Cargo plane at KCIA prepares to load freight.

‘Tis getting to be the season and it’s not just Santa’s elves who are busy. King County International Airport’s six, on-site airfreight carriers see their business take a seasonal leap this time of year. KCIA is an important freight gateway for most of Washington.

KCIA has approximately 500 cargo aircraft operations every week, ranking it 35th among all airports nationally in terms of total landed weight. Its proximity to the Seattle city center and surrounding Puget Sound communities and business centers make it a hub for packages destined for locations around the world, especially when they are time-sensitive next-day, second or third-day deliveries.

Most of the cargo processing is done after dark. The aircraft flying in and out of KCIA range from Boeing 747s to smaller aircraft, such as Piper Navahos. In fact, it’s these smaller, “feeder” planes that do the bulk of the time sensitive work. They’re less expensive to operate, fly more quietly and can take-off and land at almost any airport. This allows customers to have the latest possible pick-up at their door and the earliest possible delivery. Without feeder aircraft, smaller communities would need to rely entirely on ground transportation to get their packages to KCIA for distribution by air, significantly increasing national and international delivery time.

The airport’s airfreight carriers, UPS, Bax Global, Ameriflight, Airpac Airlines, DHL/Airborne Express and Aeroflight make adjustments to their staff and operations during this time of year to make sure all those holiday packages get to their destinations on time. The 2003 KCIA Economic Impact Study shows there are 554 people employed at the airport in air cargo and airline jobs, leading to almost $107 million in sales.

Since the mid-1980s, air cargo has been the fastest growing segment of the aviation industry. KCIA is a favorite among growers in Eastern and Central Washington because of its role in quickly bringing agricultural products to market. Specialty shipments such as cherries are shipped by ground to KCIA and then by air to destinations such as Taipei, within two days of harvest. This year 35 tons of cherries have been shipped to destinations around the world via KCIA.

This time of year shipments can include anything from retail items, to agricultural products to Aunt Minnie’s hand-knitted sweater. If it originates from or is destined for somewhere in Washington, there’s a good chance it’s going to fly through KCIA.

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Here is a list of King County Department of Transportation projects that may disrupt traffic and travel in the coming weeks:

Northeast 124th Street, north of Redmond - Work continues through the end of November on the Northeast 124th Street project between Willows Road and State Route 202. Most of the work now is concentrated at the bridge over the Sammamish River.

South 277th Street, between Auburn and Kent - Work is ongoing on South 277th Street . This may result in traffic disruptions on South 277th Street and State Route 167. King County is widening the overpass and the Washington State Department of Transportation is overseeing the construction project. Work continues through October 2005.

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