During the peak season, if there is an urgent replenishment needed, can one also apply for scarce air freight slots?
During the peak season, air freight capacity is extremely tight. Most regular slots are fully booked even a month or two in advance. Many sellers have encountered situations where their best-selling products are selling out quickly and their inventory is running low. They need to urgently replenish their stock temporarily. Many people believe that there are no spare slots during the peak season. However, through legitimate channels, one can still apply for scarce slots. Obtaining urgent slots is possible, but there are certain methods. At the same time, it is necessary to understand the types of slots and their corresponding costs.
Firstly, the easiest to obtain are airline's temporary chartered flights. During the peak season, passenger and cargo flows far exceed the daily capacity. Airlines will temporarily add cargo chartered flights and passenger extra-cabin flights based on the cargo pressure. The chartered flight slots will not be released in advance for a long time. They are mostly released in small batches 3 to 7 days before the flight, serving as the main source for temporary replenishment. Reliable first-tier freight forwarders have long been in contact with the airline's cabin control departments and can obtain chartered flight quotas immediately. Ordinary individuals cannot directly contact the airlines. By relying on leading freight forwarders to urgently submit applications, one can secure such scarce slots. The advantages of chartered flights are stable timeliness and formality. However, they generally have a 15% to 30% premium compared to regular slots. Flight schedules are relatively random, and the destinations are mostly core hub airports. 
Secondly, apply for the temporary empty slots that have been vacated by regular positions. Beforehand, many shippers locked in their positions but gave up them due to poor sales or delayed shipments. Within 1 to 5 days before departure, there will be a large number of scattered empty positions that are called "swapping slots" in the industry. Freight forwarders will daily sort out the list of cancelled positions and can arrange urgent replenishment by having the freight forwarders monitor the market and seize the positions. Such positions have a transport price close to the market price and a relatively low premium, making them the most cost-effective urgent positions. However, swapping slots are highly random and cannot be precisely targeted at flights. They are suitable for replenishment goods with not extremely urgent delivery requirements and can accept minor adjustments to the flight schedule.
The third type: High-price special priority positions, exclusive for extreme urgent items. For爆款 goods that must be rapidly placed on the shelves within 3 to 5 days， one can apply for VIP priority positions from the airline. Such positions have the highest priority and even if the aircraft is fully loaded， positions will be coordinated to be vacated for loading. After landing， they will enjoy priority customs clearance and priority pick-up privileges. However， this type of position has a relatively high premium， generally increasing by more than 40%. It is suitable for high-value goods. Ordinary low-priced goods are not recommended to choose.
The fourth type： Diversion positions on transfer routes， avoiding congestion on direct flights. The positions on direct flights from Europe and the US are the most tight. For urgent replenishment in Europe， the US East， and other regions， one can choose flights to Japan， South Korea， and the Middle East as transfer flights. The positions on transfer routes are relatively sufficient and temporary booking is more likely to be approved. Although the time efficiency is increased by 1 to 3 days， the price increase is small， and the positions are sufficient and stable. It is a compromise and safe choice.
To successfully apply for positions， there are three key techniques： First， preferentially choose first-level freight forwarders with long-term cooperation. Small agencies do not have cabin resource and only the leading freight forwarders have cabin control and connection authority； Second， pack the goods in advance and enter the warehouse at any time. After the positions are released， they can be delivered and loaded immediately. Hesitation and waiting will miss the brief empty slots； Third， accept a reasonable premium. There is no price match opportunity for urgent positions during the peak season. will completely miss the replenishment opportunity.
Be cautious of： There are scams for low-price urgent positions on the market， claiming to quickly seize scarce positions at extremely low prices. Most of them are fake positions and will temporarily sell off goods and delay the shipment. In summary， during the peak season， urgent positions can be obtained through temporary booking. Prioritize monitoring加班 flights and cancelled swapping slots， choose special priority positions for extreme urgent items， and do not rush to choose transfer routes if not extremely urgent. Then， you can smoothly replenish goods.