Hamburg-Greenville, S.C., freighter services to begin in November

Hamburg-based freight forwarder Senator International has announced plans to start twice-weekly flights between Greenville-Spartanburg Airport in South Carolina (GSP) and Munich, beginning on Nov. 5. Senator International’s addition will significantly increase cargo capacity between Germany and the region, which includes the U.S. states of South Carolina, North Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee and Georgia.

One obvious beneficiary is BMW Manufacturing Co.’s plant in Spartanburg, which plans to use the new air cargo service for both imports and exports. BMW spokesman Steve Wilson told GoUpstate.com that his company was, “always seeking more efficient methods to transport airfreight to BMW.” He added that, “in the past we’ve used several airports on the East Coast for delivery from Europe. Now, we are pleased we can consolidate this to the GSP airport for most of our airfreight delivery.”

GSP reported moving 2,832 tonnes of cargo in March, an 18.4 percent increase, year-over-year. The airport is also home to a 120,000-square-foot FedEx facility, which is able to sort up to 3,000 packages per hour, making it an important freight hub in the region.

BMW’s Spartanburg factory – already the automobile company’s larges facility in the world – will be expanded even more this year, with a US$1 billion addition that will increase annual capacity to 450,000 vehicles.