Air cargo plays a crucial role in the global supply chain, helping businesses meet the demands of fast, long-distance transportation. As companies continue to seek faster, more efficient delivery solutions, this method has become increasingly important, especially for industries dealing with time-sensitive or high-value products. But what is air cargo? In this article we will answer this question, as well as discuss its growing significance, the benefits it offers, and the challenges that come with utilizing it effectively.
What does air cargo mean?
Air cargo, also known as air freight, refers to the transportation of goods by air. It includes services such as air mail, air freight, and air express, and is especially valuable for moving urgent shipments globally.
What is air cargo?
Air cargo plays an essential role in the global supply chain, enabling businesses to deliver goods quickly and access markets worldwide. In an age where quick responses are crucial to avoid production losses, air freight is an invaluable resource. International shipping allows goods to be transported to geographically distant destinations with almost immediate departure. It is optimal for transporting smaller goods to faraway places, with delivery times significantly shorter than many other shipping options.
Air cargo is crucial in logistics and the global economy, connecting manufacturers, suppliers, and consumers. Its speed and flexibility make it ideal for time-sensitive, bulk, or high-value shipments, even though it can be more expensive than sea or ground transport.
Read more about other transport options: rail, sea and road freight.
What is cargo on a plane?
Cargo on a plane refers to goods transported by aircraft, including packages, boxes, and larger shipments. It's stored in the cargo hold of passenger planes or specialized freighters. Cargo can range from general merchandise to perishables, electronics, or hazardous materials. Air cargo is essential in the global supply chain, enabling fast and efficient delivery of goods.
Different types of air cargo
To provide a clearer understanding of what air cargo is, let´s take a look at the different types of air cargo and explore their specific characteristics and applications across various industries.
What is general air cargo
General cargo is a key part of air freight services, covering a wide variety of items like electronics, clothing, machinery parts, and medical supplies. It includes goods that don’t need special handling or storage during transport.
Businesses across many industries rely on general cargo for fast and efficient shipping. While some rules may apply based on the goods, general cargo is usually simpler to package and handle, making it a major part of the air cargo market.
What is special air cargo
Special cargo includes items that need special handling, storage, or transport, such as fine art, medicine, sensitive equipment, or live stage props. These goods often require extra care, like added security, temperature controls, or custom packaging.
Museums, pharmaceutical companies, and event organizers use special cargo services to safely transport valuable or fragile items. Air cargo providers ensure these goods meet strict rules and standards, reducing risks during shipping.
What is air cargo for live animals
This type of cargo focuses on transporting animals, from pets and farm animals to rare species for zoos and conservation efforts. It ensures they are cared for throughout their journey. The live animal air cargo sector connects the world by providing a safe and humane way to transport over 2 million animals annually in the U.S. alone, supporting pet owners, breeders, farmers, and conservationists.
Air cargo providers follow strict IATA Live Animal Regulations to ensure the safety and well-being of every animal passenger.
What is air cargo for dangerous or hazardous items
Hazardous cargo includes items that can pose risks to health, safety, or property during transport. These goods need special care to protect air cargo staff and aircraft.
Shipping hazardous materials by air is tightly regulated. The IATA’s Dangerous Goods Regulations (DGR) set global standards for packaging, labeling, documentation, and handling. Hazardous cargo is divided into nine categories:
- Explosives
- Flammable Gases
- Flammable Liquids
- Flammable Solids
- Oxidizers
- Toxic and Infectious Substances
- Radioactive Materials
- Corrosives
- Miscellaneous, such as cargo requiring an elevated temperature, magnetized materials, and microorganisms.
Industries like chemicals and pharmaceuticals often rely on hazardous air cargo services to transport these materials safely.
What is air cargo for fragile or high value items
High-value or fragile cargo includes items with high monetary value or those easily damaged during transport, such as:
- Fine art
- Luxury goods
- High-end electronics
- Delicate musical instruments
- Precious gems or metals
These goods need special handling and strong security to ensure safe delivery. Air cargo services offer measures like secure storage, surveillance, and specialized packaging to protect these items from damage or theft.
While it represents a smaller share of total air cargo, this service is crucial for industries and clients needing reliable and secure transport for their valuable or delicate goods.
What is perishable air cargo
Perishable cargo includes goods with a short shelf life, such as fresh fruits, flowers, meats, seafood, and temperature-sensitive pharmaceuticals. These items need fast, specialized air transport to arrive quickly and in excellent condition.
