Hamilton International Airport (YHM), situated not far south from the city of Toronto plans to build a unique Canadian Cargo Logistics Facility. This CA$ 12 million project is slated to be up and running by 2015 and will be funded through a joint partnership between the federal and Ontario governments on the one side, and TradePort International Corporation, with support from Hamilton’s municipal government on the other.
Hamilton Airport was originally constructed in 1940 as a wartime Air Force training station. At the end of WW2 it was handed over as a public facility. In the 1980’s John C. Munro, an inhabitant
of the city of Hamilton (hence the name John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport) took it upon himself to put YHM onto the civil aviation map.
Hamilton has since developed into an important passenger and cargo airport for the southern Ontario area.
Cargo has always played an important role and YHM prides itself on its efficient Canadian domestic cargo distribution network.
Now the decision has been taken to expand cargo handling by adding a brand new 6,000 sq. meter Air Cargo Logistics Facility which is intended to cater to niche product markets in the
pharmaceutical, biomedical, automobile manufacturing industries, as well as for perishable goods.
The brand new cargo warehouse, whose design and layout was put together by a team of cargo consultants headed by Strategic Aviation Solutions International (SASI), will be kitted out with
multiple truck docks and special handling equipment.
Furthermore the planners state that the focus will be on developing customized solutions for the efficient movement of the above mentioned goods in and out of the southern Ontario region as well
as adding to Hamilton’s strength as a multi-modal gateway.
Presently YHM handles around 75,000 tons of airfreight per annum, which rates it as one of the largest cargo airports in Canada. The airport offers a 24/7 operation for both cargo and
passenger.
Cargojet, Canada’s self proclaimed Cargo Airline utilizes Hamilton as a base for their extensive Canadian domestic network as well as for their international routes to Cologne, Brussels and
Warsaw airports.
Cargoje’s fleet consists of a mixture of Boeing 767F / 757F and 727F aircraft, whereby the long haul operations to Europe are carried out with the 767F.
The inbound operation out of Cologne carries mainly German produced automotive parts and the return leg operates via Halifax to Brussels carrying a mixture of Canadian seafood and automobile
parts.
Franz van Hessen, Cologne’s Cargo Manager is delighted with the planned YHM expansion and states that “I am convinced that these new facilities will further enhance the flow of goods between
Cologne and Hamilton and that we at CGN Cargo can look forward to increased frequencies in the future.”
Hamilton International plans to issue a tender for the construction work in the coming weeks and is also presently busy with a selection process in order to secure a dedicated handling agent who
will be in the position to provide superior service standards for the handling of these specialized goods planned to move through the new facility.
John Mc Donagh