Packaging 101 for Air Cargo
02 JUL 2026 · 5 MIN READ · OPS DESK
You don't need a packaging engineer to fly well. A tape measure, a scale and one afternoon will do — and usually cut chargeable weight by a quarter.
Measure every carton and divide by 6,000 — that's your volumetric kilos. Anything shipping more than 20% air inside the box gets re-packed. Right-size the outer carton first; void fill is just expensive air with extra steps.
Keep cartons stackable and X-ray friendly. Odd shapes waste ULD positions and trigger manual screening; rectangular, uniformly taped cartons with flat labels clear screening fastest. Screening rejects are missed flights.
Protect the corners, not the whole box. Edge protectors and a tight inner wrap beat double-boxing everything. Double-box only the SKUs whose damage rate justifies the extra volumetric kilos — check the claims file before you decide.
Re-check quarterly — assortments change the math. New product, new dimensions, new volumetric bill. One afternoon per quarter keeps the whole catalogue honest.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Re-pack anything shipping 20%+ air; right-size before adding fill.
- Rectangular, flat-labelled cartons clear X-ray fastest.
- Re-measure quarterly — assortments silently change the math.
