The volume of freight handled by Gatwick is expected to increase to around 350,000 tonnes per year by 2047, up from 150,000 tonnes in 2019/20. This is only possible if the airport’s plan to bring its northern runway into service is achieved.

Freight volumes would increase to over 200,000 tonnes when the northern runway potentially enters service in 2029, increasing steadily to over 320,000 tonnes by 2038, before reaching 350,000 by around 2047.

The increase in freight is mainly due to the expected growth in long-haul connectivity offered by the additional runway, with wide-body aircraft to destinations in Asia and the Middle East being seen as a significant growth in freight in the years to to come.

Jonathan Pollard, Commercial Manager at Gatwick Airport, said: “If we carry out our plans and the north runway is used routinely, it will bring significant benefits to the region, including new jobs and business opportunities. I encourage anyone who wants to see these benefits offered to let us know what they think by responding to our public consultation before it ends on December 1 of this year. ”

The existing Gatwick freight facility occupies an area of ​​approximately 10 hectares, including 23,000 m2 of freight sheds, and will be able to accommodate the increased freight that the Northern Runway project is expected to generate.

Dee Mathieson, Managing Director of Elekta Ltd – a Crawley-based company that manufactures medical devices – said: “Approximately 90% of the vital spare parts that service and repair our customers’ medical devices is through transport. air. It would really help our business by being faster and more efficient if we were more able to move these parts through Gatwick.

Janette Deakins, Director of Sales, Transvalair, a Gatwick-based freight company, said: “With the North Runway increasing Gatwick’s cargo capacity with the return of more long-haul flights, we can see real benefits for our customers. Turnaround times will be faster and we will be able to avoid having to use trucks to transport cargo to other airports, which will help deliver environmental benefits. ”

Nick Broom, CEO of PVL, which exports products around the world and supplies fleets of emergency service vehicles, said, “While our handlers decide the optimal route for our products to get to our customers, we have very little influence on this route. However, we would like more cargo capacity at Gatwick as it is our local airport, and anything that can improve transit time and costs will also help the company reduce its carbon footprint. “