Upington airfreight hub awaits interim findings

ALAN PEAT THERE SHOULD soon be interim findings from the feasibility study on an international air cargo hub at Upington. According to well known airfreight industry authority, Gerd von Mansberg – who started the intensive research programme last October – the export assessment has already been completed. “We are still looking at imports,” he told FTW, “and hope to have this study of potential volumes and interested industries completed by March.” But, even although it’s still too early to talk about any of the findings, Von Mansberg sees little standing in the way of Upington being SA’s alternative airfreight hub after Johannesburg International Airport (JIA). “It has the support of the Airports Company of SA (Acsa) and everything is there,” he said, “from an excellent runway to dry cargo premises and a cold store. “The government wouldn’t have to pay a single cent more.” Von Mansberg expects to be able to release interim data in the next couple of weeks.
This SA Chamber of Business-driven initiative has the full backing of the Northern Cape provincial government - which sees the city as an attractive transhipment hub for perishables and time-sensitive cargo like automotive components.