Highlights
- Cargo volumes up 17.4 per cent between May and July, reaching over 103,000 tonnes with 24 per cent growth in June alone.
- Ambitious expansion plans include 122,000m2 of warehouse space and stands for 18 additional aircraft over next 20 years.
- Four new Chinese operators launched routes while major players Atlas Air and DHL use site as key hub.
East Midlands Airport is experiencing unprecedented cargo growth that directors say has resolved the site's "identity crisis" and could generate 20,000 new jobs alongside a £4 bn economic uplift.
The airport handled more than 103,000 tonnes of cargo between May and July, marking a 17.4 per cent increase on the same period in 2024.
Growth peaked in June with volumes surging 24 per cent year-on-year, driven partly by four new Chinese operators establishing UK routes through the site.
The substantial cargo expansion is now connecting East Midlands Airport with major Chinese logistics companies and destinations including Saudi Arabia. Directors aim to grow cargo operations by over 100,000 tonnes across the next five years alone.
Expansion economic impact
"We are unique in the UK in the fact that we're the only airport absolutely dedicated to cargo and building those facilities out to support the industry and the reason for that is we sit right in the middle of the country," explained Adam Andrews, recently appointed commercial director.
"What that means is as London becomes constrained and there's less space for cargo operators, effectively all London airports are full, we sit in a really good position to deal with the express freight demand down to London."
The cargo operation involves staff handling approximately one million packages nightly, with major operators including UPS and DHL using the site as a hub. Planes begin landing around 6pm until the early hours, when passenger flights resume.
Lauren Turner, operations director, revealed the transformation "I'd say 12 to 18 months ago, we had a bit of an identity crisis, which we knew we had and we needed to move that forward.
I think that's shifted quite significantly, probably over the last six months. We've seen Chinese operators come in and the one thing about Chinese operators is they do a lot of the work for you."
The expansion plans would involve 122,000m2 of warehouse space, new taxiways and stands for up to 18 more aircraft. Plans anticipate 54 per cent growth in express freight cargo volumes over 20 years, supporting more than 20,000 new jobs across the wider supply chain.
New operators include Atlas Air, described as "one of the biggest names in global cargo" and based in Alaska. British freight operator One Air switched its UK base for China-UK flights from Heathrow to East Midlands last year, reporting faster cargo offloading times.
Airport bosses cite the site's central location, runway capacity and comparatively cheap landing fees as key competitive advantages against airports like Heathrow.
