Air Freight Company in Johannesburg — OR Tambo Cargo, Near You
Flexagon Freight & Logistics books and clears air cargo through OR Tambo International — Africa's busiest cargo airport — from an office beside the cargo terminals at 2 West Street, Kempton Park CBD. Next-flight-out for urgent consignments, scheduled consolidations for regular shippers, charter for outsized cargo, plus temperature-controlled handling and IATA DGR documentation.
Air freight is bought for time, and time is lost on the ground, not in the air. Being next to the terminal is what turns a same-day clearance from a promise into a routine.
Who handles air freight from Johannesburg and OR Tambo International?
Flexagon Freight & Logistics books, documents and clears air cargo through OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) from an office at 2 West Street, Kempton Park CBD — beside the cargo terminals. Operating since 2004 and a SARS-registered customs clearing agent, we handle air imports and exports worldwide.
Services include next-flight-out for urgent consignments, scheduled consolidations, full and part charter, temperature-controlled air cargo, and dangerous goods classified and documented to IATA DGR. Quotes are issued within 24 business hours. Call +27 73 326 0521 or request a quote.
- Airport
- OR Tambo International (JNB), Johannesburg
- Our position
- Office beside the cargo terminals
- Speed options
- Next-flight-out, consolidation, charter
- Regulated cargo
- IATA DGR documented; temperature-controlled available
- Quote turnaround
- Within 24 business hours
Page content last reviewed and updated 30 September 2026.
The Flight Is Never
the Slow Part
A shipment from Frankfurt to Johannesburg is airborne for about ten hours. The elapsed time your business actually experiences is usually three to five days — and almost all of the difference is ground time: waiting for documents from the supplier, the airline's acceptance cut-off, terminal handling, customs clearance and the final delivery leg. Buying air freight without managing the ground time is paying a premium for speed you do not receive.
That is the reason our office is where it is. Beside the OR Tambo cargo terminals, a documentary query, a reweigh, an inspection or a stop order is attended to in person within the hour rather than emailed to a third party and chased the next morning. We are also a SARS-registered clearing agent, so the entry on your air import is lodged by the same business that booked the flight.
We book next-flight-out for genuinely urgent cargo, scheduled consolidations where you ship regularly and want a better rate, and charter where the cargo is outsized or the deadline justifies it. Call +27 73 326 0521, email [email protected] or request a quote.
⚖️ Chargeable Weight — Why the Quote Moved
Airlines charge on the greater of actual weight and volumetric weight (length × width × height in cm ÷ 6000). A light, bulky pallet is charged on its volume, which is why an air quote can double when the real dimensions arrive. Send accurate dimensions at enquiry stage and the first number you get is the number you pay.
Air Freight Near Me — Anywhere in South Africa
Searching for air freight near you? We collect from every Gauteng suburb and run scheduled national routes to all nine provinces. Pick your city for local collection detail, transit times and a quote form.
Collected From Your Door
Scheduled and on-demand collections — you do not come to us.
Quote Inside 24 Hours
Itemised quote within 24 business hours; before midday often same day.
Quote on WhatsApp
Send a photo of the invoice or packing list to +27 73 326 0521.
24/7 Line in Transit
A person answers for cargo already moving or stuck at a border.
Air Freight Services
Through OR Tambo
Learn More opens the related service page; Request a Quote goes straight to the enquiry form.
Next-Flight-Out & Urgent Air Freight
For a line-down part, a production stoppage or a customer waiting, we book the earliest available lift rather than the cheapest — and, because we clear beside the terminal, the cargo does not then sit on the ground waiting for an entry. Tell us the deadline and we work backwards from it.
Air Consolidation for Regular Shippers
If you send small consignments to the same destination repeatedly, consolidating them into scheduled departures usually costs materially less than booking each one separately — one set of documents, one handling charge, better weight breaks. Worth pricing against what you currently pay per parcel.
Air Charter & Outsized Cargo
Where cargo will not fit a scheduled aircraft's door or hold, where the volume justifies a dedicated lift, or where a project deadline leaves no alternative. We arrange full and part charter, loading plans, and the ground handling and permits that outsized air cargo requires at both ends.
Temperature-Controlled & Perishable Air Cargo
Cold-chain air freight for pharmaceutical, medical, food and horticultural cargo — refrigerated collection, cold handling at the airport, temperature-controlled unit load devices where the lane supports them, and the temperature documentation the receiving country expects.
Dangerous Goods Air Freight — IATA DGR
Batteries, aerosols, paints, solvents, compressed gases and diagnostic specimens classified, packed, marked, labelled and documented to the IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations. Undeclared DG is the fastest way to have a shipment offloaded and your account reviewed — declaring it properly is cheaper every time.
Air Import Clearance & Final-Mile Delivery
Air imports cleared at OR Tambo by our own SARS-registered staff and delivered onward across Gauteng and nationally. Send the air waybill and invoice as soon as your supplier issues them and the entry can be prepared before the aircraft lands.
