Heathrow’s only express courier handler signs deal with Qantas

CFL says this adds to a number of recent deals with airlines based outside the EU, further widening access to global markets for UK exporters 

CFL, Heathrow Airport’s only on-site express courier handler, has today announced it has signed a deal with Qantas Freight, opening up faster, more reliable access to the Australian and wider Asian markets for UK exporters.

The deal also covers imports, so Australian businesses will have better access into the UK.

Qantas Freight flies to over 500 destinations and operates over 20 dedicated cargo handling terminals worldwide.

The new deal builds on CFL’s longer-term strategy to create stronger ties with regions outside the EU and follows the announcement last year of a deal with Thai Airways that will give UK businesses more courier access to the markets of the Far East.

CFL also last year extended its deal with Etihad Airways, already one of the company’s largest carriers by volume.

In 2021, the UK and Australia signed a Free Trade Agreement, the first to be negotiated from the ground up since the UK left the EU. It removes most tariffs on goods from the UK, making it cheaper and easier for British companies to do business there.

Matt Rye, Managing Director at CFL, said: “The UK economy is built upon small businesses, and deals like this open up global markets for them.

“Our role is to make such access faster, more reliable, and more competitive.”

Heathrow Airport processes almost three quarters of all UK air cargo, with an annual value of well over £200bn. CFL is the only express courier handler based in the airport.

Building stronger ties with countries in areas of major economic growth opens up opportunities for UK businesses to trade globally, as well as giving faster access to UK markets for imported goods.

In Australia, ecommerce is predicted to grow at almost 10% annually between 2025 and 2029. Within the global air cargo ecosystem, courier is the most obvious candidate for ecommerce shipments; it supports the efficient and cost-effective transport of large numbers of small, individual packages.

Matt Rye added; “Qantas is an enormously important partner for CFL and we are delighted to renew our highly successful partnership with them.

“Our strategy of building links outside the EU has been significantly boosted; we now handle express imports and exports for many airlines worldwide.”

Rye continued; “We have actively pursued a strategy of building relationships with key airline partners in important economic regions, and this deal represents a significant step towards fulfilling that strategy.

“For overseas businesses, relying on British components or finished goods, speed and reliability are critical. Deals like this create a network that UK businesses can exploit, giving them wider choice and greater certainty over service consistency.”

The airline industry is a key part of the global e-commerce ecosystem – IATA says 80% of cross-border e-commerce goods by value travel by air. Airfreight in general accounts for only around 0.5% of UK total international movements by weight but about 45% of them by value, according to a report by the Freight Trade Association.

CFL was formed forty years ago as Heathrow became the world’s premier long-haul airport.

The growth of the on-board courier product, which allowed unaccompanied packages to travel in the hold as unaccompanied luggage, led to huge pressure on the passenger terminals.

As a result, Heathrow looked to move the courier product out of passenger terminals and the industry created CFL to manage this.

To find out more about Qantas Freight, please visit https://freight.qantas.com/au-en.html.