In one yr, Surat airport records 3,400MT of cargo movement

Surat: Cargo movement from Surat airport has touched 3,400-metric tonne mark in the last one year.
Official sources said airlines take saris, dress material, courier, chemicals, diamonds and laboratory-grown diamond jewellery articles etc from Surat airport to Delhi, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Chennai, Mumbai, Jaipur and other destinations in the country.
Majority of cargo movement to and from Surat airport is handled by SpiceJet followed by Air India. SpiceJet is the only airline that provides high value cargo box for shipment of valuable goods such as jewellery items, diamonds etc.
Until last year, Surat airport did not figure in air cargo list in the country. In the last one year, it has attained the 31st position in the cargo list of the country.
Manoj Singapuri, a textile entrepreneur, who is associated with Southern Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s (SGCCI) civil aviation committee, said, “We had to send textile material urgently to Delhi. We inquired with transporters and they committed to deliver it after four days. We decided to avail of the cargo facility of Surat airport and the material was delivered in Delhi within six hours by SpiceJet aircraft.” Singapuri added, “Apart from industrial cargo, online commercial portals like Amazon and Flipkart have been using the cargo facility provided by airlines for fast delivery of goods to and from Surat. On daily basis, saris and dress material ordered online are shipped from Surat airport.”
Official sources said the state-of-the-art modular cargo terminal is ready at the airport. It has been built at a cost of Rs8 crore and is likely to be inaugurated after May 23.
The modular cargo terminal is a steel-based structure between Air Traffic Control (ATC) and the terminal building. The ground base of the cargo terminal is around 1,000 square metre and the first floor has same area. The cargo terminal also has cold storage facility for perishable items and a strongroom. An airport officer said, “Since April 2018 to March 2019, 1,633 metric tonnes of cargo was brought to the city and 1,778 metric tonnes of cargo shipped out of the city by airlines. Majority of cargo, includes textile goods, chemicals, valuable goods and embroidery etc”