Air Cargo Operations and Air Freight Management: Rates, Air Waybills, ULDs and Special Cargo – London, 16–20 Aug 2027

Programme overview

Introduction:

Air cargo operations lose margin and service when a shipment is quoted on actual rather than chargeable weight, booked on the wrong capacity, built on an unsuitable ULD or held at the terminal for a missing security status or document. This Core Concept course equips airline cargo, forwarding, handling and shipper staff to move air freight from quotation and booking through air waybill, build-up, screening and terminal release. Working on real shipment case files, participants produce an Air Freight Shipment Routing and Handling Plan for a lane their organisation actually ships.

Course Objectives:

• Explain the roles of airlines, freight forwarders, general sales agents, ground handlers and express integrators in an air freight shipment and the capacity each one controls
• Calculate chargeable weight from actual and volumetric weight and build an air freight quotation from rate classes, surcharges and ancillary charges
• Complete and check an air waybill, including an electronic air waybill under the multilateral agreement, and the messages that travel with it
• Plan ULD selection and build-up for belly and freighter capacity so that shipments fit contour, weight and handling limits
• Apply the handling, acceptance and security screening steps for general and special cargo, including dangerous goods, perishables, pharmaceuticals, live animals and valuables at overview
• Measure air cargo performance with milestone-based KPIs and choose between air, sea/air and sea options for a given shipment

Target Audience:

• Staff responsible for air freight quotation, booking and capacity allocation at airlines, general sales agents and forwarders
• Staff responsible for export and import air shipment documentation and air waybill preparation
• Staff responsible for cargo acceptance, build-up and breakdown in cargo terminals and ground handling operations
• Staff responsible for security screening and regulated agent procedures on outbound air cargo
• Shipper and consignee logistics staff responsible for routing time-critical or high-value goods by air
• Staff responsible for handling perishable, temperature-sensitive and other special cargo flows

Course Outline:

Day 1: Air Cargo Market, Players and Capacity

• Air Cargo Value Chain Map: Shipper, Forwarder, General Sales Agent, Airline, Ground Handler and Consignee
• Belly Cargo on Passenger Flights Versus Main-Deck Freighter Capacity
• Express Integrators Compared with the Airline and Forwarder Model
• Consolidation, Master and House Air Waybills and the Forwarder Margin
• Current-State Review of an Organisation's Air Freight Lanes, Volumes and Service Failures

Day 2: Rates, Documents and Digital Cargo Standards

• Chargeable Weight Calculation: Actual Weight, Volumetric Weight and Rounding Rules
• Air Freight Rate Classes, Fuel and Security Surcharges and Quotation Build
• Air Waybill Fields, Conditions of Contract and Common Data Errors
• Electronic Air Waybill Resolution 672 and the Multilateral e-AWB Agreement
• Cargo-XML Messaging, e-freight Document Sets and ONE Record Data Sharing

Day 3: ULDs, Build-Up and Cargo Terminal Operations

• ULD Types and IATA Identification Codes: Pallets, LD3 Containers and Main-Deck Units
• ULD Build-Up and Breakdown: Contour Checks, Netting, Tie-Down and Bulk Loading
• Cargo Terminal Process Flow: Acceptance, Storage, Manifesting and Release
• Load Planning Inputs: Weight and Balance Data, Positions and Cut-Off Times
• Import Terminal Handling: Breakdown, Discrepancy Reports and Consignee Notification

Day 4: Special Cargo, Security and Border Controls

• Dangerous Goods Acceptance Checks and Shipper Declarations under the IATA DGR at Overview
• Perishables, Pharmaceuticals and Cold Chain Handling: Temperature Data and Exposure Points
• Live Animals under the IATA LAR and Valuable Cargo Custody Procedures at Overview
• Security Screening Methods, Regulated Agent and Known Consignor Status in the Secure Supply Chain
• Customs Interface at the Cargo Terminal: Advance Cargo Data, Holds and Release Messages

Day 5: Performance Measurement, Mode Choice and Shipment Case Work

• Cargo iQ Milestone Plans and Air Cargo KPIs: Booked Versus Flown, Uplift and On-Time Delivery
• Air Versus Sea/Air Versus Sea Decision Matrix: Transit Time, Total Landed Cost and Risk
• Case Study: Diagnosing a Delayed Special Cargo Shipment from Its Document and Milestone Trail
• Case Study: Quoting and Routing a Mixed Consolidation across Belly and Freighter Options
• Air Freight Shipment Routing and Handling Plan Build and Peer Review

Skills You Will Gain:

• Chargeable Weight Calculation
• Air Freight Rate Quotation
• Air Waybill Preparation
• ULD Build-Up Planning
• Cargo Terminal Process Control
• Special Cargo Acceptance
• Secure Supply Chain Procedures
• Air Cargo Performance Measurement

Why Attend This Course:

• Return with an Air Freight Shipment Routing and Handling Plan for a lane your organisation ships
• Stop margin leakage from quotes built on the wrong weight, rate class or surcharge
• Cut terminal holds by getting documents, security status and advance data right before tender
• Compare air freight practice with airline, forwarder, handler and shipper staff from several sectors

Conclusion:

An air freight shipment moves on time and at the right cost only when the quotation, the booking, the air waybill, the ULD build and the security and border steps line up. The course moves from the market, its players and capacity, through chargeable weight, rates, the electronic air waybill and cargo messaging, to ULD build-up and terminal flow, special cargo and screening. The final day applies milestone KPIs and mode choice to shipment cases and builds the Air Freight Shipment Routing and Handling Plan.