Is Asian Air Cargo “Pivoting” to Premium E-commerce?
English - Ngày đăng : 08:00, 08/12/2025
Capacity: belly is back; freighters are being re-configured
As passenger networks recover, belly capacity on Asia-US and Asia-EU lanes rises notably in peak seasons, pressuring prices on lanes once dominated by freighters. Still, seasonal stability and ability to handle bulky or temperature-controlled cargo remain freighter strengths. Capacity thus bifurcates: shipments with firm deadlines and standard parcel sizes skew belly; project, cold-chain, or high-value cargo still favors freighters for ground handling, security, and temperature control. At ASEAN gateways, night slots enable rapid e-commerce consolidation/sortation; “overnight in/out” cycles shorten inventory turns at parcel hubs.
Cross-border e-commerce: from volume spikes to new service standards
E-commerce raises not just pieces but standards: near-real-time tracking at parcel level, more scan events, and advance electronic customs data before wheels-down. End-to-end redesign is needed: at origin, OMS should push pre-clearance data via API; at destination gateways, standardize sort by ZIP, boost screening capacity, and enforce on-time handoff to the correct depot within tight windows. Marketplaces and cross-border retailers are building new KPIs into contracts: on-time scan ratio, time to clear flagged parcels, and on-time handover to last-mile partners. Carriers/forwarders that meet “e-commerce SLAs” will gain share even without the absolute lowest price.
Standardize advance customs data pre-departure; add mandatory “checkpoint scans” at handover points; re-roster night shift ground crews; implement a risk codebook for parcels likely to be held; and pre-agree dynamic “split/merge” between belly and freighter when slots change suddenly. The goal is stable speed not just speed on paper.
Cost & carbon: SAF surcharges and “neutral” labels must be transparent
Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) will weigh more heavily in cost models. Airlines are rolling out surcharges tied to blend ratios or “book & claim” allocation. Shippers should demand two layers of clarity: the pricing basis (units, route, time) and documentation (serial numbers and a reconcilable ledger). For “carbon-neutral shipping,” apply the label only with a complete evidence pack: baseline emissions, actual reductions (if any), and retired, high-quality offsets. With cost-carbon structures clear, procurement can rotate route portfolios quarterly without being locked into one pricing model.
Extending to the final mile: sea–air and road milk-runs
“Hybrid” modes are back because the mandate is fast and affordable. Sea–air via Singapore/East Asia can cut costs versus direct air while keeping tight lead times for revenue-sensitive SKUs. Within ASEAN, road milk-runs from air hubs to tier-2 cities lower last-mile cost if real-time order/inventory data enables efficient consolidation. “Soft handoffs” between air and road SOPs to prevent loss, temperature protocols for sensitive goods, and aligned insurance - determine scale in peak season.
On-time at aircraft gate; on-time mandatory scans; time to process flagged parcels; non-delivery ratio for missing data; average cost per parcel by lane/mode; and normalized emissions per parcel. Contract these KPIs with quarterly price/service adjustments tied to slot disruptions.
Asian air cargo is pivoting with e-commerce. The game is no longer just buying aircraft space; it’s designing a data-to-delivery chain from pre-clearance to depot handoff. Those who master the belly–freighter mix, bring transparency to SAF surcharges, and run sea–air/road link-ups smoothly will defend both speed and margin. Without data discipline and contract discipline, “fast delivery” stays a slogan while costs mount.