Air transport

Air freight refers to all goods transported by air (with the exception of mail).

General freight is entrusted by the shipper to a freight agent who acts as a forwarding agent. The air carrier only provides transport.

Express freight means that one and the same company provides all door-to-door transport services within a limited timeframe.

Air freight transport developed very rapidly thanks to the expansion of baggage holds, which made it possible to carry large numbers of passengers and freight at the same time. Later, large aircraft, known as freighters, were developed specifically for transporting equipment and goods. In civil aviation, cargo aircraft are distinguished from passenger airliners.

Speed, regularity and reliability make this mode of transport highly efficient. Yet air freight accounts for only 5% of the total volume of freight transported.

Unlike other modes of transport, air freight is particularly interesting for transporting perishable foodstuffs, live animals, flowers or certain chemical or radioactive products, or even fragile goods requiring careful handling, such as laboratory instruments, medical equipment, electronic and computer components, and so on.

The international freight company Cargolux, based at Luxembourg airport, is the largest operator in the world.