Lufthansa Cargo to use GMR Hyderabad airport as pharmaceuticals hub

Hydrabad: Lufthansa Cargo on Wednesday certified GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd. (GHIAL) to be one of its key cargo hubs in South Asia for transport of temperature-sensitive pharmaceuticals, making the airport India's first airport to enjoy such a status.
Addressing a press conference here after handing over the certificate, Christopher Dehio, senior manager, global key accounts, Lufthansa Cargo, said the airline would operate three wide-bodied freighters a week to Hyderabad. India was a key market and fast catching up in the cargo business. While textiles used to be the main export items earlier, half of the cargo carried by its freighters now consisted of pharma products, auto components and electronic goods. While the air cargo growth in Asia was 40 per cent between 2008 and 2010, it was as high as 169 per cent in India during that period, he said.
The dedicated pharma zone at Hyderabad airport, which became operational in January, can provide temperature-controlled handling for more than 30,000 tonnes of pharma products annually. The zone will have officials from the drug controller's office and the customs department. Lufthansa Cargo will provide the capacity for transport of temperature-sensitive cargo. The company will station its own fleet of cooling containers called, Opti-Coolers, at GHIAL.
Meanwhile GHIAL, after achieving a breakeven last year, is expecting to make a profit this year, according to GHIAL CEO Vikram Jaisinghani.
26/05/11 The Hindu

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Categories: Airports May 2011, Cargo May 2011, Foreign May 2011