COIMBATORE: Exports from Coimbatore International Airport have recorded nearly 40% decline since January this year. The West Asia war that started on Feb 28 has added to the further decline of around 14.29% of the air cargo from Coimbatore airport. Exports that stood at 77 metric tonnes (MT) in the second fortnight of February dropped to 66 MT during the first fortnight of March. Industry representatives stated that 30% of the cargo was rerouted to other cities to be exported to different countries. Air cargo from Coimbatore is currently sent via European countries, skipping the Middle East hub. Since flight operations have not completely resumed from these destinations, freight movement has declined. According to the data shared by airport director Mohammad Arif, the airport handled a total of 77 MT of exports (including 39 MT of perishable goods) and 18 MT of imports in the second fortnight of February this year. The West Asia war and the resultant breakdown of airline services to major Middle East countries, including Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi, impacted both exports and imports. In the first fortnight of March, the airport handled exports of 66 MT of goods (including 39 MT of perishable goods). It handled 11 MT of imports in the same period. In January this year, the airport handled 130.5 MT of international freight, which is 26.5% less than in Jan 2025 when it handled 177.6 MT. In February this year, the airport handled 102.3 MT of international freight, which is 43.2% less than 180.1 MT of international freight it handled in Feb 2025.J Sathish, a core committee member of CoimbatoreNXT, said, “US tariff hike, decline in airline services, especially to Singapore, were some of the reasons for the decline this year. The situation escalated with the West Asia war. About 30% of the international Cargo goes beyond the Middle East, which has been rerouted to cities like Bengaluru and Chennai to be transported via Europe. Also, the Indian carriers have not completely mounted their services to the Middle Eastern hub.“