Regulations ensure safe handling with guidelines for packaging, temperature control, and transit times. While perishable cargo makes up a smaller part of air freight, it’s vital for industries like floriculture, which depend on efficient shipping to maintain product quality.
Read about different transport solutions you can choose from depending on what type of goods are to be transported, shipping costs and other factors.
Check out our air freight products suitable for all types of cargo:
What do cargo planes carry?
Cargo planes are designed to transport goods, not passengers. They carry a variety of freight, including commercial products and time-sensitive shipments. With large holds for different types of cargo, they ensure fast, efficient delivery across long distances. Cargo planes are essential for global supply chains, supporting industries like manufacturing, e-commerce, and healthcare.
What are the most common products shipped by air?
The air cargo industry is a key driver of global trade, especially with the rise of e-commerce. Air freight is the fastest and most efficient way to transport goods, making it ideal for products that need quick delivery. These products are most suited for airplane transportation. Different types of goods transported by air include various categories of cargo, each with unique requirements. Some key industries and types of cargo in aviation that rely on air freight include:
- E-commerce: Fast shipping of high-value goods like electronics, luxury items, and fashion, which are ideal for air transport due to their size, value, and demand for rapid delivery.
- Manufacturing: Time-sensitive components needed for production lines, supporting just-in-time inventory management. These parts often require air transport for their speed and efficiency.
- Humanitarian Aid: Critical supplies such as medicine, food, and shelter materials delivered to disaster zones, with air freight enabling rapid response in emergencies.
- Aerospace and Defence: Transport of avionics, aircraft engines, military equipment, and armaments. These items require secure, specialized handling, making air freight the best option for their safe and timely delivery.
- Perishables: Fresh produce, seafood, dairy, plants, and flowers, which need fast transport to prevent spoilage and maintain freshness, are typically airlifted.
- Pharmaceuticals: Temperature-sensitive vaccines and medications, which are crucial during health crises like the COVID-19 pandemic, are often transported by air for global reach and quick delivery.
These types of cargo are most suited for air transportation due to their time-sensitive nature, size, value, or need for specialized handling. Air cargo offers unmatched speed and flexibility compared to other modes of transport, making it indispensable for industries that rely on quick and secure delivery.
For which of the following products is air transportation best suited?
Air transportation is ideal for time-sensitive, high-value, or perishable products. Electronics, luxury goods, and pharmaceuticals benefit from fast delivery, while fresh food and flowers rely on air freight to avoid spoilage. E-commerce items and important documents also require quick, secure shipping. Air cargo ensures efficient, reliable delivery for these products, meeting tight timelines and minimizing risks.
Advantages and disadvantages with air cargo
Air cargo transport offers several advantages. It's the fastest way to get goods anywhere in the world, with flexible schedules that ensure quick and efficient deliveries. It allows for the transport of a wide range of goods, from small items to larger cargo, and can reach remote locations where other transport methods cannot. Air cargo is ideal for transporting perishable, fragile, or high-value goods, and it’s considered the safest way to ship items. Temperature-sensitive goods can also be managed easily during air transport.
Read more about the primary benefits of shipping goods by air.
However, there are some disadvantages. Air cargo is more expensive than sea or land transport, and delays can happen due to weather conditions. Additionally, air freight needs to be complemented by land or sea transport for the full journey, and certain items like hazardous materials or lithium batteries cannot be shipped by air. Legal restrictions and the need for documentation can also complicate the process. Despite these challenges, air cargo remains the best option for fast, reliable deliveries, especially for time-sensitive or valuable items.
Want to learn more about transportation costs? Read about how you calculate shipping costs.
Bertling’s air freight solutions for fast, reliable shipments
Bertling's Airfreight Division specializes in handling time-sensitive and critical shipments, ensuring quick and reliable transportation. With experienced, IATA-certified teams and offices worldwide, Bertling offers tailored air cargo solutions that meet the specific needs of each shipment. Whether it's a full charter, part charter, or time-sensitive delivery, Bertling's airfreight experts consider all factors, including shipment complexity, routing, timescales, and costs, to recommend the most suitable option. Our goal is to provide the fastest, safest, and most reliable transport, ensuring your cargo reaches its destination efficiently, no matter the challenge.
