How an Air DDP Band Gets Chosen, Not Picked Off a Menu

An air DDP band is chosen for a shipment by matching its cargo profile against a channel, not picked off a posted tier table. SBT FulfillDock, trading as Shenzhen Shibotong International Logistics Co., Ltd., reads packed size, weight, declared value, battery or liquid status and destination density first, and the band then describes the capacity that profile holds.

• Air DDP moves on three estimated bands: express 4-6, standard air 5-9 and economy 8-12 working days, each an estimate of a booked channel, not a fixed date.
• A carton reaches a band through chargeable weight, the greater of its actual and volumetric weight, with air general cargo folding 6,000 cubic centimetres into one kilogram, roughly 167 kilograms for each cubic metre.
• For sea DDP we book to an estimate of 18-25 calendar days on a US West Coast lane, and 28-38 days reaching Europe; that describes a slower mode, not a discounted air lane.
• No band is bookable before the profile is measured, and flagged cargo can be pulled off a band entirely.

A band is a channel match against the cargo, not a menu choice

The rule behind this page is easy to state and easy to get backwards. The air DDP band is selected from the cargo's own profile, being packed size, actual weight, declared value, any battery or liquid flag and the channel density of the destination, and not chosen from a posted tier table. A shipper does not browse three tiers and tick one; the profile is read first and the band is the label it earns. Two cartons of the same product can land in different bands because one packing is dense and light while another is bulky, so the volumetric figure climbs and each matches different capacity. A heavier packing, a higher declared value or a newly flagged cell can move the band on the next booking.

How the three bands split the cargo profile

The bands sort cartons by profile, and each row below names who belongs in it, what is traded away to sit there, and the estimated transit window written into that same row.

The economy band is not a faster service than it is sold as

Economy air is not a discount express lane under a different label, and we do not present it as arriving sooner than its own window suggests. A band is a description of the channel we book for a profile, not a delivery promise attached to a date. Sending a lower-value, non-urgent carton means choosing a slower channel on purpose, and the figure beside the window estimates that channel's normal behaviour. These bands describe the channel we book, not a delivery guarantee. Transit times are planning estimates, and carrier schedules, seasonal capacity and customs handling move them.

Chargeable weight decides which band a carton even qualifies for

Before a band is considered the carton clears a weight test, and that test is the greater of two numbers, the actual weight on the scale and the volumetric weight implied by the box. Air general cargo folds space into chargeable mass by counting 6,000 cubic centimetres as one kilogram, roughly 167 kilograms for each cubic metre of packed volume. That 6,000 divisor is the general-cargo air convention, not a courier house rule; express and several markets divide by 5,000 instead, and that 5,000 figure is market and courier practice rather than the air standard.

So chargeable weight, not raw weight, sets which band a carton reaches. A light-but-bulky carton carries a chargeable figure higher than its scale reading, and once that number climbs a shipment that looked like express can fall into standard air. The figures are measured at the bench, so a band is proposed only after they exist. This mechanism is structural and not a price; we publish no rate card, and a quotation is built lane by lane from the packed dimensions, the weight, the cargo type and the destination.

Air bands against sea DDP, read honestly

The same profile logic reaches across modes, and the honest comparison is between channels rather than promises. Sea DDP is a different book of capacity, not a cheaper air band, and its windows run an estimated 18-25 calendar days on a US West Coast sailing, with Europe at an estimated 28-38 days. A shipment belongs in those windows only once its profile is measured, and turning an air question into a sea answer is usually a capacity decision, not a speed preference. The scope behind both modes sits on the DDP sea and air freight service page.

What cannot be booked yet, scope and exclusions

This page explains how a band is chosen; it does not open a booking. No band is bookable before the cargo profile is measured, so a size, weight or value question on unbuilt cartons has no answer here. Battery, liquid, branded or regulated goods can pull a shipment off a band entirely into a different document set, whatever window its size points at. A destination with thin channel density may not support the suggested band, and coverage is confirmed channel by channel. Nothing here is a schedule commitment or a delivery promise. Settle a straddled profile or a flagged cargo type through the contact page before cartons move.

Frequently asked questions

Can I pick which air DDP band my shipment uses?

You cannot pick an air DDP band from a posted table, because the band is matched to the cargo profile rather than chosen by the shipper. SBT FulfillDock reads packed size, weight, declared value, battery or liquid status and destination density, then books the channel that profile can hold. The window shown for that band, an estimated 4-6, 5-9 and 8-12 working days, describes the channel selected, not a date you selected for it.

Why does chargeable weight decide my band?

Chargeable weight decides a band because it, not the raw scale figure, sets whether a carton qualifies for the channel at all. Air general cargo folds 6,000 cubic centimetres into one kilogram, while express lanes and several markets divide by 5,000 as market practice rather than the air standard. A light-but-bulky carton carries a higher chargeable number than it looks, so that figure can lift it into a different band than its raw weight suggests.

Is an economy air band just slower express?

An economy air band is a separate channel, not express service running late on the same lane. Its estimated 8-12 working day window reflects the capacity booked for a dense, non-urgent and lower-declared-value carton. The band describes that channel rather than promising a fixed date, and carrier schedules, seasonal capacity and customs handling all move the window from booking to booking.

Reviewed 2026-10-28 (28 October 2026). Each transit window above estimates a booked channel rather than promising a date, and the figures are our published parameters on that day. The chargeable-weight divisors named here are market convention on air general cargo and express lanes, not rules we set; confirm the divisor and the resulting band for your carton at booking. The terms that govern liability sit behind our compensation terms page.

SBT FulfillDock, trading as Shenzhen Shibotong International Logistics Co., Ltd.