Air freight to United States suits cargo where the value of arriving early outweighs the freight premium — production spares, samples, retail launches, medical products, exhibition kit and personal effects that cannot wait for a vessel. We collect anywhere in the UK, screen the consignment at a Regulated Agent facility and put it on the first suitable service to New York.
Air Freight Rates: UK to United States
Get a firm rate- Cargo under 100kg
- £4.30 – £7.00 per kgPer chargeable kilo on consolidated services, minimum charge applies
- Cargo over 100kg
- £2.60 – £4.20 per kgPer chargeable kilo, with further steps at 300kg, 500kg and 1,000kg
- Airline charges
- £109 – £186Fuel and security surcharge, air waybill fee and terminal handling
- UK export entry & screening
- £45 + £0.16 per kgCustoms declaration plus Regulated Agent security screening
- Airport handling in United States
- payable at destinationTerminal handling, storage after free time and local clearance fees
- Transit time
- 2-4 daysAirport to airport into New York
Indicative figures for planning only. Chargeable weight is the greater of actual weight and volume ÷ 6,000. Rates to United States move with fuel, capacity and season — we confirm a firm all-in figure with your quote.
Which airports in United States we fly into
Of the 13,513 airports in United States, commercial cargo is concentrated on a handful of gateways with bonded terminals and customs presence. We normally route through New York (JFK), Los Angeles (LAX), Chicago (ORD), Miami (MIA), Atlanta (ATL), then truck inland where the final delivery point sits away from the airport. If your consignee is closer to a regional field, tell us the town and we will price the nearest viable option.
Documentation for air shipments to United States
A clean clearance in United States depends on the paperwork matching the cargo exactly. We prepare and check the full set before departure:
- Commercial invoice showing values, Incoterm and full consignee details
- Packing list agreeing piece for piece with the invoice
- Air waybill issued by us or the carrier
- Certificate of origin where United States requires it for duty purposes
- Licences, health or phytosanitary certificates for controlled goods
- Personal effects declaration and inventory for unaccompanied baggage
How the rate to United States is built
An air freight price is never a single number. It starts with the chargeable weight — the greater of the scale weight and the volume of each piece divided by 6,000 — then adds the airline's fuel and security surcharges, the air waybill fee, terminal handling at the UK gateway and screening at our Regulated Agent facility. Collection, export customs and any licences sit alongside it, and clearance and delivery in United States complete the landed cost. We quote all of it together so you can compare like with like.
Because the per-kilo rate steps down as consignments get heavier, the way cargo is packed often changes the price more than the routing does. Reducing a pallet by ten centimetres in height can drop it into a lower volumetric band; splitting a consignment across two flights can push both halves into a higher one. Send us the piece dimensions before you build the pallets and we will tell you which shape is cheapest to fly.
Transit times and flight options to United States
Airport to airport transit into New York runs about 2-4 days on our standard consolidated service, including build-up, screening and the connection at the transit hub. Express bookings on direct flights cut that down where capacity allows, and next-flight-out is available for breakdown spares where the freight cost is irrelevant beside the cost of standing still.
Charter and part-charter make sense for project cargo, oversized pieces or relief work into United States where scheduled hold dimensions will not take the freight. We price those case by case with the handling agent and the permits included.
- 1
Quote
Weights, dimensions and commodity confirmed, rate issued.
- 2
Collection
Cargo collected in the UK and re-weighed at our facility.
- 3
Screening
Security screening and build-up for the booked flight.
- 4
Flight
Departure to New York, AWB tracking shared.
- 5
Delivery
Clearance in United States, duty settled and delivery to the consignee.
Air freight cargo we handle to United States
Every consignment is planned around the commodity, not squeezed into a single service.
General cargo
Cartons, crates and pallets of trade goods on consolidated or direct services into New York.
Urgent spares & AOG
Next-flight-out bookings and hand-carry where a line or vessel is down.
Excess baggage
Boxes and suitcases for anyone relocating to or studying in United States, collected from your door.
Perishables & pharma
Temperature controlled packaging, cool chain handling and logger monitoring.
Dangerous goods
IATA-classified batteries, chemicals, aerosols and paints packed and declared correctly.
Oversized & charter
Freighter capacity and part-charter for pieces beyond passenger hold limits.
Sea freight as an alternative
If the deadline allows, ocean freight to United States typically runs 2-4 weeks and costs a fraction of the air rate on anything heavy or bulky. Compare a container shipment to United States or, for vehicles, RoRo car shipping to United States.