Cargo airlines get eight more weeks to move from Mexico City airport

Cargo airlines have been given some breathing space to shift operations out of Benito Juárez International Airport, Mexico City’s congested main gateway. Freighter operators have been under the gun to move flights out of Benito Juárez before 7 July, following a decree by the Mexican government in January banishing all-cargo activities, citing perennial congestion as the reason for its decision to make the airport exclusive to passenger services. Airlines and the IATA voiced opposition, warning that the most suitable alternative, Felipe Angeles International Airport (AIFA), was not ready – but the government remained firm. However, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has announced that the deadline for the move will be extended by eight weeks.The announcement came after a meeting with US transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg who was visiting the Mexican capital last week. The president said he had learned, in the meeting, that some companies needed more time for the move.<br/>