How Do I Send Air Freight?

If you haven’t sent air freight before it can seem like it could be a daunting task. Here at Transglobal Express we have done as much as we can to make the process as easy as possible. Here we will run through the process from obtaining a quote, choosing the correct service, up to completing the order and obtaining the required paperwork.

Our air freight services operate from airport to airport. You can either choose to drop off the goods at one of our drop off depots yourself, or you can arrange to have them picked up and delivered to the correct depot at an additional cost.

Getting a Quote

Once you have clicked the “Quote Now” button on our air freight page, you will be taken to our air freight quotation form. If you know the destination airport code, you can enter this in to the first box (Look Up Airport Code) and details in the next two boxes will fill in automatically. If you don’t know the airport code, then you can use the drop down boxes provided.

Next, you need to select if the items are personal effects or not followed by the number of packages you are sending. After completing the weight and dimensions for the packages you simply click “Compare Prices”.

Choosing the Right Service for You

Once you have your list of quotes for your available services, there are a couple of decisions you need to make before choosing which one is best for you. If there is a door-to-door service available for your packages, you will see an option at the top of the list where you can switch to get an international courier quote that may be more convenient for you.

On the remaining list of air freight services, you will see that there are two different types of services available – Consolidated (Consol) and Back to Back (B2B). Let’s have a quick look at the difference between these two types:

• ·         Consolidated

This is a service that consists of pre-booked space bought by an agent from an airline in advance. Because this space has been bought in advance, the airline will offer the space at a reduced cost. The UK agent will issue a “Master Air Waybill” which will cover all the individual shipments in the consolidation. Each individual shipment will have its own “House Air Waybill” (HAWB).

As these services are pre-booked, the day of departure may be a few days away therefore the transit times for your packages will probably be increased.

• ·         Back to Back

This is a service that consists of an individual booking made directly with the Airline and is not consolidated with other shipments. It will be allocated its own straightforward “Air Waybill”. As these are booked direct with the Airline, departures are available daily so will, in most cases, arrive quicker than a consolidated service.

Please be aware that our quoted rates will exclude any customs clearance charges which are normally handled by the recipient, unless otherwise specified. Visit our Customs & Security Information page for more details.

Once you have selected the service that best suits you, you can proceed to click on the corresponding “Book” button to start the booking process.

Placing Your Booking

Next step is to fill in the required information for your booking. The first step of this process is to fill in your details and address (Shipper Address) and the details and address of the receiver (Consignee Address). You have the option of saving these details for any future orders if you so wish.

The next step is to give a summary of the consignment, value of goods, reason for shipment and an EORI and VAT number if applicable.

You then need to complete the descriptions of the contents of the consignment along with their value and their commodity codes using our Commodity Code Finder tool. This will help ensure your consignment clears customs as quickly as possible.

It is also important at this stage to check our Dangerousand Prohibited Goods Information to ensure you can send all the items you want and not incur a fine of £100.

The next page is a review of your air freight order. Please make sure that all the details here are correct. At this stage, you can also choose to have your consignment collected from your address at an additional cost, or choose to drop off your goods at an available depot.

Choose your payment type and click “Place Order”.

What Happens Next?

Once payment has been made, you will see an order summary along with your order reference number. You will receive a confirmation email and an additional email containing the labels and paperwork required to accompany your shipment. Please ensure the labels are securely attached, if the labels come off we have no way of tracking your goods.

Once your goods arrive at the destination airport it is the responsibility of the receiver to ensure the shipment is cleared along with any relevant charges are paid.

If you have any questions regarding booking air freight, please don’t hesitate to contact us.