Have you cargo vanners tried hauling air freight?

ExFedEx

Veteran Expediter
Charter Member
Owner/Operator
Boy, the guy told you all that he runs for 1.25 a mile. He also said that he clears a grand a week after fuel. So even if the guy puts five hundred of that weekly money away for maintenance, breakdowns, and vehicle replacement, he is still averaging 500 dollars a week take home. That's not bad at all considering that fact that he gets to sleep in his own bed at night. He also doesn't have to sit at the truck stops day and night praying for a load. Why do you guys have to pick apart everything that someone else does? I think you all simply have too much time on your hands, and sitting in the driver seat staring out the front windshield has made a few of you guys batty in the head!

Any ways, why would you worry about this guy taking your job? Air freight is a completely different animal from traditional expedite. You have to have a professional attitude and patience when you are moving air freight on a consistent basis. I know, I used to do it out here in California. Oh, and air freight generally pays a lot more than regular expedite freight pays. I doubt drivers who are moving air freight are doing it at a reduced rate. It's not like automotive freight. You guys are a trip. No one can ever do anything right in your eyes.

I owned a company and figured out all there is to know about this industry and haters would come on here and bash me for every little detail. You guys drive a glorified delivery vehicle. Anyone can get your job if they have a cargo van and a couple of bucks. If you want a job that has stricter requirements for new hires, get a college education and get a real job. This man figured out how to tailor expedite to fit into his lifestyle. The man is a step above the average cargo van driver sitting in the Flying J parking lot. I'll post this and sit here clicking the refresh button until someone attacks me for sticking up for a fellow expediter. lol

Thank you Blizzard for saying what I've been saying for oh so long now, and that is if you work for under $1.25/1.30.mile you're killing the business. I know that YOU know exactly what I'm talking about because we've talked before about this, even to the point of you saying that when you get back to driving you'd like to hook up with my brokers, and living in the LA area airfreight is just a given aspect of this biz. You want to work, you do airfreight, and you go out, make your delivery and come home every night (most nights that is). The rates are usually in the $1.40 - $1.75/ mile range, and yes, you deadhead home, unless you've got a dispatch guy who really cares and he can get you something going somewhere that picks up close to your delivery. A lot of times it just ain't gonna happen. And then I come on here and read about how $.90/mile and sitting for 3 - 7 days at truck stops waiting for a load is a normal thing. No it isn't! Over the last 20 years of doing this, I've managed to have a wife, raise two boys who are now out of college, and am on my second home purchase by running airfreight, as well as continue my music gigs with bands. Try committing to a gig and then explain to the guys why you can't make because it's Friday afternoon you're sitting in SLC waiting for a load to get you home... sounds like a long weekend to me, and the next starving bass player has just taken your spot.

Point being, DRIVERDUDE has himself a gig that works for him, and he is happy with it. He is within a 500 mile range of his home and he knows where the cheap gas is, where his favorite eatery's are, and in case of a breakdown I'm sure he has that figured out as well. I do in my corner of this country, and it works. Living out of a cargo van in a truck stop is a royal pain. Getting home every night makes this a somewhat normal job and having a normal life.
 
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wvcourier

Expert Expediter
Go to homeless shelter, find a girl, clean her up, buy a cb, pimp her out at the Truck Stops....plus you have a team driver...win win

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zorry

Veteran Expediter
Semantics.

If you run 250 miles loaded and 250 empty you could say you run 50% deadhead. 50 loaded/50 deadhead.

If I was talking 250 singular trip, with a 250 mile dh, I could say the deadhead is 100% of the number of loaded miles.

Either could be right, I guess. I think the first is more common and clearer. At the end of the year you'd have 50% dh miles.

100% dh miles appears you never loaded any freight.
 

LDB

Veteran Expediter
Retired Expediter
Both are correct depending on usage. In one year if you do 40k loaded and 40k deadhead then your 40k deadhead is 100% of your loaded miles. Your deadhead is only 50% of your 80k annual total.
 

kg

Veteran Expediter
Charter Member
Owner/Operator
I wonder if people on this forum realize how many of their fellow expeditors have other sources of income. It would be an interesting survey to take.

More than occasionally people express displeasure here on EO with the competition provided by expeditors with pensions etc. Did you not consider this fact when deciding to become a road warrior?

This business is heavily populated with people that have had successful careers in other fields and take enjoyment in this second career as expeditors. Whats wrong with that?


Be safe KG
That's the other problem....a lot of hobby expediters...you most likely have other income sources...so for us doing this as our full Income...the hobby expediters run for less than I would ever...in turn driving the rates down..
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Moot

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
Semantics.

