Toronto Airport Stresses Cargo; Adds Korean Air

Korean Air has added a third weekly B747‐400F flight to Toronto's Pearson Airport,bringing their frequency up to a Wednesday, Friday, Saturday service.

“We are very happy to see this increase in service from Korean Air Cargo,” said Lloyd McCoomb, president and CEO of the Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA). “This increased cargo offering is very good for the whole community we serve. It means that companies moving cargo to and from the Asian market now have more options and greater flexibility. The new freighter service also consolidates our role within the Asia‐Pacific Corridor ”

Canada’s new open skies agreement with South Korea and the GTAA’s reduced landing fees for all‐cargo aircraft that were announced in June of last year facilitated the expansion of Korean Air’s cargo schedule in Toronto, McCoomb added.

The airport authority points out, all five runways at Pearson are equipped to handle heavyweight aircraft and there are more than 1.2 million square feet of cargo handling facilities and 2.5 million square feet of dedicated apron space for cargo operations. Toronto Pearson is the only Canadian airport served with scheduled all‐cargo services to Asia, Latin America, Europe, and the United States. Additionally, world‐leading freight forwarders have their Canadian headquarters in Toronto and the bulk of their consolidations in Canada take place near the airport, according to GTAA.

Earlier, the airport authority reported its financial results for the first half of 2009. A total of 14.8 million passengers were processed at Toronto Pearson International Airport in the first half of 2009, an 8.1% decrease compared to the same period in 2008. This decline in passenger traffic is a result of the current economic downturn which has reduced demand for air travel worldwide, said GTAA. For the six months ended June 30, 2009 the GTAA reported total revenues of $545.6 million compared to $581.0 million in the same 2008 period. Total operating expenses were $252.1 million, including $70.3 million in ground rent paid to the federal government. In the first six months of 2008 operating expenses were $280.9 million. After accounting for debt service and amortization, the GTAA recorded revenues under expenses of $8.4 million for the period, an improvement of $11.2 million compared to revenues under expenses of $19.6 million in the same period in 2008. (All figures Canadian dollars.)