Trinity, Etihad expand cargo service at Rickenbacker airport

The expansion of airfreight services to Rickenbacker International Airport in Columbus, Ohio, is a result of Trinity Logistics moving its East Coast hub to the airport to cater to its clients in retail, defense and healthcare, the company said.    New York-based air cargo carrier Trinity Logistics USA and its partner, Abu Dhabi-based airline Etihad Cargo, are expanding their service offering at Rickenbacker International Airport in Columbus, Ohio, by adding a third weekly flight beginning Oct. 30, the airport confirmed Oct. 25.
   The growth, Trinity said, is a result of it moving its East Coast hub to Rickenbacker to cater to its clients in the retail, defense and healthcare industries.
   “Rickenbacker provides international clients faster transits from Asia, the Middle East and Europe to reach American consumers while also offering shippers in the Midwest the same fast service to international markets,” Trinity Logistics President David Pereira explained.
   “We expect our new service to be well received,” he said.
   “With forwarders like Trinity Logistics investing in and consolidating air operations at Rickenbacker, our region reaps significant economic benefit, including millions of dollars in economic impact and thousands of jobs, ranging from warehousing to transportation,” Columbus Regional Airport Authority Chief Commercial Officer David Whitaker added in a statement.
   Rickenbacker International, a cargo-dedicated airport that’s run by the Columbus Regional Airport Authority, says that the airport cargo service expansion is just the latest example of its growth, which it says is outpacing the logistics industry, including in the number of international flights, amount of exports and total cargo volume.
   The airport says that its year-to-date statistics demonstrate the growth it’s experiencing, with the stats including a nearly 70 percent increase in international cargo; a nearly 200 percent rise in exports; and a 28 percent increase in total cargo volume.