200 jobs created by Prestwick Airport’s China expansion

The decision from Glasgow Prestwick Airport (PIK) to increase its China operations has resulted in the creation of 200 more jobs, as the carrier Air China Cargo has doubled its weekly freighter services from four to eight.

Alongside this, it has added Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport (CTU) to its existing Guangzhou service.

The further four flights to CTU using an A330 freighter have already commenced, beginning on 22 November.

Air Cargo China established its UK cargo hub at PIK in June 2025. The airport already services regularly scheduled flights from China Southern Air Logistics and Beijing Capital Airlines.

On top of the 200 new jobs, a one-million-pound investment into new equipment and a dedicated cool chain team enabled the airport to launch a new Scotland to China seafood export service in September.

Ian Forgie, Chief Executive Officer at PIK said: “The past six months have been among the busiest in Prestwick’s history, as we have welcomed three new scheduled cargo operators and expanded our facilities to support sustained growth.”

Alexandra Herdman, Senior Policy Manager at Logistics UK said: “Regional airports have a major part to play in delivering growth to the UK economy, by strengthening ties with overseas airports and trade links.

“Scotland exported fish and shellfish to the value of £1.3 billion in the year to March 2025, and we are pleased to see further investment in allowing Scotland to leverage its strengths.”