The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) released its 2019 All-Cargo Data for U.S. Airports report showing Chicago Rockford International Airport (RFD) sustained its role as the 19th largest cargo airport in the United States. RFD’s continued growth has closed the gap on the No. 18 spot held by George Bush International Airport in Houston, Texas and the No. 17 spot held by Philadelphia International Airport.
Last year (2019) was a record-breaking year for cargo at RFD, and 2020 is on pace to shatter that record with 30 percent continued year-over-year cargo growth through April. RFD has seen more than 851 million pounds of landed weight through the first four months of the year. These numbers continue to rival the cargo operations RFD and its partners see during the peak end-of-year holiday timeframe.
With this continued growth, RFD finds itself among the largest cargo airports in the U.S., in addition to being the only non-hub airport making the top 20 cargo airports list. This list is comprised of large and medium hub airports located in the largest communities such as Los Angeles, New York City, Miami, and Atlanta. RFD and the Rockford community finds itself ahead of airports located in Phoenix, Portland, Denver, and Baltimore to name a few.
“The need for businesses and individuals to have access to essential materials and ecommerce opportunities during COVID-19 has strengthened the need for both UPS and Amazon and the service they provide to our region,” said Mike Dunn, Executive Director, RFD. “The partnerships formed and grown over the past numerous years have greatly benefited our community – in terms of access to supplies as well as jobs, revenue and overall economic impact.”
The airport is home to the second-largest UPS hub in North America, ABX Air, ATI, Atlas Air and Southern Air, which support daily flights for Amazon.
