A freighter from East Midlands Airport in the UK safely landed at the Huahu International Airport in Ezhou, Hubei Province, on Nov. 2, marking the official launch of the first direct cargo route between Ezhou and the UK.
As the 20th international cargo route opened by the airport this year, it is operated by a Boeing 747-400 freighter with four weekly flights. Exports primarily include e-commerce fast-moving consumer goods, electronic products and components, electromechanical equipment, and auto parts, while imports mainly consist of auto parts and fast fashion products.
The Ezhou-UK air cargo route will further expand the air trade corridor between China and the UK, as well as provide efficient logistics support for Chinese goods entering the European market.
As of now, the Ezhou Huahu International Airport has opened a total of 111 cargo routes, including 59 domestic, 2 low-altitude, and 50 international ones. It also has attracted 18 international cargo airlines, including Belgium's ALS and Galistair Malta.
From January to September this year, the airport's cargo flight volume ranked fourth in China. Meanwhile, it handled a total cargo and mail throughput of 1.083 million tonnes, which included 367,000 tonnes of international cargo and mail, representing year-on-year growth of 58.2 percent and 137 percent, respectively. (en.hubei.gov.cn by Ruan Xinqi)