Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) has won a competitive tender to lease a new, built-to-suit 11,000m² (c. 118,000ft2) air cargo facility at London Heathrow airport (LHR).
The new facility, located on Southampton Road in the heart of LHR’s cargo area, is expected to be fully operational in 2027.
With an annual handling capacity of more than 160,000 tonnes, the new facility will include dedicated handling facilities for special cargoes, such as pharmaceutical, perishable, express and dangerous goods shipments. It will also be able to handle outsize cargoes, such as cars and aero engines.
Once fully operational, the facility is expected to create up to 100 new jobs.
“Heathrow is literally flying from a cargo perspective, so it is imperative that we can provide the physical infrastructure to process these growing volumes,” said Chris Beale, managing director for the UK at WFS.
In 2024, 1.58 million tonnes of cargo worth £215.6bn was moved through LHR, making it the largest UK port by value. In the first half of 2025, WFS also saw volumes rise by 28% at LHR thanks to both new contact wins and organic growth.
WFS said the 20-year lease agreement reinforces its position as both the largest cargo handler at Heathrow and the airport’s strategic importance to UK and international trade.
With eight facilities and a total footprint of almost 44,000m² (474,000ft2 ), WFS currently handles over 350,000 tonnes of cargo annually for 12 major airlines.
The new development will enable WFS to meet the growth requirements of its existing customers and provide capacity to serve more airlines.
Recently, Saudia Cargo renewed its cargo handling partnership with WFS across eight international air freight hubs.
