What are the main advantages of freight by air...

What are the main advantages of freight by air? 

When it comes to transporting goods from one location to another, you will have a lot of options – perhaps too many options. Here at KTL UK, we are proud to offer highly rated services for global freight by air, road, and sea – but what are some of the principal reasons why the air-freight option might make most sense for your needs? 

Freight by air tends to be used for high-value and low-volume shipments, and for especially urgent or time-sensitive cargo that would lose its value if there was a delay to how quickly it was delivered (for example, perishable items). 

But of course, there will be certain circumstances in which air freight is likely to be the best choice for your shipment, and other situations in which another solution would probably make the most sense. 

So, what are a few of the reasons why you might be especially likely to decide on freight by air rather than road or sea? 

• You can expect remarkable speed and reliability 

If your goods need to be transported as quickly as possible, there really is no superior option in this regard to freight by air. Cargo aeroplanes, after all, typically cruise at speeds of around 900 kilometres per hour, which is a “crossing continents in just a few hours” level of speed. 

As we touched on above, there are certain categories of product that may need to be delivered to their destination urgently – perhaps even on the same day they are shipped. So, when speed is the uppermost priority, road and sea freight services just can’t compare to moving goods by air. 

• Your transported goods will be safe and secure 

There are few places in the world that are as tightly regulated as airports. This helps to make freight by air the most attractive and effective means of transporting goods where there is any concern about the shipment potentially sustaining damage or being stolen at any point during its journey. 

The sheer speed of air freight is relevant here, as there will be a much smaller window in which anything bad could happen to the transported items. 

But even putting aside the factor of shipping times being so short, goods shipped as air freight are subject to only a minimal amount of handling, and cargo receiving areas and air terminals are extremely secure and highly monitored. So, when it comes to minimising risk, there really is no better option. 

• Shipments can be delivered almost anywhere in the world with air freight services 

There aren’t many places on the planet that don’t have a connection to an airport to some degree or another. This enables freight by air to get shipments to even some of the world’s most remote locations. 

Compare this to the situation with road haulage, for example. Whereas cargo aeroplanes can fly above congested transportation networks and obstacles, when goods are being transported by a wheeled vehicle, there is scope for them to be delayed by traffic or limitations in terms of where such vehicles can physically go. 

The operating footprint of air freight services is truly remarkable, covering parts of the world that are likely to be inaccessible – or at least, less accessible – when one depends on road or sea freight. 

Could freight by air be the right choice for you? 

It is important to emphasise that freight by air is not likely to be the best choice for every single shipment that could possibly be transported. 

One frequent cause of concern about air freight in this century is its environmental impact. This is one reason why you might choose alternative services for goods that are not as typically shipped by air – for example, low-value and high-volume goods that are not time-critical. 

If, on the other hand, you need to get certain high-value and low-volume goods to a remote location – and quickly – freight by air is likely to be your best option. 

Would you like to learn more about our various road, sea, and air freight services here at KTL UK? If so, please feel free to reach out to us via email; you are also welcome to directly request a freight quote from us right now. 

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