Freight & Customs Clearing Prices
Below the Published Market Rate
Most forwarders make you phone for a price. We publish ours. Every from-price below sits under the lowest rate we could find publicly listed by other South African forwarders in September 2026.
| Service | Unit | Typical published market rate | Flexagon price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Customs Clearing | |||
| Courier / small-parcel import clearanceper entry | per entry | from R1,800 | from R1,550 |
| Air freight import clearance (OR Tambo)per entry | per entry | from R3,500 | from R2,950 |
| Sea freight import clearance (FCL / LCL)per entry | per entry | from R3,500 | from R2,950 |
| Export declaration & clearanceper entry | per entry | from R2,500 | from R2,100 |
| Urgent / same-day clearanceper entry | per entry | from R5,000 | from R4,250 |
| Road Freight | |||
| Pallet Johannesburg ⇄ Durban (≤800 kg)per pallet | per pallet | R420 – R650 | from R395 |
| Pallet Johannesburg ⇄ Cape Town (≤800 kg)per pallet | per pallet | R850 – R1,200 | from R799 |
| Pallet Johannesburg ⇄ Polokwane (≤800 kg)per pallet | per pallet | R280 – R420 | from R265 |
| 5-ton part load Johannesburg ⇄ Durbanper load | per load | R2,100 – R3,200 | from R1,990 |
| 5-ton part load Johannesburg ⇄ Cape Townper load | per load | R4,800 – R7,200 | from R4,550 |
| Interlink full truckload (34 t)per km | per km | R18.00 – R28.00 | from R17.20 |
| Warehousing | |||
| Pallet storage (general)per pallet / month | per pallet / month | from R250 | from R229 |
| Pallet receiving / intakeper pallet | per pallet | R150 | R135 |
| Container devanning — 20ftper container | per container | R3,500 | R3,150 |
| Container devanning — 40ftper container | per container | R5,500 | R4,950 |
| Pick & packper order | per order | R15 | R13 |
Flexagon vs the Usual Freight Forwarder
| What matters | Flexagon Freight & Logistics | Many other forwarders |
|---|---|---|
| Prices published up front | Yes — on this page | "Call for a quote" |
| Quote turnaround | Within 24 business hours | Often several days |
| SARS clearing done in-house | Yes — SARS-registered since 2004 | Frequently sub-contracted |
| Written price-beat promise | Yes | Rarely |
| Quotes on WhatsApp | Yes — +27 73 326 0521 | Email or call centre |
| Named account manager | One person, direct line | Ticket queue |
| Air, sea and road compared on one quote | Yes | One mode, one price |
| 24/7 line for cargo in transit | Yes | Office hours only |
How an Air Shipment Moves
Four steps. On air freight the deadline is set by the airline's acceptance cut-off, so earlier booking buys more than a faster aircraft does.
01 · Send Weight, Dimensions and Deadline
Air freight is priced on chargeable weight — the greater of actual and volumetric weight. Send accurate dimensions with the enquiry and the first quote is the real one. Call +27 73 326 0521 or request a quote.
02 · We Book Against the Cut-Off
We compare carriers and routings on the combination of rate, cut-off and total elapsed time rather than airtime alone, and tell you what each option actually lands on. For dangerous goods or temperature-controlled cargo, carrier acceptance is confirmed before booking.
03 · Collection, Packing, Documentation, Tender
Cargo is collected, checked against the booking, documented — including the shipper's declaration where the goods are dangerous — and tendered to the airline. Discrepancies are found here, on the ground, rather than at the acceptance counter.
04 · Clearance and Delivery
On arrival we clear at OR Tambo with our own SARS-registered staff, beside the terminal, and deliver onward. You receive the air waybill, customs release and proof of delivery as one document pack.
What We Need to Quote Air Freight
Air quotes move more than any other mode when the details change. These six get you an accurate number first time.
To quote accurately we need
- Gross weight — actual weight of the packed consignment, including the pallet
- Dimensions per piece — length, width and height in cm — this sets volumetric weight, which often prices the shipment
- Number of pieces — and whether the cargo is palletised, crated or loose
- Full airport-to-airport routing — collection address and final delivery address, not just the cities
- Commodity and value — what the goods are and the invoice value, for both the airline and customs
- Deadline and Incoterm — the date it must arrive, and who is responsible for which leg
Documents for the shipment
- Commercial invoice — value, currency, Incoterm and a proper goods description
- Packing list — pieces, weights and dimensions matching the booking
- Air waybill — issued at booking; on imports, request it from your supplier immediately
- Shipper's declaration for dangerous goods — required for any DG consignment, to IATA DGR
- Safety data sheet — for anything that might be DG — batteries, aerosols, chemicals, paints
- Permit or approval — where the commodity requires one to be imported or exported
If your cargo contains lithium batteries — in laptops, tools, instruments, drones or as loose cells — say so at enquiry stage. Battery cargo is dangerous goods for air freight regardless of how ordinary the device looks, and undeclared battery shipments get offloaded.
What We Move
By Air Most Often
Air freight earns its premium in specific situations. These are the ones where it usually does.
What You Get From an Air
Forwarder Beside the Terminal
Six reasons South African shippers switch to Flexagon — and stay.
