Australia Post has announced that it delivered 52 million parcels during the December 2021 peak, with more packages being moved by air than ever before.
According to the post, more than 5.6 million Australian households shopped in the lead-up to Christmas Day, and with volumes in October and November also higher than in previous years, this demonstrated a desire to plan and shop early.
Australia Post had up to 25 dedicated freighters taking to the skies each night, and more than 8.7 million kilos of parcels were flown across the country throughout December, up 13% on the previous year, with a massive 556 tonnes moved on the busiest December day.
Australians also managed their deliveries through Australia Post’s app and website in record numbers, with more than 83 million visits. Almost five million new ETA (estimated time of arrival) alerts in December helped customers plan during the busy festive season by notifying them of the two-hour window in which parcels were to arrive ahead of Christmas.
More than 20 million customers visited post offices to send cards and gifts and collect packages, including more than 3.9 million from PO boxes. More than 475,000 items were collected from Australia Post’s free parcel lockers around the country during December, the most ever in a month.
Group chief executive officer and managing director Paul Graham said, “That we have seen another 52 million parcels delivered at Christmas demonstrates the dedication of the people in our post offices, our licensed post office partners and everyone working across our processing, delivery and customer teams, including more than 5,000 new team members who helped make it possible.
“We thank Australians for their patience and support during these challenging times, and with so many customers heeding our call to shop and send early we saw a really big November for both deliveries and online shopping ahead of our traditional December peak.”