Advantages and Disadvantages of Air Freight - Essay Example

Course: Essay Title: Student Name and ID: Tutor’s name: Air freight as a mode of transport should be used regularly for transportation of goods to various destinations due to the many advantages associated with this mode of transport. This report will contain the advantages and disadvantages of air freight, the various services offered by the air freight companies and the limitations of various methods of transporting goods by air. Advantages of Air Freight Air freight has the following advantages: High speed: it is one of the fastest means of transport and it is therefore appropriate for transporting goods over a long distance that require less period of time. Air transport is appropriate for quick transportation of perishable goods whose main priority is preservation of their quality. This type of goods comprises of goods such as health care products such as donor blood, transplantation organs and drugs with a limited shelf life, flowers, fruits, animals as well as the press materials such as magazines, newspapers, letters and other mails which recipients want to obtain them without much delay. As compared to water, road and rail transport which causes a lot of delays while delivering the goods (Fair & Williams, 1981). Quick or fast services: the air freight offers an efficient, comfortable and fast transport service. People are able to move from one place to another in a very short period of time. Also goods are able to be delivered to their destination within a very short period of time. This therefore makes air freight to be the fastest mode of transport compared to other modes of transport. As compared to other modes of transport such as road, water and rail transport which takes a considerable huge amount of time to deliver goods over the same distance. Vital during cases of emergencies or tragedies: air freight transport is very vital during emergency cases such as earthquakes, fires, floods and wars. Important or crucial items such as food stuff, medicine and other necessities can be supplied to fatalities or victims with the help of helicopters and other small aircrafts (Chang, 1998). Also the affected people can be air lifted to safety if the situation on the ground demands so. As compared to roads, waterways and railway lines which become in accessible and unusable during the time of tragedies. Easy access: air freight transport provides an easy access to hard areas which cannot be accessed by the other means of transport. For instances in areas which has poor or no rail or road network the air transport becomes the most appropriate to deliver goods to these areas. Also during time of floods or war air transport is the only means of transport that can be able to access these areas (Ross, 1998). No infrastructure investment required: air transport is a cheaper mode of transport because; it does not emphasis on the construction roads, railway tracks like in the road and railway transport respectively. Therefore there is completely no capital investment that is required in laying surface railway tracks and road networks. Safety: Air freight transport is the safest mode of transporting goods such as jewelleries, documents, confidential and highly classified documents or reports. This is because the air transport guarantees safe delivery of these goods to their destination irrespective of the distance to be covered, as compared to other modes of transport such as the road, water and railway which can be hijacked and the valuable goods stolen. Absolutely no physical barriers: air freight transport is absolutely free from any physical obstructions or barriers such as mountains, forests, oceans and seas. This is so because air transport follows the shortest and straight routes available where no geographical features such as oceans, mountains, forests and seas can hinder or obstruct their movement as compared to other modes of transport such as railway lines, waterways and roads which have to avoid these physical barriers (Fair & Williams, 1981). No custom delays: Air transport is able to move very quickly from one place to another because the custom procedures or formalities are fulfilled very quickly. This there helps in avoiding the delay in attaining the clearance required. While the other modes of transport takes a lot of time to get the custom clearance required on time hence causing a lot of delays in various customs check points. Boosting national defence of the nation: air transport plays a substantial role in enhancing the defence of the any country because in the modern wars they are carried out with the help of the air crafts, which helps in transporting the military personnel and their equipment in the battlefields. The air crafts also helps in monitoring the enemy positions and dropping bombs in the enemy territories hence it gives the security personnel an upper hand in finishing the enemies in a very short period of time. As compared to the other modes of transport they cannot be able to offer those services of boosting the country defence through the air. Disadvantages of Air Freight Air freight has various disadvantages in spite of the many advantages. These disadvantages include the following: Difficult delivering small loads of goods: It is extremely difficult in the delivery of small loads of goods by air transport. This is because when shipping the small sized loads of goods, the shipping cost is will be higher than the cost of transported goods. Therefore air transport becomes relevant in supplying or shipping the goods in large quantities. But this disadvantage can generally be overcome by choosing air transport to deliver loads of goods which requires urgent transportation to their destination (Ross, 1998). Extremely costly: Air freight is considered as the most expensive mode of transport. The cost of operating the aeroplanes is extremely high as compared to other mode of transport such as water, road and railway. This is because it involves a great amount of spending in the construction of airports and aircrafts. This reason makes the cost of air transport to be very high such it goes beyond the reach of the common individuals. But the cost of operating air transport such as construction of airports and aircrafts makes it easier for the air transport to be available in many corners of the world hence making it more accessible to many people. Availability of class airports: Another disadvantages air transport in transporting goods is that in order for a person to be able to send and receive load of goods, there must be a suitable class airport. This therefore requires the