S-02 · Air freight

Air freight from India.

Air freight costs several times what ocean costs, and sometimes it is still the cheapest decision you make that month — when a production line is idle, a season is closing, or a penalty clause is counting down. We book next-flight-out, consolidated services and charters from Ahmedabad, Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru.

Service levels
A-01

Next flight out

Booked onto the first available departure, hand-carried through handling. For line-down emergencies and AOG parts.

24–48 h

A-02

Express consolidated

Your cargo joins our consolidation on a scheduled service. Materially cheaper than NFO, still fast.

3–5 d

A-03

Economy consolidated

Deferred routing with more transhipment. The sensible middle ground between air and sea.

6–9 d

A-04

Charter

Full or part charter for outsize pieces, project deadlines or volumes no scheduled service can absorb.

On request

Chargeable weight

Why light cargo can cost more.

Airlines sell space as much as they sell lift. So they charge on whichever is greater: what your shipment actually weighs, or what that space would weigh if it were filled with average-density cargo. That second figure is volumetric weight, and for bulky-but-light goods it is what you pay on.

The standard IATA divisor is 6000. Divide length × width × height in centimetres by 6000 and you get volumetric kilos. Two cartons of identical size can carry very different freight bills — and knowing this before you pack is often worth more than negotiating the rate.

Worked example

One carton, 120 × 100 × 110 cm, actual weight 85 kg:

Volume1.32 m³
Volumetric (÷6000)220 kg
Actual85 kg
Chargeable220 kg

You pay for 220 kg despite shipping 85 kg. Tighter packing here saves real money.

Specialist handling

Pharmaceuticals

Temperature-controlled containers and active cool chain, with excursion monitoring and documentation that stands up to an audit.

Perishables

Fresh produce, flowers and food — cold chain from packhouse to arrival, with phytosanitary paperwork handled before the truck leaves.

Dangerous goods

IATA DGR classification, packing checks, declarations and labelling. Get this wrong and the shipment is offloaded — we check before it ships.

High-value cargo

Electronics, instruments and jewellery with secure handling, restricted access storage and all-risk cover arranged on request.

Oversize pieces

Cargo beyond standard door dimensions routed onto freighters, with load plans checked against aircraft limits before booking.

Door to door

Pickup, export clearance, flight, import clearance and final delivery on one waybill and one invoice.

When air genuinely pays

  • The cargo value is high relative to its weight — the freight premium is a small share of goods value
  • A production line, retail launch or contract penalty is worth more than the rate difference
  • Shelf life is short — pharma, fresh produce, seasonal fashion
  • You need one urgent part now and the rest can follow by sea

When to think again

  • Low-value, high-volume goods where freight would exceed the margin
  • The deadline is soft and a rail or express ocean option would still land in time
  • Only part of the shipment is urgent — split it and fly the critical portion only
  • Poor packing is inflating volumetric weight and can be fixed instead

We will say so if air is the wrong answer for your shipment, even though the ocean booking earns us less.

Deadline this week?

Call the control tower directly — we can usually confirm space on the next available flight within the hour during business hours.