Guide · Dangerous Goods · IATA Class 9 · 24/7
A practical guide for logistics, EV, energy-storage and aerospace teams moving lithium cells, packs and prototypes by air, when full charter is the only compliant option, how it is packaged, and how fast it moves.
Already have an RFQ prepared? Email charters@aviall.com.au
Lithium batteries are among the most tightly regulated air cargo in the world. Scheduled carriers routinely restrict or refuse them, especially damaged, defective, recalled or prototype cells, which leaves dedicated charter as the only compliant and reliable way to move them at scale or at speed. This guide compresses the decision: when charter is required, how shipments are classified and packaged under IATA Class 9, which aircraft can carry them, and what wheels-up timing to expect.
Full charter becomes the right call when the cargo will not move on scheduled or passenger services, when timing is critical, or when a single accountable owner is needed across classification, packaging approval, handling, permits and customs.
Lithium batteries are Class 9 dangerous goods. Correct classification, packaging, marking and documentation are non-negotiable, errors ground shipments and create liability. We confirm the right UN number, packing instruction and state-of-charge limits before anything is built.
Use the pages below to plan dangerous-goods and time-critical cargo programmes.
Confirm UN number, packing instruction and state-of-charge limits before build.
Compliant packaging for damaged, defective and recalled cells.
Match payload, volume and DG profile to the right freighter tier.
DG declaration, UN 38.3 summary, SDS and NOTOC handled end to end.
DG-certified operations desk and quotes returned within the hour.
Single owner across permits, handling, customs and inland transport.
Urgent charter? Our ops desk is staffed 24/7.
Aircraft options within the hour and a written quote with an indicative wheels-up window.
Mission examples · Illustrative
Representative mission profiles drawn from recurring work. Identifying details, operators, hospitals, routes, aircraft tail numbers, are intentionally omitted.
An ASX-listed resources operator faced a stalled processing line waiting on a single oversized component too large for any scheduled freighter. Aviall sourced an outsize main-deck nose-loader, completed pavement and load-spread checks at the regional destination, and coordinated road movement permits at both ends.
Outcome
Component on site inside 72 hours of first call; production line restart same week.
A major carrier had a wide-body grounded at a foreign hub, awaiting a replacement engine sitting in a domestic MRO. Aviall positioned a freighter to the MRO, coordinated dangerous goods documentation for the engine and stand, and held a flight-following bridge with the airline's tech ops cell door-to-door.
Outcome
Engine wheels-up inside 14 hours of release; aircraft returned to service the next operational day.
A global health programme required a high-value biologics consignment moved on a controlled cool-chain into the Asia-Pacific without consolidation risk. Aviall chartered a freighter dedicated to the shipment, with active containers, written ramp-time targets, and continuous data-logger oversight.
Outcome
Zero temperature excursions; chain-of-custody documentation closed within 24 hours of landing.
A government end user needed a Class 1 consignment moved on a tight window after scheduled carriers declined the booking. Aviall identified an operator approved for the class, completed the DG paperwork, NOTOC and security plan, and ran a single-shipper rotation under a controlled handling regime.
Outcome
Movement completed inside the customer's window with full regulatory close-out.
Following a sudden-onset disaster in the wider region, an aid consortium needed shelter, water and medical kit moved on consecutive days into a damaged airfield with reduced services. Aviall built a rotation plan around aircraft suited to the strip and pre-positioned ground handling support.
Outcome
Sustained airlift maintained across consecutive days without diversion.
A premium agri-export business required a single-shipper rotation during a tight harvest window when scheduled belly capacity was full. Aviall chartered a freighter sized to the volume and held a slot pattern at the destination customs gateway across the season.
Outcome
Full season's volume cleared without missed shelf dates at the destination market.
Specialised capability
FAQ
Yes. Damaged, defective and recalled (DDR) cells that scheduled carriers refuse are routinely moved by dedicated charter using specialised packaging and IATA Class 9 procedures, with full documentation and aircraft acceptance handling.
Keep exploring
Why operators, brokers and end clients keep calling back
"Quote came back inside the hour with two aircraft options, written wheels-up windows and the cost-versus-time trade-off laid out. That is what we expect and rarely get."
, Project logistics manager · Resources sector
"Documentation, NOTOCs and DG paperwork were closed before we'd finished briefing our customer. No back-and-forth, no surprises at the ramp."
, Senior freight forwarder · Global 3PL
"They run the mission like an operator, not like a broker. That distinction matters when the cargo is heavy, the route is hard and the clock is real."
, Charter broker · International network
Tell us the cell chemistry, UN number, state, quantity, condition (incl. damaged/prototype), origin, destination and ready time. DG-compliant freighter options returned within the hour.
Send us origin, destination, payload and ready date. We return aircraft options. Attach an existing RFQ, packing list or photos straight from your phone, partial detail is enough to start.
Or email your RFQ directly to charters@aviall.com.au
24/7 ops desk. Quote inside the hour.