Beside the Cargo Terminals
Our office is next to OR Tambo. Reweighs, inspections, documentary queries and stop orders are dealt with in person the same day, which is where air freight timelines are actually won or lost.
Ground time managed, not just airtimeWe Clear Our Own Air Imports
SARS-registered, lodging the entry ourselves. The business that booked the flight is the business that clears it — no handover, no gap, one party accountable.
Booking and clearing under one roofChargeable Weight Explained Up Front
We quote on actual and volumetric weight and show you which one prices your shipment, so the invoice does not surprise you. Where repacking would reduce the chargeable weight, we say so.
No surprise reweigh on the invoiceDangerous Goods Documented Properly
IATA DGR classification, packing instructions, marking, labelling and the shipper's declaration. Batteries and aerosols included — the ordinary-looking cargo that gets offloaded most often.
DG accepted, not offloadedInternational Enquiries Welcome
We quote to any country worldwide from OR Tambo, and handle cross-trade air shipments that never touch South Africa.
Any origin, any destinationA Named Account Manager
One person who knows your lanes, your suppliers and your cut-offs, reachable directly, with a 24/7 line for cargo in transit.
Direct line, no call centreAir Lanes Worked From OR Tambo
Indicative airport-to-airport transit. Total door-to-door time depends on cut-offs, clearance and the delivery leg — which is the part we manage.
| Lane from South Africa | Mode | Indicative transit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johannesburg → Europe / UK | Air | 1–2 days | Daily belly-hold and freighter capacity |
| Johannesburg → Middle East | Air | 1–2 days | Strong capacity via the Gulf hubs |
| Johannesburg → Far East | Air | 1–3 days | Usually via a Gulf or Asian hub |
| Johannesburg → USA | Air | 2–3 days | Direct and one-stop options |
| Johannesburg → India | Air | 1–2 days | Pharmaceutical and component lanes |
| Johannesburg → Nairobi / Lagos / Accra | Air | 1–2 days | African commercial and project cargo |
| Johannesburg → Lubumbashi / Kinshasa | Air | 1–2 days | Mining support where road is too slow |
| Johannesburg → Harare / Lusaka / Gaborone | Air | 1 day | Regional urgent freight |
| Johannesburg → Mauritius / Antananarivo | Air | 1 day | Island lanes where sea is impractical |
| Johannesburg → Australia | Air | 2–3 days | Mining equipment and spares |
These are airport-to-airport figures for cargo that makes its booked flight. Cargo that misses an acceptance cut-off waits for the next available lift, which on thinner lanes can be days rather than hours — which is why booking earlier buys more than paying more.
Air Freight Collections Across Gauteng
Collection anywhere in Gauteng with tender at OR Tambo the same day. Each page below carries that area's local detail and distance to the terminals.
Collection & Delivery in All Nine Provinces
We collect from and deliver to these centres on scheduled national runs.
7 Costly Mistakes Air Freight Shippers Make —
and How We Prevent Them
Most freight overspend is not the rate. It is a delay, a penalty or a charge nobody planned for.
Wrong tariff heading
An inherited or guessed HS code can mean overpaid duty on every shipment — or a SARS penalty later. We check the heading, not copy it forward.
No importer / exporter code
Cargo cannot be cleared without SARS customs registration. We walk first-time traders through it before the goods ship.
Invoice and packing list don't match
Mismatched weights, values or descriptions trigger stops and inspections. We check supplier documents before departure.
Free days missed
Containers left past the free period rack up storage, demurrage and detention. We book collection against the release.
Wrong Incoterm
EXW, FOB or DAP decides who pays for what. The wrong one quietly moves costs onto you. We advise before you order.
Undeclared dangerous goods
Batteries, chemicals, aerosols and paints need DG documentation. Undeclared DG gets rejected or fined.
Choosing the cheapest rate, not the cheapest landed cost
A low freight rate with high port, clearing or delivery charges costs more. Our quotes show the full landed cost.
Frequently Asked Questions
What shippers ask before booking air cargo out of OR Tambo.
Request an Air Freight Quote
Send the weight, dimensions, commodity and deadline. An air freight specialist will reply within 24 business hours with routings, cut-offs and an itemised quote.
Air Freight Enquiry
Fields marked * are required. We reply within 24 business hours. International enquiries are welcome — we quote to any country worldwide.
Kempton Park, Gauteng 1619
South Africa
Saturday: 08:00–12:00 SAST
24/7 emergency freight line
Import, export and cross-trade shipments
Detailed, itemised, no obligation
Other Ways to Move It
Air is not always the right answer. Here is the rest of what we do — and we will tell you when sea or road makes more sense.
Freight & Logistics by Area
Every area page carries local collection detail, suburb coverage, indicative transit times and its own quote form.
Explore Each Freight Service in Detail
Every service page explains scope, documentation and lead times — or skip ahead and request a quote.
Serving Johannesburg, Gauteng
and All of South Africa
Air cargo collected across Johannesburg and greater Gauteng and tendered at OR Tambo International — our office sits beside the cargo terminals, with national collection across all nine South African provinces.