24 more airports to have domestic cargo terminals

With the government focusing on expanding domestic air connectivity, the Civil Aviation Ministry has identified 24 airports for developing domestic cargo terminals to create a national logistic network for faster movement of goods.
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) identified these airports for development of dedicated cargo terminals like those at Coimbatore, Trichy and Mangalore, at a review meeting chaired by Civil Aviation Secretary Ashok Lavasa here today.
The Secretary directed AAI to draw up plans for creating such cargo terminals across the country in sync with the government's plans to establish a national logistics network for faster movement of cargo goods, an official statement said.

The decision was taken in the backdrop of recently-created cargo terminal buildings at Coimbatore and Trichy. The AAI has also established separate international and domestic cargo facilities at the Mangalore airport.
Similar facilities would be established at 24 other airports too, the statement said.
Air cargo represents an average of about 10 per cent of the airline industry's revenue and about 35 per cent of goods traded globally is transported by air.
In 2013-14, all operational airports taken together had handled two million metric tonnes (MT) of cargo -- 1.4 MT international and 0.8 million MT domestic, registering a four per cent growth over the previous year.