APA Issue 1, 2021
ADVANTAGE ANCHORAGE Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport enjoyed a record breaking year for cargo and has some ambitious plans to enhance its freight facilities, writes marketing and communications manager, Eland Conway.
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he coronavirus pandemic has caused global disruption and a downturn in passenger traffic the likes of which we’ve never seen before, and Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport (ANC) was no exception, registering a 62% drop in numbers in 2020. However, that doesn’t tell the full story, as 2020 turned out to be a record breaker for air freight, with cargo volumes at the Alaska gateway soaring by 16% on 2019, its previous banner year. Indeed, the disruption to the global supply chain has sent the airport’s cargo volumes rising to more than 3.1 million metric tons. Airport director, Jim Szczesniak says: “The pandemic has highlighted ANC’s significance in the global supply chain. International passenger travel was decimated, seemingly overnight, and the cancellation of those flights sent shippers – who traditionally rely on the cargo space
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available in the bellies of those passenger flights – scrambling for solutions. They needn’t have worried as the air cargo carriers responded accordingly, recognising the strategic advantages of ANC’s location. “A stop at ANC means higher payloads, more efficiency, and at a time when so many people are counting on expedited service from an already stressed supply chain – faster shipping!” In addition to the loss of cargo space on international passenger flights, the demand for freighter space has been further exacerbated by increased demand for personal protective equipment (PPE) and booming e-commerce, as many have resigned themselves to a home-life of teleworking and self-imposed solitary confinement adopting online shopping as the preferred shopping experience in a new reality. Anchorage has seen first-hand, the air cargo industry’s response to the pandemic. Before COVID-19, ANC touted
