‘King Shaka unlikely to attract int’l cargo’

Hopes that the new King Shaka International Airport (KSIA) just north of Durban will attract a lot of international cargo are a bit over-optimistic, according to FTW contacts in the airfreight industry. We have been told that most of the air import cargo currently coming into SA is bound for the country’s industrial hub in Gauteng, just as it is the origin of most of the export air traffic. Durban’s spread of industry is relatively limited, and not even a lot of perishable products are grown in Kwa Zulu Natal, with the largest proportion of agricultural land producing sugar cane. Emirates is the only international air carrier yet committed to using the new airport with any sort of frequency. “And I can’t see a lot of other airlines running into Durban because of the low potential volumes,” said Mike Todd of AMI. Garry Marshall, MD of Express Air Services (EAS), agreed. “There’s a domestic freight facility which is aimed at handling about 5 000-tonnes of cargo a year, and that is shared by EAS and the national carrier, SAA,” he said. “Then there’s the international cargo sector which is being handled by Worldwide Freight Services (WFS) – with all the electronic, high-tech bells and whistles you can imagine. But I don’t see very much international cargo passing through there.” Another problem is that use of the King Shaka airport is relatively expensive. It’s only after extensive negotiation between the aviation industry and the Airports Company of SA (Acsa) that charges have been reduced to a “more affordable level” according to Marshall. “But the cost impact for airlines is still comparatively high,” he said, “and this will be linked to the cost of airfreight. “I don’t see too many international airlines hauling in there.” A lot of Durban’s industry and business, especially in the freight sector, is currently situated to the south of the city centre, and therefore conveniently close to both the port and the present international airport. But forwarding and clearing agents specialising in airfreight are just going to have to move, according to Todd. “There’s a lot of uncertainty about how this is going to impact,” he said. “But we’ve just got to move, and that is going to add to the costs.” And just where they’re going to find space near the airport is still very much in question. “There is a cargo agents’ section still being built,” Todd added, “which is expected to be finished off in August. Marshall agreed that this was one of the several issues that were currently a subject of conversation. “But they all have to do with relocation,” he said. “From a company perspective, there’s the problem of relocating staff and premises. That’s an added cost for us all. “Most business is currently based in the city centre and the south, and this new airport is in the back of the beyond.” Marshall did acknowledge that there had recently been a lot of growth along the north coast area. “So it’s a bit of a mix of the good and the bad, I suppose.” He’s also happy about the facilities at the airport, which “are much, much better than they are at the moment” at the present airport. But you’re going to have to pay for the privilege of using them.