Swissport to acquire the entire cargo handling contract at Heathrow

With the recent agreement to acquire the remaining 50 per cent stake from Air France in Heathrow Cargo Handling Ltd. (HCH), Swissport will fully own the cargo handling company at one of Europe’s busiest air cargo hubs. The HCH joint venture has been providing first class cargo handling services to the world’s leading airlines at Heathrow, one of Europe’s busiest air cargo hubs, since 1995.

Luzius Wirth, Swissport Executive Vice President for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, said: “We are very satisfied that we can strategically round off our global cargo business with this selective acquisition. On the basis of over 20 years of successful business, jointly with Air France, Swissport now has the right setup to further develop and enhance its service offering at London‘s Heathrow airport.”

The HCH acquisition enables Swissport to invest further in its air cargo operation and service capabilities at Heathrow Airport, where it operates two warehouses with a total surface of some 165,000ft² (approx. 15,300m²). Last year, the HCH joint venture, with a workforce of approximately 120 employees, handled over 150,000 tonnes of air cargo, seven per cent more than in 2017.

The completion of the HCH share acquisition by Swissport is subject to Competition and Markets Authority approval and is expected in the first half of 2019.