Based on practical experience of managers of the company with the 25years experience in airfreight.
Participants of foreign trade activities employees, manufacturers and exporters don’t know how to organize the cargo transportation and what to start from sending necessary goods abroad. The representatives of such companies address forwarding agents and consult at a planning stage with them.
This publication is aimed at informing the experts who require defining independently whether it is necessary to send freight by air and to understand how the logistic companies’ experts act.
Types of Cargo for Airfreight
Most of people have an assumption that the airfreight is expensive, and we have to define what can specifically be sent by air and why:
expensive, valuable freights because of high need for strict control of process of transportation or protection of the goods. The owners need to know constant placement of freights and the exact schedule of delivery. It can be objects of art, jewelry, historical values, banknotes and so on.;
time critical cargo, i.e. when it is necessary to deliver even inexpensive goods, but very quickly. It can be spare parts / components / machines, the equipment or when penalties for delay of delivery of goods are higher, than expenses on airfreight (the medical or hi-tech equipment);
delivery of perishable goods, food, flowers (fresh);
live animals: antelopes, tigers, seals, etc.;
when airfreight is the only way of delivery;
cargo of small volume and weight, and dimensions.
"All these factors are relative, and it is necessary to make a start from needs of the client, – the coordinator of ACEX agency network Evgenia Vidulina tells. It is possible to haul the same freight equally both by air and by car. Transit time in airfreight and road delivery from Europe to Moscow don’t differ much. But in this case cost is more relevant".
How to Choose Airline
If you have decided to send cargo by air, then the choice of airline which will be engaged in sending your product will be made on the basis of knowledge and experience of the carrier. Airlines generally don't work directly with cargo owners therefore it is necessary to address the forwarding agent. Members of ACEX Alliance have preferences in the choice of airlines.
The world of air transportation has a structure of the transported cargo between cargo airlines and the passenger companies. The expert knows what airline carries out necessary service during the first conversation with the client. "It is generally connected with type of passenger planes, - the director of ACEX St. Petersburg Evgeny Apasov comments. In shortly - and medium-haul types of planes there are restrictions on weight and dimensions of freights. Modern long-haul planes have an opportunity to transport freights of considerable volume. Airfreight is generally carried out on averages and long distances. And consolidation of freight traffics happens between the developed historically and economically regional cargo hubs (for example Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Shanghai)".
Charter or Regular Flight?
There are no restrictions on the weight of a cargo, it is possible to carry an envelope, and the maximum volume defines the direction speaking about regular flights. Besides, there are always charters which can load decent dimensions. Everything depends on characteristics of the aircraft which can take your cargo. According to the director of the department of cargo charters of Air Charter Service (ACS), the member of ACEX Alliance, Dmitry Nikulin the field of activity of their company isn't mass business for a number of reasons. Nevertheless, there is a set of situations when the client needs charter transportation. These are projects with delivery by air of large-size, urgent or dangerous loads, cases when it is necessary to deliver a cargo to remote places, and also when the cargo can't be delivered by regular flights but urgent transportation is necessary. "Charters transport consumer goods as well during the periods of peak demand, - Dmitry Nikulin tells. – During a flu epidemic we carried out the project on transportation of medical masks from China. Charters often are the unique way of urgent delivery of larger consignments as, for example, for delivery of humanitarian aid after natural disasters – by inquiries of the humanitarian organizations ACS organized delivery of hundreds of tons of the help to affected regions".
There are no Rules without Exceptions
Specialist can even deliver the most "not aviation freight" by plane. Transportation of 300 tons of ceramic proppant from Moscow to the UAE for the oil-extracting industry which has been realized by the staff of ACEX Moscow in 2009 can be an example of such a delivery. The material represents sand for drilling of oil wells. The delivery was required in a short time because of urgent works in the UAE.
Depending on objectives, specialists of the logistic companies select several options of cargo delivery. It is necessary to pay attention to features and requirements of the country of departure/appointment. The requirements of the transit countries to documents, packing, marking of cargo, so the client could estimate possible risks and also financial and temporary advantages of this or that route and type of transportation.
For reference:
The international basic statistics which is almost not changing under the influence of economic crisis is as follows: weight share of the cargo transported by the air transport makes only 1,3-1,5% of all the cargo transported in the world by all means of transport, but at the same time makes this share is 35% of their total cost.
In other words, it makes sense to transport by air small on volume but expensive goods .
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