Brussels cargo bounces back in August

August cargo volumes at Brussels Airport have fully recovered, with positive growth for the first time since the terrorist attacks that crippled the airport in March of this year. Cargo traffic for the month grew by 6.6 percent to 39,848 tonnes, compared to August 2015.

The airport’s full-freighter segment posted even more impressive numbers, growing 26.2 percent, year-over-year, to 14,053 tonnes, thanks to the return of Ethiopian Airlines Cargo. After a brief hiatus, the African carrier resumed service to Brussels in March, with 12 full cargo flights a week. According to the airport’s website, the carrier currently operates six weekly flights (every day except Saturday) from Brussels to Addis Ababa.

Express services increased by 3.8 percent in August, compared to August 2015, as Brussels takes on an increasing share of e-commerce. Belly cargo fell 8.9 percent, compared to the same month last year, as Jet Airways abandoned the airport.

August’s strong showing, however, still failed to tip the annual numbers into the positive side of the ledger. The terrorist attacks at the airport caused the cancellation of hundreds of passenger flights, although freighter services were mostly up and running within 24 hours. For the January-August period, total cargo for the airport is still down by 4.9 percent, y-o-y. This trend was especially pronounced in belly cargo, which was down by 15.6 percent for the same time period.

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