Worldwide Flight Services (WFS), a member of the SATS Group, is set to become Madrid’s largest independent handler with the opening of a fifth cargo handling facility at Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport.
The ground handler has begun the construction of a new 6,500-sqm terminal, slated to begin operations by the end of Q1 2024. This is the fifth cargo terminal for WFS, which will increase its total footprint in Madrid to 17,000 square metres.
WFS has been present in Madrid since 1998 and serves 39 airline customers, whilst providing trucking services connecting other key airports in Spain and across the European Union.
For over two decades, the company has been proactively investing in its operations in Spain’s leading cargo airport, opening facilities in 2001, 2018, and 2019. In support of its long-term commitment to the airport and its airline community, WFS has signed a 30-year lease on the new building opening in 2024, which sits on a 12,500-sqm plot connected to the airport tarmac.
WFS said the new building will be situated in front of the main freighter parking area and close to Terminals 4 and 4S, which is expected to improve handling time.
The future multi-user building will be powered by 100 percent renewable energy, including solar-generated energy, for LED lighting, warehouse climatization, and electric battery chargers for cars and warehouse ground support equipment. Indoor automated guided vehicles (AGVs) will also be introduced into the facility in the second half of 2024.
“Madrid is such a strategically important cargo market as a hub for Central and South America to and from the EU and connecting the Middle and Far East markets,” said Humberto Castro, Managing Director of WFS in Spain.
“This new cargo terminal will help to future-proof WFS’ service offering by increasing our handling capacity by 60% for our current and future airline customers. This will enable us to accommodate strong organic growth and support the significant increase of inbound e-commerce traffic from China,” Castro noted.