If you run 250 miles loaded and 250 empty you could say you run 50% deadhead. 50 loaded/50 deadhead.
You could say that. You could also say it is a round trip and 0% deadhead.
 

T270_Dreamin

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
Straights must be making 1.90 after fuel with fed x. I imagine there is a whole level of inner happiness when driving down the road in a 120k dollar truck with air suspension, must be nice. Get extorted and get the comfortable truck or bust you *** in a sprinter and get beat up by all the road noise and vibration. Maybe I need a new truck to run some big miles but I can't even convince myself to take the overnight runs or 1500 mile loads anymore in the time frame they give, it is asking for some pain the next day even being in my 30's you can feel it. I have a class b hazmat. 03-06 sprinter is asking for some hurting. SAY THE NEW rigs must ride nice and allow for more miles.. I wouldn't even know!
 

rollincoal

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
Straights at FXCC turning a $1.90 on the hub, every mile, after fuel? Wow I need to sell my truck and get a class B!

As far as deadhead is concerned, if you're charging rates accordingly those miles are paid for. I know to a T exactly how many deadhead miles I've turned daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly - the percentage of my total hub miles. Do everything I can to minimize them cause they're a drain. But the customers out here always pay for those. I make sure of it. So however one looks at those miles doesn't really matter as long as rates cover them.

Interestingly enough there's a thread in here by a member stuck in Nogales, AZ for 4 or 5 days now who says "any amount of deadhead is too much. He can't even stomach going 350 miles into TX to try for a reload. This is what happens when an owner underprices themselves to an unknown market. Obviously he got suckered on rate and the customer got off scott free covering deadhead. Or, in the big picture, his overall rates haven't been good enough to justify eating a big 1,000 mile+ deadhead a time or two in the course of a year. But I know guys who do get rates to justify some deadhead on occasion and still they balk and waste time sitting. I've even been guilty of that myself a few times.



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BigCat

Expert Expediter
We ran a surface truck on the flat rate program at $1.20 a mile. If they are making $1.90 a mile it must be wg.
 

jakeherrell

Rookie Expediter
I signed on with a couple of air freight companies in Atlanta and love it. I run a radius of 2-3 states surrounding GA I'm home most nights because I deadhead back home to pickup the next day. I make a minimum of $1.25 / mile and average $1200.00 to $1500.00 per week. I beats the pants off of being on the road weeks at a time. I usually average 4 runs per week sometimes more. I hear straight trucks do pretty well too.

Sounds like a great deal to me!! Im trying to get on hauling air freight in atl but dont really know how to get signed on. Is there any way you could help me out a little bit? I would really appreciate it and could possibly compensate you for your time. My email is [email protected]
 

HockeyRob

Seasoned Expediter
I signed on with a couple of air freight companies in Atlanta and love it. I run a radius of 2-3 states surrounding GA I'm home most nights because I deadhead back home to pickup the next day. I make a minimum of $1.25 / mile and average $1200.00 to $1500.00 per week. I beats the pants off of being on the road weeks at a time. I usually average 4 runs per week sometimes more. I hear straight trucks do pretty well too.
If there were any such Companies within Southeastern Michigan & Southwestern Ontario, this sounds Like something I would Like to Get Involved In!
 

xiggi

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
All cities with a decent size airport have airfreight companies.

sent from my Fisher Price - ABC123
 

noneya

Active Expediter
I signed on with a couple of air freight companies in Atlanta and love it. I run a radius of 2-3 states surrounding GA I'm home most nights because I deadhead back home to pickup the next day. I make a minimum of $1.25 / mile and average $1200.00 to $1500.00 per week. I beats the pants off of being on the road weeks at a time. I usually average 4 runs per week sometimes more. I hear straight trucks do pretty well too.

Please give me info on how I can get into the air freight biz. I live in the Atlanta area and tired of sittong around trucks stops waiting on loads.

SENT FROM YO MAMA'S HOUSE!
 

DRIVERDUDE

Seasoned Expediter
Call as many air freight and expediting companies based in ATL and ask if they are looking for cargo vans. But I'll tell you it's slow now.
 

Wtwalker

Rookie Expediter
I signed on with a couple of air freight companies in Atlanta and love it. I run a radius of 2-3 states surrounding GA I'm home most nights because I deadhead back home to pickup the next day. I make a minimum of $1.25 / mile and average $1200.00 to $1500.00 per week. I beats the pants off of being on the road weeks at a time. I usually average 4 runs per week sometimes more. I hear straight trucks do pretty well too.

I have recently purchased a cargo van with the intention of hauling air freight. Can you give me any details on how to connect with these companies in Atlanta?
 

zorry

Veteran Expediter
Where's the Airport ?

I don't feel like driving over there. Can you stop in and have someone call me ?
Or pick up an app for me ?
 
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