The pace of the modern world requires everyone and everything to move faster. In the freight shipping industry, it’s even faster as shippers and customers want to see quicker shipping turnarounds. More and more, companies strive to provide (and expect, in some cases) next-day shipping. Air freight shipping is one of the most realistic and safe ways to achieve such a quick transit time.
What is air freight?
Simply stated, air freight is the shipment of goods via air carrier. Charter and commercial planes transport products such as consumer packaged goods (CPG), apparel, medical supplies, and equipment to their destinations.
Air freight is the ideal solution to move your freight around the world quickly and safely, thus playing a crucial role in ensuring an efficient supply chain.
Because of that speed and safety, however, it can be more costly than other modes of transportation.
What are the types of air freight shipping?
Air freight moves large volumes of heavy cargo every day. In 2021, commercial airlines carried just over 66 million metric tons of freight worldwide. Whether the products are documents, parcels, animals, or cars, nearly every destination is accessible by plane.
Depending on your budget and cargo, various air freight options are available.
Air parcel (moved on passenger lines)
Shipping cargo on passenger planes is a common practice among airline companies. In most cases, commercial planes handle small shipments and parcels. An average passenger plane can move a freight volume of 2 semi-trailer trucks apart from the passengers on board.
Air charter for urgent shipments
When using charter aircraft, you can be confident that your freight will meet the required deadline and will have no transit stops. Because It’s dedicated to your needs, remember it is much more expensive than other options.
The most common industries that use charter aircraft are mining and energy, film and entertainment, pharmaceutical and medical, and other sectors with urgent shipments.
Marine Cargo Insurance
If you are moving products internationally, consider investing in marine cargo insurance. Marine cargo insurance protects transported goods via air or water. Marine cargo insurance is crucial since shipping overseas is more complex than moving domestic LTL and FTL shipments. In 2020, there were 229 incidents of maritime piracy, resulting in hundreds of injuries to crew members, damage to cargo, and hijacked ships. If your business ships internationally, take your time researching marine cargo insurance options.
How does air freight work?
Depending on your air freight carrier, there can be different ways of arranging air shipping. However, the general scheme looks like this:
- Choose your shipping provider.
- An air carrier or a third-party logistics provider registers your shipments and arranges freight pick-up from the facility or warehouse.
- Your freight is loaded, taken to the airline, and then loaded on the plane.
- After it arrives, another carrier picks up your shipment from the airline and takes it to the destination.
Benefits of Air Freight Shipping
Speed
Shipping speed is the most compelling advantage of air shipping. If you need your freight to arrive the next day in another part of the globe, it gets achieved only through air freight shipping. Besides exclusive delivery speed, air shipping offers shipment safety, large service areas, and fewer disruptions.
Long-distance shipping
When using air shipping, there are an extensive number of airlines that serve many locations. The locations include domestic and international. Distance isn’t an issue with air shipping because planes can travel anywhere.
