DHL offers unusual truck-air transport between China and Europe
DHL has introduced an unusual transport option linking China and Europe that combines trucking with air freight, offering shippers another way to move cargo across the corridor.
The service is positioned as a hybrid: freight moves by truck for part of the trip and by air for another segment. For working drivers, that typically means more freight movements tied to airports and air cargo terminals, along with tighter delivery windows and more appointment-driven pickups and drop-offs than standard over-the-road freight.
In practical terms, hybrid truck-air transport aims to sit between traditional ocean freight and full air freight. It is generally used when customers need faster transit than sea shipping but may be looking for alternatives to the cost, capacity limits, or network constraints of moving everything by air.
The move matters because China-to-Europe shipping has been under continuing pressure from shifting capacity and changing routing options. Logistics providers have been expanding “mix-and-match” services—truck, rail, air, and sea—to keep freight moving when one mode becomes too slow, too expensive, or too constrained.
For drivers and fleets, services like this can translate into different operational demands than typical long-haul work, including:
- More time-sensitive loads tied to flight schedules
- Higher likelihood of strict appointment times at cargo facilities
- Different security and check-in procedures at airports
DHL did not provide additional operational details in the information provided, such as specific routes, airports, transit times, eligibility, or pricing.