Arizona launches international air cargo hub for U.S., Mexico customs

SkyBridge Arizona, which will be the nation’s first international air cargo hub to house both Mexican and United States customs, will operate out of the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport.    Arizona is becoming home of the nation’s first international air cargo hub to house both U.S. and Mexico customs, according to Arizona Governor Doug Ducey.
   Dubbed SkyBridge Arizona, the hub will operate out of the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport and will enable trade in Mexico and throughout Latin America more efficiently without having to go through the international customs center in Mexico City, the governor said.
   The customs portion of the project – Unified Cargo Processing (UCP) Program – will be jointly operated by both U.S. and Mexico customs officers. The UCP program began as a pilot program last year in Nogales, Ariz. and has been approved for airfreight to SkyBridge Arizona.
   A similar program in partnership with Mexico’s Servício de Administración Tributaria (SAT) began conducting joint cargo inspections at Customs’ Otay Mesa Cargo Facility in October.
   Under the UCP pilot program, Customs and SAT will eliminate separate inspections at the Otay Mesa Cargo Facility, located south of San Diego on the U.S.-Mexico border, thereby reducing wait times, the governor said.
   All required documents, inspections, tracking and other services will occur on-site at the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport. The Customs Processing status will follow cargo electronically to its final destination to any city in Mexico, and eventually further into Central and South America. Furthermore, the UCP Program will be operational at Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport in the coming months.
   The SkyBridge Arizona project is expected to create 17,000 direct and indirect jobs and increase cargo flights out of the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport by 2,000 a year, eventually reaching 10,000 by 2036. The project involves $230 million in investments for 360 acres of commercial development, 2 million square feet of warehouse space, 900,000 square feet of light industrial and flex space, 800,000 square feet of air cargo operations, and a 15-year build out plan for infrastructure improvements around the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, including water, sewer and power expansions as well as water retention basins.
   “The arrival of SkyBridge Arizona once again proves that our state is a national leader in advancing innovative new ideas,” Governor Ducey said. “Arizona has forged an incredible relationship with our friends and neighbors in Mexico, and we’re very proud of this latest collaboration to enhance international trade and create more jobs for Arizonans.”
   SkyBridge Arizona was initiated due to the airfreight growth rate of 30 percent per year in Arizona, or 180 percent from 2011 to 2015. Airfreight trade between Arizona and Mexico currently totals $390 million per year and is expected to surge to $650 million by 2025.
   “The state also outpaces all of its Southwest neighbors of California, New Mexico, Nevada and Texas, whose air freight traffic grew by just 10 percent during the same period,” the governor said.
   “SkyBridge will truly change the way we conduct cross-border business, slashing delivery times for companies and ensuring safe transit, SkyBridge CEO Ariel Picker said. “This is true international cooperation and something we can all be proud of.”