Budapest Airport’s Cargo City is set for another significant expansion, reflecting the surge in demand since the facility opened in January 2020.
The warehouse area of BUD Cargo City will be extended by 6,500m², with a further 2,000m² of office space added on the mezzanine level. The works, which will be undertaken by Hungarian construction firm Merkbau, will also see the addition of 6,000m² manoeuvring and storage areas, alongside a 1,450m² multi-functional canopy area for live animal treatment.
The expansion will allow Budapest to handle 240,000 tonnes at the Cargo City, with an additional 60,000 tonnes being served via the integrator facilities of DHL, UPS, and FedEx at Terminal 1.
Work will start this month. The transformation of the airport’s cargo apron to include four Code F stands has already begun – these are due to be in operation by the end of spring 23. “We have handled 195,000 tonnes in the last 12 months and continue to record a 40% increase from our pre-COVID levels,” said René Droese, chief development officer, Budapest Airport.
“We are currently handling both integrator flights and non-integrator freighters with long-standing partners Cargolux, Qatar Airways Cargo, and Turkish Cargo. More recently Korean Air and China Eastern/Shanghai Airlines have joined us, alongside regular cargo charters with our partners cargo-partner, Kuehne+Nagel, UTA/CECZ, and the new cargo operations of Wizz Air. We are positive this robust growth will continue.”
Image: Budapest Airport/ Merkbau
