ANC Soars to World's Fourth Busiest Cargo Airport in 2020

The Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport (ANC) is the fourth busiest cargo airport in world.

Governor Mike Dunleavy said, “Alaska is open for business and with nearly $1 billion of developments planned for ANC, we expect this economic hub for the state to keep growing.”

Nearly 3.16 million metric tons of cargo — a 15 percent increase from the previous year — propelled ANC from the world’s sixth busiest cargo airport in 2019 to No. 4 in 2020.

Airports Council International reports, globally, the air cargo industry decreased by 8.9 percent in 2020. However, cargo volumes for the world’s top 10 airports grew by 3 percent.

Total ANC Air Cargo Volumes 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017

“ANC is a critical link in the global supply chain, and shippers are realizing the time and money saved by utilizing our airport,” said Airport Director Jim Szczesniak.

ANC connects the world’s two largest economies and has daily freighter service to more than 30 markets, including Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, New York, Miami, Atlanta, Guadalajara, Tokyo, Shanghai, Seoul, Hong Kong... Freighters from ANC serve an additional 20 markets with at least weekly service.

“At a time when PPE, and e-commerce are more important than ever, and the West Coast port congestion has degraded supply chains, ANC has risen to meet demands for the movement of goods throughout the pandemic,” Szczesniak said.

ANC is poised to have another solid year of cargo volume, registering a 40 percent increase in Q1 of this year compared to Q1 of 2020.