Budapest Airport handled 127,145 tonnes of cargo in 2017 and set a new record, according to results released by the airport.

The total tonnage for the year represented a year-on-year increase of 13.4% and was 39.1% more than in 2015. Imports at the Hungarian hub amounted to 47.8% of the total tonnage, while exports were at 52.2%.

In the first two months of 2018, the airport handled a record 21,750 tonnes, up 17.4% on the same period in 2017.

“Our cooperation agreement with STO Express and EKOL last year is testament to our continuous commitment to strengthening links between China and the European Union,” said René Droese, director of the property and cargo business unit at Budapest Airport. “As a result of being designated the preferred hub for air cargo by STO Express, e-commerce is set to experience a notable upswing at Budapest. Thanks to our development programme, we will be able to cover the entire cargo catchment zone, from Ukraine to the Czech Republic, and from Poland to Bulgaria, where the relevant air cargo industrial production is booming.”

Budapest is set to receive new direct air links with destinations such as Chicago, New York and Philadelphia, creating direct links between the USA and Hungary.

“We expect further growth of 20,000 tonnes belly cargo capacity annually thanks to the belly capacity on flights from Qatar Airways, LOT Polish Airlines and American Airlines,” said Droese.

As part of its €160 million (US$198 million) BUD:2020 Development Programme, the airport opened two new express facilities with a total area of 16,000 square metres in the summer of 2017.

A 20,000-square-metre dedicated freight facility called Cargo City is due to be handed over in the second quarter of 2019, expanding cargo capacity to 250,000 tonnes per year, according to Budapest Airport.