Citing the fact that most of the UK's 39,000 people employed by airfreight are around Heathrow, the FTA goes on to state that the airport is a hub and critical for sectors such as pharmaceuticals, high-end manufacturing and retailers. It adds that 95 per cent of air cargo is carried in passenger aircraft belly holds and that airfreight accounts for nearly 40 per cent of UK imports and exports by value. Airport capacity is being studied by the UK government's Airports Commission, which will recommend in 2015 how the country's capacity growth needs can be met in the future. A new runway at Heathow is one option. The FTA's global and European policy director, Chris Welsh, makes his organisation's support for Heathrow clear when he says: "It is imperative that the UK has a single airfreight hub. Heathrow fulfils that role and is an essential hub of connectivity for passengers and freight, bringing together huge resource, expertise and opportunity in one place."The FTA also states that Heathrow is "critical" as it offers 191 destinations and moves 1.5 million tonnes of freight. Welsh adds: "We support the case for investment in Heathrow and existing airports."Heathrow's corporate affairs director, Clare Harbord, welcomed the report. She says: "Both the FTA and Heathrow firmly believe that building on the strength we already have at Heathrow is the best way to deliver the new aviation capacity Britain so desperately needs."
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