Germany Marks 100 Years of Air Cargo

BERLIN, August 18, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

Top Infrastructure Backs Economic Strength

On August 19, 1911 a plane carried the newspaper "Berliner Morgenpost" from Berlin to Frankfurt/Oder, which was the first ever flight to primarily transport cargo in Germany. This historic accomplishment is a benchmark in the history of one of Germany's most important industries: Logistics. According to Germany Trade & Invest industry experts, now is an excellent time to invest in the country's logistics industry and mark the next century of air cargo. "Germany is extremely efficient in transporting goods. The excellent infrastructure allows us to move goods quickly and at very low costs. Once a shipment arrives in Germany it can be rapidly distributed throughout the continent by air, road, or rail," says David Chasdi, logistics industry expert at Germany Trade & Invest in Berlin.

Revenues in the logistics industry are expected to amount to a total of approximately EUR 200 Billion in 2011, equal to the pre-crisis levels of 2009. Air freight is a key part of logistics in the strongly interconnected European Union. Air traffic in Germany grew at a record rate of 21.4% in 2010, which solidifies the country's role as the leader in air cargo in Europe with more than 3.5 million metric tons of goods moved through German airports. Frankfurt/Main carries the main load with 2.31 million metric tons in 2010, making it the most important cargo hub in Europe. It also featured a growth rate of 21.6% in 2009. With Leipzig and Cologne, Germany has two further airports in Europe's Top 10 air freight hubs. "Germany's location at the geographic center of the European Union gives logistics companies many viable options," according to Chasdi.

The World Economic Forum agrees with this assessment, calling Germany's transport and communication infrastructure the second best worldwide, behind only that of Hong Kong. This is especially important for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that cannot afford to allocate significant resources to transporting their goods.

Germany Trade & Invest is the foreign trade and inward investment promotion agency of the Federal Republic of Germany. The organization advises foreign companies looking to expand their business activities in the German market. It provides information on foreign trade to German companies that seek to enter foreign markets.

Germany Trade & Invest
Andreas Bilfinger
Email: andreas.bilfinger@gtai.com
T: +49(0)30-200099-173
F: +49(0)30-200099-511