Most Egyptian produce leaves by sea, and for good reason. A 40ft reefer moves roughly twenty tonnes for a fraction of what the same weight costs in a belly hold. But sea freight has a minimum viable order size and a fixed transit, and there are situations where neither works. For a mid-size buyer, knowing when to fly is worth more than knowing the rate.
How air freight is actually priced
Airlines charge on chargeable weight, which is the greater of actual weight and volumetric weight. Volumetric weight is calculated by dividing the consignment volume in cubic centimetres by 6000. Produce is bulky relative to its weight, so most fresh consignments pay on volume rather than on the scale. This is the figure that surprises first time air shippers, and it is why a lighter carton with less headspace directly reduces the freight bill.
Consignments move either loose in the belly hold on a passenger service or built onto a unit load device. LD3 containers and PMC pallets are the common formats out of Cairo. Building onto a ULD gives better protection and usually a better rate per kilo once volume passes roughly a tonne.
Transit and cold chain
Cairo to Gulf destinations is a three to four hour flight. Cairo to most European hubs is four to five hours. Door to door, allowing for build up, customs and delivery at both ends, a realistic figure is two to three days rather than the flight time. That is still a week or more faster than sea to Northern Europe.
The critical limitation is that a standard belly hold is not refrigerated to produce temperatures and the aircraft hold is not a reefer. Product must be fully pre-cooled to its target temperature before it leaves the packhouse, and the cold chain is maintained by thermal mass, insulated liners and gel packs rather than active cooling. Fruit loaded warm onto an aircraft arrives warm. Some carriers offer active temperature controlled containers on specific routes, at a premium worth quoting if the product justifies it.
The four cases where flying pays
The first is high value per kilo with a short shelf life. Fresh herbs are the clearest example. Mint, basil, dill and rocket lose commercial life quickly and sell at a price that absorbs the freight. Our note on Egyptian fresh herb exports covers grades and pack formats for this category.
The second is a trial or sample shipment. Sending fifty cartons by air to test a product with a customer before committing to a container is cheap risk management. The freight cost on a small consignment is small in absolute terms even if the rate per kilo looks alarming.
The third is the start or end of a season, where a buyer wants to be first into the market with a new crop item or needs to fill a gap before sea volume arrives. The premium in the market during those weeks usually covers the freight.
The fourth is a genuine shortfall, where a customer commitment must be met and waiting fourteen days for a vessel is not an option. This is expensive but it protects a relationship.
What changes in the pack
Air cartons are smaller and lighter than sea cartons, often 2 to 3 kg rather than 4 to 10 kg. Wet ice is refused by most carriers, so gel packs and insulated liners replace it. Cartons are built to a lower stack height because they are not carrying a full pallet above them. All of this needs to be agreed before the order is packed, not after.
Documents
The paperwork is the same as sea with one substitution. An air waybill replaces the bill of lading. Phytosanitary certificate, certificate of origin, invoice and packing list are unchanged, but the timeline is compressed, so documents need to be ready at hand over rather than following behind. Our reference on documentation for Egyptian shipments covers what each document proves.
For an air freight quotation from Cairo on a specific product, volume and destination, including chargeable weight calculated on your carton spec, contact Peivana on WhatsApp at +20 10 9911 1918.