Glossary term
Air cargo
Goods carried by aircraft, typically where speed, value or perishability outweighs the higher cost per kilogram.
Freight moved by air. It is materially more expensive per kilogram than sea freight and materially faster, so it tends to carry goods where time, value density or perishability justify the difference: pharmaceuticals, electronics, samples, spare parts holding up a production line.
Air movements are billed on chargeable weight, which takes the greater of actual and volumetric weight, so bulky light cargo is expensive to fly.