Melbourne Airport has become Australia’s largest air cargo hub, with cargo volumes exceeding pre-pandemic levels.
In the first three months of 2024, more than $1.8 billion of local agricultural products were shipped from Melbourne to international markets, with 44,700 tonnes of local goods exported, accounting for 40.2% of Australia’s total export airfreight.
Fresh meat was the largest export product by volume at 15,649 tonnes, while pharmaceuticals were the largest export product by value at over $258.4 million.
Melbourne Airport director of aviation Jim Parashos said the data showed the majority of cargo was transported in the holds of passenger aircraft, highlighting the role the airport played in the state’s industry.
“This highlights the importance of curfew-free airport operations to Victoria, with international flights from Victoria worth $154 million to the state economy on average every day,” he said.
“Every new airline, new route or new flight we bring to Melbourne Airport means jobs across our state because it increases freight capacity.
“To ensure Melbourne Airport has sufficient capacity to meet the needs of the state’s growing population and support our critical industries, Melbourne Airport submitted plans for a third runway to the Federal Government in February 2023.”
In terms of passenger traffic, in April 2024, 885,365 international passengers passed through the airport, an increase of 14% over last year and a recovery of 94% over 2019 levels, while domestic passengers continued to grow slowly, increasing by only 3% year-on-year.
In December, Melbourne Airport became Australia’s first Exceeding pre-pandemic international capacity Within a month it broke. 1 million international visitors per month This is the first time since the outbreak of the epidemic that the airport has achieved a monthly international flight throughput of more than 4,976 flights, setting a record high.
The airport recorded a record monthly international passenger throughput of 923,065 in March, thanks to Turkish Airlines ArrivalsThe airline launched flights to Istanbul earlier this month.
However, its total passenger numbers have not yet surpassed pre-pandemic levels. Perth Airport in January It became the first major gateway in Australia to see more passenger traffic than before 2019, driven mainly by a surge in intrastate travel.
