Did you know that 20 tons of goods take their flight every minute in the world? No doubt, that Speed is the key of the air freight service.
Air transport is a vital component of many international logistics networks, essential to managing and controlling the flow of goods, energy, information and other resources like products, services, and people, from the source of production to the marketplace.
You can ship just about anything by air. Letters, packages, cars, horses, construction equipment and even other airplanes can be shipped by air freight. The planes that carry all of this stuff range from normal commercial airliners to some amazing flying mutants!
Air freight can be separated into three main categories:
- Freight that rides on passenger airlines
- Freight that rides on dedicated cargo planes
- Huge payloads that ride in super cargo planes
Cargo Planes
Shipping companies like FedEx and UPS own many different types of cargo planes. One of the larger ones is the Boeing 747. When configured as a freighter, the Boeing 747-400 can hold about 26,000 cubic feet (736 m3) of cargo. That's about as much as five semi trucks can haul.
The 747-400 can hold 30 pallets of goods on the main level. The pallets are 96 by 125 inches (2.4 m by 3.2 m) and up to 120-inches (3.05-m) tall. For shipping horses, there are special containers called airstables that connect to pallets and fit in the cargo hold. On the lower level, the plane can hold another five pallets along with 14 specially fitted containers, each up to 64 inches (1.6-m) tall. All of these goods are loaded through hatches in the side of the plane.
But for hauling really big cargo, you need a super transporter.
Super Transporters
This is a class of plane designed purely for moving huge stuff. If you need to transport a helicopter, or even a plane, you need a Super Transporter.
This plane is built with a huge cargo area located above the cockpit, allowing freight to fill almost the full length of the plane. The giant door on the front of the cargo hold opens wide enough to get completely out of the way - if an object will fit in the plane, it will fit through the door.
This plane can haul about 47 tons of cargo. That's a lot, but not enough to transport, say, a military tank. A tank can weigh 65 tons or more. For that, you need an even bigger transport plane.
World's Biggest Transporter
The world's biggest transport plane is the Antonov AN-225. With a cargo capacity of over 250 tons, this plane can haul not just one, but three or four military tanks.
This plane was originally designed to carry the Russian version of the space shuttle. Plans for the shuttle were put on hold, and the plane has been grounded since the early 1990s. The plane was recently restored, and it made its first test flight on May 7, 2001. Its wingspan is almost the length of a football field, and its cargo hold can fit 80 cars.
Now we've seen planes that haul everything from the postcard you sent your relative to battle tanks. You really can ship anything!
AMS Freight & Logistics offers a full range of air freight services including (not limited to):
- DOOR TO DOOR freight services
- DOOR TO AIRPORT freight services
- AIRPORT TO AIRPORT freight services
- AIRPORT TO AIRPORT and/or DOOR DELIVERY services available for both your imports or exports
- Cross bookings – Cargo shipping from/to anywhere in the world
- Documentation process and procedures
