Amazon.com has confirmed it will use DHL Express facilities at Cincinnati International while the construction of its new 280,000 sqm handling facility at Cincinnati International International Airport is underway.

According to CargoFacts, the first of the global online retailer's fleet of Prime Air-branded B767 freighters will begin using the Kentuckian airfield later this spring.

The report indicates that aside from using DHL's Cincinnati Int'l ramp space, Amazon will also make use of DHL's sorting and groundhandling facilities at the airport which were upgraded as part of a recently completed USD108 million expansion project. According to DHL, the expanded Cincinnati facility features a new north ramp that provides parking bays for sixteen additional aircraft, bringing the hub’s total capacity to sixty-five aircraft gates.

The expansion also includes additional automated sorting capability and forty new reload positions that will enhance the hub’s ability to handle the growing shipment volumes. It also features new storage and warehouse space.

The decision to establish a major sorting hub in Cincinnati will see Amazon closing its existing Wilmington Air Park facility, located roughly 90 km to the northeast.