presence of airports where the owner of goods can correct the goods and also be able to send the goods to various destinations. Unfortunately, these facilities are not available to all corners of the world hence making it hard to deliver and receive goods through air transport. However, goods transportation is often made in many parts of the world given the fact that various parts of the world have embraced technology and achieved significant development of infrastructures such as modern airports (Ross, 1998). Very risky: The air freight is considered the most risky mode of transport. This is so because a minor mishap or accident can cause a great loss of merchandises, passengers and the crew members. In air transport, the probabilities of accidents occurring are higher as compared to other modes of transport such as water, road and railway. But this disadvantage is always mitigated by the constant and regular maintenance of the aircrafts. The small load carrying capacity: the aircrafts always have a small load carrying capacity and this therefore makes them not suitable for carrying large or bulky and cheaper load of goods. The aircrafts load capacity cannot be increased or enlarged as it is constituted within the rails case of the aircrafts. However, given the high speed of the air transport in transport goods from one place to another, the aircrafts can be used to move loads of goods in small quantities but faster. Unreliable: air transport is sometimes mostly unreliable and uncertain mainly because they are mostly controlled by the weather conditions. Sometimes presence of adverse weather conditions such as snow, fog and heavy rain can have serious effect on the air transport leading to cancellation of some flights. Cancellation of flights during adverse weather condition is always done in order to mitigate the occurrence of accidents hence ensuring the safety of the passengers, crew and the goods, as compared to other modes of transport who continue to operate despite the adverse weather, thereby exposing themselves to great risk of accident occurrence (Tilanus, 1997). Massive investment: In air transport there is always massive investment required in the construction and maintenance of airports and crafts. Air transport also requires highly skilled, trained and experienced personnel which often require a considerable huge investment. However, in spite of the massive investment in infrastructure and personnel it is necessary in order to ensure that they are able to offer quality services in delivering goods. The advantages of air transport outweigh the disadvantages of air transport hence making it more suitable to transport goods from one place to another. Services offered by the Air Freight Companies There are various services that are offered by the air freight companies include the transportation of various products such as; Envelopes or magazines or brochures Break bulk such as clothes Mail bags Perishable goods such as fruits, flowers and ice creams Dangerous goods such as ammunition, fireworks, aerosols, LPG, organic peroxides, oxidising agents, flammable liquids such as kerosene, solvent based paints, methylated spirits, perfume, petrol and turpentine, toxic substances, corrosive substances and the environmentally hazardous substances. Automobile components Jewellery Electronic equipment Live freight Passenger and cargo aircraft options Livestock or animals. Plants Excess baggage Health care products such as donor blood, transplantation organs and drugs with a limited shelf life. Engineering equipment The air freight companies also offer other services such as: Charter flights services: These are services that are provided by various companies that enable the customer or the client to avoid the delays, hassles and issues that are predominant with the commercial flight services. This service involves offering planes such as jets, helicopters and jumbo jets for hire or renting for special purposes such transporting of goods or cargo which is time sensitive or individuals from one place to another. This service is also available to those people going for holidays in various locations or destinations and who want to avoid various stopovers in various location something which is common with the commercial flights. Door to door delivery services: This involves delivering of goods or people from one destination to anther within the shortest time period possible. For instance it involves the delivery of goods or individuals from one town or city or town or capital to another as quickly as possible in order to meet the customer requirements. Direct and transhipment flights: Direct flights this delivering of goods or people from one place to another without any stopovers or handing over the goods to another company or a vessel in between the transportation or shipment in order to deliver the goods to their final destination while the transhipments is the transfer or handing over of goods form one company or a vessel to another, with the sole purpose of continuing or enabling the goods to reach its final destination. This is done on the behalf of another company which may not have enough logistics or resources to offer the services or does not have presence in certain areas (Tilanus, 1997). Airport to airport services: This involves delivering of goods and services from one airport to another directly by the company. This service is appropriate for goods which are time sensitive and are supposed to be delivered to their destination as quickly as possible. Warehousing and security services: This service involves keeping or storing the goods for a considerable time before or a waiting transportation time of the goods to their destination. It also involves keeping them safe and secure so that they are not tampered with or damaged in any way, so that they can get to their destination while intact. Distribution and delivery of goods: This service involves ensuring that the goods get to their required destination in time and without any damage incurred or experienced. Shipment of time sensitive goods: This involves shipping and delivering goods which requires quick or fast shipping and whose chief priority is preservation or conservation of their quality. This type of goods comprises of goods such as health care products such as donor blood, transplantation organs and drugs with a limited shelf life, flowers, fruits, animals as well as the press materials such as magazines, newspapers, letters and other mails which recipients want to obtain them without much delay (Ross, 1998). International air services: This service involves delivering of goods and services form