Air cargo \u2014 not to be confused with the checked baggage of passengers \u2014 typically relates to the freight transport of high-value goods<\/a>, such as British Columbia\u2019s live\/iced seafood, produce, and mining equipment for exports from YVR, and electronics, health supplies, e-commerce, and perishable goods for imports to YVR.<\/p>\n Tamara Vrooman, president and CEO of Vancouver International Airport, during her address to the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade on April 10, 2026. (Kenneth Chan)<\/p>\n Doubling 2025\u2019s annual cargo volumes in five years would translate into seeing roughly 730,000 tonnes of cargo per year by 2030.<\/p>\n At the core of YVR\u2019s cargo ambitions is a simple but powerful dynamic: more flights mean more freight capacity. About 60 per cent of YVR\u2019s air cargo is moved in the bellies of commercial passenger aircraft, while the remaining 40 per cent is moved on dedicated air freighters.<\/p>\n This not only improves the financial and economic feasibility for airlines to start new and improved passenger routes serving YVR, with cargo revenue in the aircraft bellies effectively \u201csubsidizing\u201d passenger transportation in the deck above<\/a> to some extent, but it also unlocks new export pathways for Canadian goods.<\/p>\n For this reason, Vrooman emphasized how passenger route expansion directly propels cargo growth, noting that even modest increases in service can have outsized economic effects.<\/p>\n \u201cIn fact, every flight that we introduce, one flight weekly over the course of a year, that amounts to about $54 million and up to $500 million in additional cargo shipped,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n YVR\u2019s cargo volumes doubled upon the outbreak of the U.S. war in Iran<\/p>\n But a major driver behind YVR\u2019s cargo opportunity lies in the current global disruption to trade movements.<\/p>\n Vrooman pointed to the ongoing impacts from the U.S.-led war in Iran as a key example of how global logistics networks are being reconfigured in real time. Traditionally, a significant portion of cargo moving from Asia to Europe passed through hubs in the Persian Gulf, particularly Dubai International Airport and Doha\u2019s Hamad International Airport. That pattern is now shifting, she says.<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of Asia cargo used to go through the Persian Gulf into the region and connect into Europe. Now it\u2019s finding a safer and more secure passage from Southeast Asia through YVR,\u201d said Vrooman.<\/p>\n The impact has been immediate. According to feedback from cargo operators and handlers, she says, air cargo volumes moving through YVR have surged rapidly since last month to the extent that volumes have doubled from the sudden outbreak of the war.<\/p>\n \u201cOur colleagues, some of our cargo shippers, handlers have said that since the Gulf conflict, they\u2019ve seen the traffic through YVR, for cargo in particular, virtually double over the course of seven to 10 days,\u201d said Vrooman.<\/p>\n This sudden rerouting also highlights Vancouver\u2019s geographic advantage as a Trans-Pacific gateway \u2014 one that can act as a stable alternative in times of global uncertainty.<\/p>\n Despite record cargo volumes of approximately 365,000 tonnes annually in 2025, YVR\u2019s cargo business still operates at a small fraction of the scale of global leaders such as Hong Kong International Airport and Singapore Changi Airport, which handled five million tonnes and two million tonnes, respectively, last year.<\/p>\n However, YVR already punches above its weight<\/a> compared to many other major airports in Canada and the United States, when the volumes are presented from an air cargo-to-passenger ratio<\/a>.<\/p>\n If YVR achieves the doubling of its air cargo volumes to 730,000 tonnes per year over the next five years, it would exceed the 2025 cargo tally of one of the world\u2019s busiest and largest airports, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, which recorded 106 million passengers and 640,000 tonnes of cargo last year.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat we see is that if you can deliver speed, consistency, and scale, people will come,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd you\u2019ll attract all of the integrators. The freight forwarders will want to be there. Shipping efficiencies will be there.\u201d<\/p>\n She added that increased competition within a larger cargo ecosystem would ultimately benefit businesses across the board.<\/p>\n \u201cCompetition emerges that lowers costs, improves access, not only for the biggest shippers, but right through the economic ecosystem to small and medium-sized businesses,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n YVR needs to act quickly to tap into emerging major Asian trade opportunities<\/p>\n A key challenge in achieving this vision is modernization.