FAQ — Refrigerated Air Freight

Aircraft perishable cargo holds are designed to carry a wide range of temperature-sensitive goods — from flowers and fresh produce to pharmaceuticals and frozen food. The -1°C to +3°C range is an airline standard set under IATA Perishable Cargo Regulations (PCR), not something we or any freight forwarder controls.

It’s not ideal for frozen food in isolation. But it doesn’t need to be — because the aircraft hold isn’t doing the work of keeping your product frozen. Your product’s own thermal mass is. A 5kg product uniformly frozen to -18°C throughout (Phase 5 complete) has enormous thermal inertia. In a -1°C to +3°C environment for 1–2 hours, the core temperature barely shifts. The physics works — but only if the product was properly frozen before dispatch.

Yes. No South African regulation prohibits this service model.

• R638 (Regulations Governing General Hygiene Requirements for Food Premises, the Transport of Food and Related Matters) governs food transport and requires appropriate temperature maintenance and monitoring. It applies to each transport operator during their leg of the journey. During our legs — collection and delivery in our refrigerated trucks — we comply fully with R638, including SANAS-verified Cold Watch temperature monitoring, valid Certificates of Acceptability, and calibrated equipment.
• SANS 10156:2014 specifies that frozen food should be transported at -18°C in vehicles with mechanical refrigeration. This applies to road transport vehicles. Aircraft cargo holds fall under aviation regulations (IATA PCR), not SANS 10156.
• ISO/TS 22002-5 requires quick-frozen food to be stored and transported at -18°C ± 3°C. Again, this standard addresses storage and road transport, not aircraft holds.

The aircraft leg is operated by the airline under IATA Perishable Cargo Regulations. Shipping frozen food via perishable cargo holds at -1°C to +3°C is standard global practice — it’s how frozen food has been air-freighted worldwide for decades.

We’ve published a full temperature profile table on our air freight service page. In summary:

• Tarmac handling: Approximately 20 minutes ambient exposure. We mitigate this by flying the last flight at night when ambient temperatures are lowest.
• Our trucks (collection and delivery): We control and monitor temperature. R638 compliant. SANAS-verified records available on request.
• Airport cargo terminal: Operated by the cargo terminal. Goods go into freezer storage before and after the flight, but monitoring is theirs, not ours.
• Aircraft cargo hold: Operated by the airline at -1°C to +3°C. Their systems, their responsibility.

This depends on which leg caused the temperature excursion. Our Terms and Conditions (Section 19) are clear: once goods leave our refrigerated vehicle at the origin airport, they are in the care of third-party operators. We are not liable for temperature problems during the airline or cargo terminal portions of the journey.

If you believe our truck leg caused the issue, we can provide Cold Watch temperature data proving the temperatures we maintained. Temperature disputes must be resolved using invasive probe measurement with calibrated, certified equipment — as required by R638 (Section 13 of our T&Cs).

For a thorough explanation of how liability works across multiple carriers, read: Who Pays for a Thawed Load?

Physics. Tarmac standover — the time your goods spend on the airport apron being loaded or unloaded — is approximately 20 minutes. During a 35°C summer afternoon, that’s 20 minutes of intense radiant heat from superheated tarmac (60°C+) plus direct solar radiation hitting your boxes.

At night, ambient temperatures drop to 15–20°C, tarmac has cooled, and there’s no solar load. The same 20-minute exposure introduces dramatically less heat into your product. It’s the difference between a manageable thermal excursion and one that compromises product integrity.

This isn’t convenience scheduling — it’s deliberate thermal engineering.

You don’t need a Certificate of Acceptability to send goods — that’s required for food premises and transport operators. We hold valid Certificates for our vehicles. Safe Fly Express handles the air cargo documentation and compliance requirements for the airline leg.

If you’re a registered food business, you should already have your own Certificate of Acceptability for your premises. The air freight service doesn’t create additional permit requirements for you as the sender beyond proper packaging, labelling, and ensuring your product is frozen solid.