one country or from one region to another. This service is therefore suitable for transporting and delivery of goods across borders. Flexible and definite delivery services: This service involves provision of services to the client or the customer which are specifically tailored to meet the needs and requirement of a specific client. These services differ from one client to another. This is because each and every client has different needs and requirements which have to be fulfilled by the company. Import services: This service involves the transportation or shipping of goods from an outside country where the goods have been manufactured or produced to another country where they are required or needed, within the stipulated time by the customer. Export services: This service involves the transportation or shipping of goods from one country where the goods have been manufactured or produced to another country where they are required or needed, within the stipulated time by the customer. Door to airport services: This service involves the delivery or transportation of goods and services from the client or customer location to the airport in order the goods to be transported or shipped to their required destination as per the specification of the customer or the client. Airport to door services: This service involves the delivery or transportation of goods and services from airport to the location specified by the customer or client in order to meet the customer’s requirements and specification. Shipment of processing transit units: This service involves the transportation or shipment of equipment that used in the various processing industries. These goods are always very sensitive and very fragile therefore they require special care while handling them during shipping (Chang, 1998). Export packaging and labelling: This service involves putting the goods in packets and wrapping them properly as well as labelling them well before the goods are transported or shipped to their final destination. These services help in easy identification of the goods and also preservation of the products while they are being shipped or transported. Direct flights services: This service involves provision of services that gives the customer or client flights that moves or transport goods from one place to another without any stop over. This service is therefore suitable for shipping and delivering goods which requires quick or fast shipping and whose chief priority is preservation or conservation of their quality. This type of goods comprises of goods such as health care products such as donor blood, transplantation organs and drugs with a limited shelf life, flowers, fruits, animals as well as the press materials such as magazines, newspapers, letters and other mails which recipients want to obtain them without much delay (Tilanus, 1997). Consolidation services: This type of service is offered by an air freight forwarder where by several smaller consignments or shipments are assembled or amassed and shipped together to avail or benefit from better freight rates services and cargo security. This type of service is also called cargo consolidation, assembly service and freight consolidation. Insurance services: This type of service involves the issuance of an insurance policy that protects the buyer or the seller of goods that are being shipped or transported from one destination to another. This type of insurance is designed to protect or safeguard the insured against the goods that are spoiled, lost or destroyed during the transportation or shipment. The insurance services of the goods are provided by the insurance companies, trade service intermediaries and freight forwarders (Chang, 1998). The insurance premium of the cargo or the goods is always calculated based on whether the item is dangerous or hazardous, the value of the item, the route that will be followed to reach its final destination and where it is being transported. Documentation handling and custom clearance of goods: This type of service involves handling of the various documents that are required when transporting or shipping goods across various international borders, on behalf of the client or the customer. The client or the customer does not have to be there to do the documentation of the goods and custom clearance of the goods, the air freight company takes care of that by ensuring that everything is taken care of (Fair & Williams, 1981). Limitations of the various methods for transporting goods by air When transporting goods using air transport there is limitation of goods that are supposed to be transported. There are various goods that are not supposed to be transported using air transport. This include: dangerous goods and heavy or bulky goods. The limitation of dangerous goods depends on various factors such as the type of dangerous or hazardous goods, how much of goods are being transported and whether the goods being transported are domestic consumption or recreational use or for business purposes (Tilanus, 1997). The following items or goods are generally available and are classified and regarded as dangerous goods: Aerosol canisters Fireworks and ammunition Compressed air cylinders for scuba diving LPG cylinders Flammable liquids such as kerosene, solvent based paints, methylated spirits, perfume, petrol and turpentine Diesel Some swimming pool cylinders Some garden care products Household cleaning products for instance dishwasher detergents However, the transportation of these products using air transport in small quantities for domestic or recreational consumption and not for business purpose is permitted. The dangerous goods being transported in small quantities should be clearly labelled, properly packaged, they should also be separated and well secured during transportation. The heavy and bulky goods compromises of goods such as automobiles such as vehicles, machineries, large equipment, agricultural products such as coffee beans, tea leaves, fertilisers, cocoa beans among others. The air freight is limited to carry bulky goods due to the sensitivity of some of the goods and also due to the nature of the various aircrafts that transport the goods from one place to another. Reference Chang, Y.H. 1998, Logistical Management, Hwa-Tai Bookstore Ltd, Taiwan. Fair, M.L, & Williams, E.W, 1981, Transport and Logistics, Business Publication Inc., USA Ross, D.F, 1998, Competing Through Supply Chain Management: Creating Market Winning Strategies through Supply Chain Partnerships, Chapman and Hall, New York Tilanus, B. 1997, Information Systems in Logistics and Transportation, Elsevier Science Ltd, UK Read More