Airport Authority Hong Kong (AA) claims that in the 2014/15 fiscal year Hong Kong International Airport was the world’s busiest cargo airport for the fifth consecutive year.

The authority explains that cargo throughput from 1 April 2014 to 31 March 2015 reached 4.4 million tonnes, an increase of 5.5 per cent over the previous 12 months. In the first five months of 2015, the airport handled 1.7 million tonnes, up 1.4 per cent on the January to May period in 2014.

For the 2014/15 fiscal year, AA says revenue and profit surged 10.5 per cent and 12.4 per cent, respectively, to 16,367 million Hong Kong dollars ($2.1 billion) and 7,254 million. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation rose year-on-year by 13.8 per cent to 11,314 million Hong Kong dollars.

AA chief executive officer, Fred Lam, says the airport is operating at over 90 per cent of its capacity and it will reach saturation in the near future. “Because of this, we must continue developing the airport in order to maintain its competitiveness. Several projects are under planning or already in the pipeline,” he adds. The authority is proposing the expansion of Hong Kong into a three runway system. AA is pursing statutory requirements and arranging finances for the project. It wants to start construction in 2016 and complete it within eight years.