Road freight trucks maintain -15°C to -25°C for the entire line-haul journey. Even if your product centre is slightly warmer than -18°C, the truck environment actively pulls heat from the product over 2–4 days.

Air freight is different. The cargo hold operates at -1°C to +3°C — which is warmer than your frozen product. Instead of the environment cooling your product, your product is warming toward the environment. If the product hasn’t completed Phase 5 (uniform -18°C throughout), the warmer centre will accelerate toward -1°C rather than being pulled back toward -18°C.

In simple terms: a road freight truck works with an imperfectly frozen product. An aircraft cargo hold works against it.

The only reliable method is using a calibrated temperature probe inserted into the centre of your product. It must read -18°C or colder. Surface temperature and “feels frozen” are not reliable indicators — a product can feel rock-solid on the outside while the centre is still at -8°C.

For detailed guidance on freezing timelines, common mistakes, and product-specific considerations, read: Why “Frozen Solid” Takes Longer Than You Think: The Complete Science of Freezing for Transport

You can, but these products require extra care. Ice cream and gelato begin losing quality at temperatures above -18°C far more visibly than most frozen foods — texture changes, ice crystal growth, and flavour degradation happen quickly.

Given the cargo hold operates at -1°C to +3°C, your dessert products must be fully tempered to -18°C uniform core temperature before dispatch. We’d also recommend virgin double-walled cardboard (not single-walled), packing in a cold environment, and sealing immediately.

Be aware that some third-party carriers explicitly exclude ice cream and frozen desserts from their liability coverage on consolidated loads. Our own terms don’t exclude these products, but the airline and cargo terminal operate under their own terms. Read Who Pays for a Thawed Load? for the full picture on product exclusions.

We reserve the right to refuse goods that aren’t frozen solid at collection — per our Terms and Conditions (Section 12.4 and 12.6). Poorly frozen product doesn’t just affect your shipment — it releases heat into the cargo space, potentially compromising other customers’ goods on the same load.

If inadequately frozen product is accepted and subsequently thaws during transit, we cannot be held liable. Our service maintains temperature — we don’t freeze goods down during transport (Section 12.1 of our T&Cs).

For local courier delivery, your product spends the entire journey in our -12°C truck. Packaging protects against physical damage and provides a secondary thermal barrier during brief door openings.

For air freight, your product passes through multiple environments — our truck (-12°C), cargo terminal handling (brief ambient exposure), aircraft hold (-1°C to +3°C), tarmac (~20 minutes ambient), and back through the reverse. Your packaging is the primary thermal barrier during the legs where the environment is above freezing. Better packaging directly extends how long your product maintains its frozen state.

Virgin double-walled cardboard — strongly recommended for all air freight. The thicker walls provide better thermal insulation and superior structural integrity for handling at cargo terminals, where your boxes may be stacked, scanned, moved to freezers, and loaded onto cargo trucks.

Recycled, single-walled, or damaged boxes lose heat faster and are more prone to crushing — both problems amplified across the multiple handling stages of air freight.

Polystyrene boxes can work well for air freight, but only if:

• They include ice packs or gel packs (polystyrene alone just slows warming — it doesn’t maintain temperature)
• They’re packed completely full (air gaps are your enemy)
• They’re sealed immediately after packing in a cold environment

For air freight, consider extra ice packs beyond what you’d use for same-day delivery.

Dry ice is classified as a dangerous good under IATA regulations and must be declared by the shipper. It’s subject to quantity limits per package and per aircraft. Safe Fly Express handles the specific requirements — discuss dry ice use with us before packing so we can confirm it’s permitted on your specific routing and advise on quantity limits.

The Ultimate Guide to Packaging Frozen Foods for Delivery — comprehensive guide covering box selection, insulation, ice packs, and best practices

The Complete Guide to Packaging Pre-Made Frozen Meals for Delivery — specific guidance for meal prep businesses, home cooks, and frozen meal producers