In 1910, a Wright brothers company pilot flew 200 pounds of silk across Ohio in one of the first documented air freight shipments. More than 100 years later, air freight is heavily relied upon by shippers when they need to make quick deliveries over long distances.
When does it make sense to use air freight versus land or sea options?
When deadlines are tight and the stakes are high, nothing beats the speed and reliability of air transportation. With the right freight forwarder in your corner, shipping by air doesn’t have to be complicated.
3 Ways to Fly
Air freight is commonly used for long-distance shipments that need to move fast, like emergency medical equipment or freshly picked produce. It’s also used to quickly reach areas that are hard to access by truck.
Depending on time constraints and the nature of the cargo, there are three primary ways to ship air freight:
Charter planes
Charter planes give shippers a dedicated option to send truckload-sized shipments across great distances ASAP. Shippers are essentially renting a plane and pilot to take the freight, on its own, to its destination.
In Shaker’s early days, we chartered a plane for a customer shipping tarps to Puerto Rico for relief efforts after a major tropical storm. While charters offer speed and control, they’re usually costly. This method of moving freight is typically reserved for special situations: when lives are on the line or cost is no object. The freight just needs to get there, fast, and with the maximum amount of control for the shipper.
Cargo airlines
Cargo planes can accommodate large amounts of freight and cover long distances efficiently, though size and weight limitations still apply based on the size of the plane and available cargo space.
Most cargo planes fly at night to avoid daytime air traffic, so delays can cause freight to be grounded for a full day. Cargo planes move goods faster than ground transport, but they’re better suited to handle deliveries with flexible timelines rather than true emergencies.
Passenger planes
When time is of the essence, passenger planes offer same-day or overnight delivery. While you might have a window seat, your checked baggage is nestled in the belly of the plane alongside pallets of freight that’s also heading to your destination.
Following September 11 in 2001, any shipper sending goods on a passenger aircraft must have “known shipper” status, which means they’ve been screened by the TSA and assigned a Known Shipper ID.
If a shipper isn’t sure they’re “known,” an air freight logistics partner like Shaker can check federal databases for their Known Shipper ID. Shippers can’t apply directly with the TSA to become known, but Shaker can submit a known shipper application on behalf of our customers as needed.
Finally, even if a shipper is known, they can’t tender freight directly to an airline themselves. Only freight forwarders like Shaker can help shippers move cargo through passenger air channels.
What a freight forwarder does
Air freight moves through more hands than almost any other type of shipment – pickup agents, TSA personnel, connecting airports, local carriers- and each stage comes with its own paperwork, processes, and risks. Freight forwarders like Shaker handle everything for shippers from the initial pickup to final delivery, managing tracking, documentation, and compliance along the way.
This support is especially important for shipping on passenger planes. To become an authorized freight forwarder with the ability to tender shipments directly to passenger airlines, Shaker was screened and approved by the Department of Homeland Security. Businesses aren’t legally allowed to ship on passenger aircraft without using an authorized freight forwarder.
In addition to managing security clearances and relationships with airlines, freight forwarders use a reliable network of agents (local carriers authorized to pick up and deliver cargo at airports) to make sure the freight makes it that final mile.
Finally, each leg of the air freight journey has its own associated cost. A shipper can easily spend time they don’t have to spare getting quotes from agents and air carriers, or they can use a freight forwarder to streamline the booking and billing processes.
Shaker’s dedicated air freight team uses gathers different air freight and agent options, based on the shippers needs. Then we bundle the rates for each leg into one final price for easy billing.
How is air freight priced?
Pricing air freight is not always as straightforward as putting an item on a scale, and it can sometimes be the most cost-effective way to move freight fast and far.
Space in an aircraft cargo hold is limited by the plane’s size and the amount of other cargo on board, so rates are determined by how much space your freight takes up and are charged by the pound.
The scale weight and the volumetric weight (calculated using L x W x H of the freight) are compared, and the higher of the two weights, the “chargeable weight,” determines the rate. Small, lightweight items like machine parts or pharmaceuticals are often cheaper to ship in the air than on the ground. On the other hand, shipping large or heavy items via air freight can be more costly.
It’s important for shippers to provide their freight forwarder with the freight’s exact weight and dimensions so we can quote accurately. Airlines also meticulously plan how cargo is loaded on the craft, so providing accurate freight specs prevents delays at the airline if the freight is heavier or larger than expected.
What are the challenges of moving air freight?
Many of the challenges of air freight are similar to the challenges of flying during vacation: flights can be delayed due to weather or air traffic, causing missed connections or cancelled flights altogether. A delayed arrival of families to the beach or of freight to a customer can ruin relationships and run up additional costs. Shippers can consult with their freight forwarder about the best time to ship air freight and what to do when delays occur.
Shippers moving hazmat goods in the air should be prepared to face extensive paperwork, additional handling and insurance fees. It’s worth it to weigh speed against cost and consider flexing delivery timelines for ground transportation when possible.
Finally, with so many moving parts on each leg of the shipment, it can be hard to keep track of contacts and delivery timelines. Shippers trying to move air freight alone can easily get swamped by follow-ups, safety requirements, and paperwork.
An expert freight forwarder can expand air freight options and make the whole process drastically easier, so shippers have more time and energy to focus on other aspects of their supply chain while we watch the skies.
Reach out to Shaker today for a one-stop solution and partner for your air freight needs.