, GSAD vice president and chief marketing and communications officer, told Cargo Facts . “Through this partnership, we plan to explore what additional commodities are produced in our regions and how we can best transport those products to/from the U.S., Europe and beyond,” he said. The airports will work with regional economic development entities to market the airports to foreign investors. They will also approach potential customers together, he said. Secondary cargo airports GSP saw a throughput of 60,000 tonnes of air cargo in 2024 and HHN’s throughput was 105,000 tonnes , according to the release. GSP’s cargo ramp has six parking positions and HHN’s has seven. “GSP and HHN have been linked through shared customers for nearly a decade,” Tyra said. “GSP and HHN are also very similar in design. We both serve as secondary airports surrounded by larger traditional gateways, we each serve vibrant manufacturing regions and we share quite a few of the same customers.” “The primary challenge that both airports face is that many airlines and forwarders do not immediately consider using secondary airports to serve their customers. While they often complain about using traditional gateways, they are reluctant to move away from what they know and have done in the past.” — Tom Tyra, vice president and chief marketing and communications officer at Greenville-Spartanburg Airport District The airports plan to collaborate on messaging to airlines and freight forwarders, detailing the benefits of using secondary airports . HHN is one of the few airports in Germany with a twenty-four-hour operating permit. The others are: Hannover Airport (HAJ); Cologne/Bonn Airport (CGN); and Leipzig/Halle Airport (LEJ). HHN is centrally located to Frankfurt, Cologne and Luxembourg. GSP’s location in the southeast United States enables it to serve as a transfer point between the Americas and Europe, according to the release. The agreement is GSP’s first international partnership, Tyra said. Collaboration Under the agreement, the airports will form technical groups to share best practices in operations, technology, safety, sustainability and customer service, the release said. “We have already formed an air cargo business development working group, and we are actively sharing information on commodities and potential routes ,” Tyra said. “We hope to further collaborate on sales pitches to potential customers and combine efforts at future global air cargo trade shows.” The airports’ relationship began in 2016 when an automotive customer began shipping parts and equipment between the airports. “During these shipments, the operations teams at each airport coordinated on behalf of our shared customers, but no formal communication strategy was ever employed,” Tyra said. “However, in 2025, representatives from each airport met at Air Cargo Europe and each [was] struck by how similar our facilities were.” Following that meeting, the teams visited each other’s facilities and began discussing ways to work together more closely. Register here for Cargo Facts ’ upcoming free webinar, “Air cargo route networks: Strategies for improved results and greater efficiencies,” on Tuesday, Sept. 16, at 11 a.m. ET. Cargo Facts Symposium, the quintessential event for stakeholders and key leaders in the global freighter and air cargo industries, will take place Oct. 22-24 at the Grand Hyatt in Nashville . Learn more and register today to take advantage of the early-bird rate before Sept. 5.

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