Post, Freight and Carriers

Difference between airline cargo companies and freight cargo companies?

I was wondering what the difference was between airline cargo companies (like United Airlines Cargo, Cathay Pacific Cargo, etc...) and dedicated freight cargo companies (like UPS, Fedex, DHL, etc...) When I ship a package I usually get options to ship via the latter instead of the former. Can someone please explain this and also how these airline cargo companies operate?

Public Comments

1. Good question. Maybe it depends on their focus, like United and Cathay Pacific haul passengers in addition to whatever they haul below the passenger cabin, they also operate dedicated freight aircraft. Companies like FedEx and UPS focus on freight, but they also offer passenger service.Tthey can install carpet, seats and overhead bins and be ready for a charter in a couple of hours. That's why some FedEx and UPS planes have windows all the way down the fuselage. Click the link below for a pic of UPS 727 unloading passengers. FedEx used to carry the Tennessee Titans football team to away games, they may still do it, I'm not sure.
2. I work for an Indirect Air Carrier and a Air Charter Cargo Company. Their is a big difference. Cargo Companies such as UPS, FedEx, (DHL pulled out of the US)..) is that they only handle cargo. The aircraft are cargo aircraft , meaning they usually only have a roller floor where they load what is known at cookie sheets (they look like big cookie sheets with d-rings for netting and tie down straps) where they load all the boxes on, the laod in the aircraft. Most of these companies also utlize their own trucking companies and stores to be able to have customers drop off freight, or have a route that there drivers can pickup freight on. With having their own trucks, they also have over the road ground options, which is why they can have very low priced 3-5 days shipments, but if going by air, they also have different levels of surface such as 2day air, next day air, and 6am guantreed. 2 Day Air, they add this freight on the flight when there is extra capacity on the aircraft. Next day and Next flight out (6am, Prioirty.. each company has there own service level name) takes prioirty on that flight. You pay for the difference too. When the flight lands, these high prioirty shipments are the first to come off and get loaded on their trucks, with the 2 day, or later service is packed into route trucks after the Prioirty freight. Airline Cargo companies such as Southwest Cargo.. utizlie passenger aircraft and add this freight in the aircraft in the luggage compartment. This is why they are much more restrictive on weight and dims. Passenger luggage takes priroity, and with the extra capacity on the flight is sold as cargo space, again with differnet levesl of service such as counter to counter, where the box is checked in as luggage, so it gets first priotiy on the aircraft, Next flight out, or Rush (2day service level), where they add it in the extra capacity. Typcially at this level of service, on high capacity passenger flights, it will ususally get bumped, or split. Meaning they only ship part of it. The main difference though is with airlines, is that there has to be someone on the other end to recover this from the airlines, usually a courier, trucking company, or company rep that recovers this by giving the airline the Air way bill number that it flew on. (Each shipment on board will fly under a House airway bill #, and all the freight on board will be under one master airway bill # for each flight).