The volume of air cargo handled in April at Dayton International Airport plummeted by 97 per cent to 879 tons, compared to 27,752 tons that passed through the gateway the same month a year ago.

The amount of airfreight handled in the first four months of the year has also suffered a 97 per cent year on year drop to 3,654 tons.

The massive downturn in business was blamed on a decision by United Parcel Service to close the former Menlo Worldwide Forwarding/Emery Air Freight cargo hub at the airport, reports the Dayton Daily News that cited figures from the airport administration.

By stark contrast, the number of travellers using the US airport increased by eight per cent in April over the same month last year to 119,062 passengers. Year-to-date, passenger numbers rose by seven per cent to a total of 440,065, up from 410,514 passengers in 2006.

Domestic carriers Delta Air Lines, AirTrain Airways and US Airways Express have been ranked among the airport's top three performing airlines in terms of passenger loads carried, the report said.