Vienna Airport has once again confirmed its high handling quality and for 2023 the air hub got a boost from a record year for pharma shipments, which contributed 3,675 tonnes, 0.3 percent better than the previous year. 

Overall, air cargo handling at Vienna Airport remained stable in 2023 with more than 172,000 tonnes handled for transport by cargo or passenger aircraft, two percent more compared to 2022. Belly capacity took most of the slack as freighters saw declines of around 15,000 tonnes to just over 85,000 tonnes whilst cargo carried on the belly grew more than 18,000 tonnes to around 87,000 tonnes. 

The airport closed 2023 two percent short from the previous year with a total of 245,000 tonnes, combining air freight and trucking volumes as trucking in 2023 slowed over 10 percent year on year to 73,000 tonnes.

“2023 was a year of stabilization. We see the last few months of last year in particular, with significant growth in pharmaceutical handling and the elimination of restrictions on Asian traffic, as positive signals for future development,” said Michael Zach, Vienna Airport’s newly promoted head of ground handling. 

The airport said conditions are being created for the safe and compliant handling of lithium batteries this year, with a planned certification on the works scheduled for the third quarter. It sees the certification as an important step towards being able to handle a wide range of consumer goods, from cell phones to electronic bikes and cars.