4 Reasons to Choose Air Freight when Shipping to Alaska

When it comes to shipping freight to and from Alaska, there are four primary reasons that shipping by air can be the best option. Cost, Reliability, Limits on Cargo and Destinations.

Cost & Value

Most people believe that shipping by air is the most expensive means of shipping anything. While this may be true in some cases, there are other factors to consider that can have a significant impact on the overall cost of shipping to Alaska. First, it’s important to understand the difference between how air-freight is charged versus how ocean freight is charged. Air-freight is calculated from a combination of the weight and the size of the shipment. Sea carrier rates are based on a per-container charge. This can be beneficial when shipping larger loads, however, as shipments get smaller, the margin between prices of air versus ocean shipping gets smaller.

Additionally, the need to store goods after they’ve been shipped will incur a separate cost and seaport warehouse can be quite expensive. The higher warehousing fees may very well negate any cost savings on the shipping itself. The higher warehousing fees may very well negate any cost savings on the shipping itself.

Here at Alaska Air Forwarding, we make every effort to ship your cargo in the most cost-effective means possible. We offer Priority, Standard, and Economy shipping. Priority shipping will ensure that your shipment arrives next day, depending on the destination. Our standard shipping is cost-effective and will deliver your shipment within 2-3 business days and our Economy shipping saves you even more money and provides delivery within 3-5 days.

We also offer Shipment Consolidation which can save you money in the long-run. If your freight is coming in from various locations Alaska Air holds each of your shipments upon arrival and then packages them into one shipment for its final destination. Plus, since we offer land shipments anywhere in the country and water shipments within Alaska, we can offer you an even more competitive price to handle each leg of your shipping order.

Reliability

When shipping any type of cargo, Reliability is key. Knowing that your shipment will arrive when it is needed is a top priority; perhaps even more important than the cost. In addition, knowing that your shipment will arrive in one piece, with no damage, is equally important. If your shipment does not arrive when it is needed, or, arrives damaged, it really doesn’t matter how much money you may have saved in the shipping process. True, airports can also be affected by weather, but there are typically multiple flights leaving during the day, providing more options for departure. Ocean freight shippers don’t have the luxury of multiple departures and so a delay due to weather means your shipment is at the mercy of when the ship receives clearance to leave. Additionally, once the shipment does arrive at the port, your goods may be subject to damage due to long waits or the need for transfers.

Alaska Air Forwarding is proud to be one of the most reliable in the business. We have a network of partners that we have worked with for more than a decade. With our door-to-door delivery, we have the equipment and connections to pick up freight from your warehouse and deliver it directly to your desired location. Plus, we will provide either verbal or written verification that your shipment has arrived. We maintain close relationships with various Alaska carriers to remain in constant contact with them regarding delivery schedules. If a flight is canceled, we have the means and resources to move your freight to the next available window. This allows us to get your freight to its final destination, on time.

Heavy-Lift Cargo

Perhaps one of the greatest advantages to shipping via air is the ability to move almost anything. As mentioned above, other shipping methods experience limitations, while our air cargo has no restrictions on weight or size. Here at Alaska Air Forwarding, we specialize in shipping heavy-lift air cargo to and from Alaska and under difficult conditions. We have the expertise to deliver loads as heavy as 10,000 pounds and can also deliver oddly shaped loads. Here are some of the things we can ship:
• Engines
• Inventory Shipments
• Mechanical & Electrical Equipment
• Replacement Parts
• No weight Restrictions
With Alaska Air Forwarding, we can ship any equipment, any size.

Destinations

Air-freight carriers also bring the advantage of offering more shipping destinations. Ocean carriers are obviously limited to one throughway and can travel only from port to port. Air-freight carriers, on the other hand, have many more routes and destinations available to them, including even the most remote areas of Alaska. However, even most air-freight carriers have limits as to where they can ship, meaning more remote places can be excluded from their shipping routes. This is not the case with Alaska Air Forwarding. Remote shipping is another one of our specialties. Alaskan villages that are not even on the map are within our reach for shipping. We can ship freight originating in the lower 48 using multiple transfers and multiple aircraft and delivering cargo to the most remote Alaskan bush communities. Here’s an example of what we can do when it comes to destinations that are a bit more challenging.

The small Alaskan village of Kwigillingok was one of 3 villages looking to reduce their dependence on Diesel power by installing Wind Power Generators. We were contacted to find a way to ship multiple over-length and oversized 20-foot sections of these wind-powered generators by air. The shipments originated in Minnesota and were shipped on large aircraft into Alaska and then transferred to smaller aircraft and flown into the construction site at Kwigillingok.

Thanks to the many connections that we have established throughout the state over the past twenty years, Alaska Air Forwarding is one of the few companies that has access to deliver cargo to remote areas.

If you have large shipping needs, consider the advantages that air-freight can offer, and consider how Alaska Air Forwarding can take care of all of your shipping needs from start to finish and every point in between. Contact us and let us show you how we can handle all of your shipping needs.