<\/p>\n While passenger travel has undergone a significant digital transformation, cargo logistics remain comparatively outdated. Vrooman described an industry still heavily reliant on manual processes.<\/p>\n \u201cCargo logistics is still largely speaking a paper industry. You know, you still fill out the form in triplicate,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n YVR aims to change that by building a fully digitized cargo ecosystem \u2014 mirroring the technological innovations already implemented in passenger operations.<\/p>\n \u201cWe see other jurisdictions, like Asian countries, are moving to full digitized radio and freight records. That\u2019s something that we think that we can build, a purpose build, at YVR,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n The goal is to create a seamless, efficient logistics platform that enables Canadian businesses to compete globally.<\/p>\n \u201cHard for our companies to be able to access that supply chain if they can\u2019t do it digitally,\u201d Vrooman added.<\/p>\n This shift reflects broader investments in air cargo infrastructure at YVR, supported by\u00a0$74 million in federal funding<\/a> \u2014 announced in early 2024<\/a> \u2014 toward the $150-million project of expanding the airport\u2019s cargo capacity by an additional 160,000 tonnes<\/a>, representing an overall capacity increase of 50 per cent.<\/p>\n The expanded cargo-handling capacity will reach completion in 2027, while the remaining components of a taxiway extension, cargo apron extension, and road improvements will reach full completion in 2028. The apron component entails four additional aircraft stands to accommodate Boeing 777 freighter aircraft \u2014 deemed to be the most fuel-efficient dedicated air freighters.<\/p>\n As well, this project, currently under construction, includes site preparation for the future construction of a new 270,000 sq. ft. cargo warehouse \u2014 a facility that will be leased to a logistics company for cargo sorting, processing, and storage \u2014 and will allow future dike raising work.<\/p>\n Freight air cargo being in the belly hold of a commercial passenger aircraft at Vancouver International Airport. (Vancouver International Airport)<\/p>\n Beyond airport operations, Vrooman positioned cargo expansion as a critical instrument for local economic development.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s difficult for businesses to grow in our region without access to an efficient, digitized, smart, reliable cargo airport,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n By combining its geographic location, growing route network, and planned capacity expansion and digital upgrades, the airport is betting it can evolve into a global cargo hub that matches its long-standing reputation for passenger service.<\/p>\n Vrooman highlighted several key markets her team is looking to tap into, especially Vietnam. Currently, there is no direct, non-stop service linking Vietnam and Canada, but she described the tourism and trade potential as an immense opportunity.<\/p>\n \u201cWe currently see quite a large volume of goods coming from the west coast of Canada, Canadian goods finding their way to Vietnam, and vice versa. And things that would surprise you. Machine parts, plastics, technology, all, relatively speaking, high-value goods that travel by air. The problem is we don\u2019t have any direct service to Vietnam,\u201d she said, adding that 58,000 passengers were recorded travelling between YVR and Vietnam via a connection in Singapore.<\/p>\n But she also warned that the Vancouver Airport Authority, businesses, and governments must act quickly to take advantage of this window of opportunity, as potential trade partners in Asia interested in further establishing trade ties with Canada will not wait.<\/p>\n \u201cOne of the things that they\u2019ve experienced in the past, dealing with Canadian businesses, and in particular, parts of the ecosystem that facilitate trade, is we can be a little slower than the market needs. We make high-quality decisions, but it takes a really, really long time. And in other situations and contexts, I think they\u2019ve communicated that that would be okay. But in this unique one, it is not,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd so while their first preference is to grow and partner with us, they can\u2019t wait. And so we need to be ready and able to receive the investments to facilitate the trade, to facilitate the partnership and the movement of people and goods, that really is a once-in-a-generational opportunity for us.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"tamara](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/tamara-vrooman-yvr-vancouver-international-airport-f.jpg\"\/ "\\"\\"")
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