Air freight from China
general cargo on scheduled flights
Air freight from China on scheduled flights is more than a per-kilo rate. The total depends on chargeable weight, the weight break, fuel and security surcharges, and on how quickly the cargo leaves the arrival airport's bonded store. We calculate all of this upfront and manage the cargo from the supplier's warehouse to your door.
Direct China–Russia flights are operated mainly by Russian and Chinese carriers, and some airlines do not serve Russia. So we route by who actually accepts the cargo: a direct flight to Moscow (Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo, Vnukovo), Novosibirsk or Vladivostok — or via a transit hub.
Specification
Specification · General air freight. Standard terms · flight, rate and timing are confirmed per shipment
Service
- Cargo
- general, no special handling
- Routing
- China / Asia → Moscow, Novosibirsk, Vladivostok
- Options
- insurance, repacking, labelling
Terms
- Timing
- about 3–7 days door-to-door
- Documents
- invoice and HS code check included
- Currency
- USD / RUB
Logistics
- In China
- pickup, export, delivery by cut-off
- Flight
- direct or via a hub
- In Russia
- bonded store, DT, door delivery
Price
- Base
- rate per chargeable kg by weight break
- Extras
- fuel and security surcharges, terminal, storage
Service flow
- 01
Quote and routing
We take weights, piece dimensions and cargo description, calculate chargeable weight and compare direct and transit options by price and transit time.
same day - 02
Booking and pickup
We book space, collect the cargo from the supplier, weigh and measure it at the warehouse and match the marks with the packing list.
1–2 days - 03
Export and departure
Chinese export declaration, security screening (X-ray), delivery to the terminal before cut-off, AWB issued.
1 day - 04
Customs at the airport
The cargo is placed in the arrival airport's temporary storage (SVKh); we file the DT, pay duties and attend any inspection.
1–3 days - 05
Delivery to consignee
We collect the cargo from the bonded store, truck it to the consignee's warehouse and hand over closing documents and a copy of the DT.
1–2 days
Problems
The per-kilo rate ended up far below the final invoice: light, bulky cargo was charged by volume weight, plus fuel and security surcharges and terminal handling.
We calculate chargeable weight from actual piece dimensions and quote an all-in rate to the door with every surcharge itemised.
The cargo was offloaded because of overbooking or refused at the terminal: batteries inside, no air transport safety report.
Before booking we check what is inside; for items with batteries, magnets or liquids we get the supplier to order the safety report (鉴定报告) in advance and reconfirm space with the carrier.
The cargo has landed but release drags on: generic descriptions on the invoice, no EAEU conformity certificate — while airport storage is charged from day one.
We check the invoice, HS codes and compliance documents before departure so the DT can be filed as soon as the flight lands.
Documents
Documents for an air shipment from China. Under Incoterms 2020 FOB and CIF are sea-only terms — for air freight use FCA, CPT or EXW and agree in the contract who pays for export clearance.
Incoterms
- FCA
- FCA airport or supplier's warehouse — the main term for air freight
- CPT
- the seller pays freight to the destination airport
- EXW
- everything from the supplier's door on the buyer, incl. export clearance in China
Documents
- Commercial invoice
- with goods description, HS code and price per line
- Packing List
- gross weight and dimensions of each piece — the basis for chargeable weight
- Air waybill
- carrier's MAWB and forwarder's HAWB, consistent with the invoice
- Contract
- foreign trade contract with the delivery term; contract registration (UNK) if required
- Compliance
- EAEU/CU technical regulation certificate or declaration where applicable
FAQ
There is no single price: the rate depends on the origin airport, airline, season and weight break (+45, +100, +300, +500, +1000 kg) — the heavier the shipment, the lower the per-kilo rate. Fuel and security surcharges, terminal handling and storage are added on top. We quote door-to-door with every item listed.
You pay for the greater of actual gross weight and volumetric weight. Volumetric weight is length × width × height (cm) / 6000, i.e. 1 m³ = 167 kg. For example, 100 kg taking up 1 m³ is charged as 167 kg.
A direct Shanghai–Moscow flight takes less than a day; airport-to-airport, including terminal acceptance, is usually 1–3 days. With pickup, Chinese export, Moscow customs and delivery to your warehouse it is usually 3–7 days. Transit routings add 1–3 days.
General cargo flies on scheduled flights at the standard rate and waits for its flight according to schedule and load. Express means space on the next aircraft with priority acceptance and handling, at a noticeably higher price. If timing is critical, we switch the cargo to express service.
Usually at the arrival airport: the cargo goes into the cargo terminal's temporary storage (SVKh) and is released under a DT (Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo, Vnukovo customs or posts at regional airports). Transit to an inland customs office is possible but rarely worthwhile for air. Storage is charged, so we prepare the DT before the flight lands.
By default we work door-to-door: we collect from the shipper, clear customs and deliver to the consignee. On request we handle only airport-to-airport if you have your own broker and trucking.