The southern France gateway handled a total of 53,000 tonnes of traffic last year, up 1.6% on 2010, with express freight accounting for 46,333 tonnes (up 3.2%).

“Between 2007 and 2011 Marseille’s air cargo traffic has grown by 30%,” the airport’s cargo development manager, Jean-Marc Boutigny, told IFW.

Among express operators, TNT led the way, transporting 11,170 tonnes of traffic (up 6.8%) on its services linking Marseille with Paris and Liège.

At the end of 2010, the French post office’s express arm, Chronopost, launched a Marseille-Rennes, service which generated 1,846 tonnes of air freight last year, and UPS and DHL also operate regular services to and from Marseille.

The growth in air cargo traffic also reflects Marseille’s emergence as a western Mediterranean express hub serving North Africa.

Broker Bridges Worldwide runs a weekday Marseille-Tunis service, chartering an 8-tonne ATP operated by West Air Luxembourg and which carries shipments for DHL, UPS and TNT.

A scheduled service to Algiers was launched in September, but only lasted six weeks before being withdrawn over a traffic rights issue. “We are hoping this can be resolved and the service be re-introduced soon,” said Boutigny.

Algeria is already served from Marseille with Air Algérie operating two cargo flights weekly to the oil industry hub of Hassi Messaoud.

Malta has also become an important cargo destination from Marseille, with Bridges operating daily to Valletta. DHL’s B757 Brussels-Malta service also makes a stop in Marseille.

Marseille’s cargo charter activity was buoyant in 2011 and included around 10 AN-124 flights on behalf of helicopter manufacturer Eurocopter.