If you plan on shipping your cargo via air, or are already doing so, you most likely know all the associated benefits. Air transportation is fantastic for moving cargo quickly as well as reducing the risk of damage that may occur during transit. It’s also an incredibly available mode of shipping – you’re not stuck dealing with overbooked steamships or having your shipment delayed weeks (or even months).
But all those benefits come at a cost… An actual high price tag cost.
Air shipping is by far the most expensive of all modes of shipping. However, there isn’t just one type of air shipping service. There are a few different kinds that we want to highlight in this post.
3 Types of Air Service
If you are looking to start (or continue) your air shipping practices, you’ll have the options of shipping via 3 different types of air service. Here they are listed from highest class options to lowest class options:
Express Air Service
Express air service means your cargo is hoping on a flight straight to its destination. No funny business in-between. Essentially, with express air service you are guaranteed that your air cargo will be loaded on a plane that will only be making one stop – the destination airport.
There are obviously huge benefits to this. Your cargo is being handled less, meaning it is less likely to suffer from damage. Also, since it is on a direct flight to its destination, it will get there significantly faster than other modes of shipping, so this is an incredibly beneficial type of air shipping for companies that need to get there products overseas as fast as possible.
Standard Air Service
While on occasion, a standard air service may fly direct to destination, it usually includes one or two stops along the way. These stops are meant for sake of deconsolidating and reconsolidating cargo. While Standard air service tends to be a bit slower than express air service, it’s still a fast mode of shipping.
The most obvious benefit to standard air service is that usually rates will be reduced a fair amount. This means lower freight bills for near-same performance delivery.
Deferred Air Service
The last, and cheapest type of air service is “deferred air service”. As you might imagine, deferred air service is the same thing for more stops. This is convenient for air carriers as they can count on large bulks of air cargo shipments being shipped from main airports to their various smaller airports. This keeps airport congestion low at their main airport and defers the work to smaller cargo aircrafts down the line.
Deferred air shipping is the cheapest type of air transportation, but it’s almost always the case that LCL will still be cheaper than most air shipping modes!
Questions About Air?
If you have any questions about air shipping, or are looking for a better way to manage your air shipping, please just let one of us know! We have a ton of experience with air freight and are happy to answer any and all questions regarding air freight!