How a Fortune 500 Airline Saved 20%+ on Volatile Reefer Lanes

A Fortune 500 airline needed steady capacity on its most volatile reefer lanes in and out of airports. Loadsmart Reliable Contracts guaranteed 100% tender acceptance on those lanes and, with a floating rate, saved the airline more than 20% in the softening 2022 market.

By the Numbers

At a Glance

For the transportation team at a Fortune 500 airline, getting refrigerated goods to the tarmac is mission critical. The freight has to move, and it has to move on lanes where rates and capacity shift constantly. A traditional contract couldn’t keep up, so the team turned to Loadsmart for capacity it could count on.

Challenge: Volatile Reefer Lanes In and Out of Airports

Finding consistent capacity to move freight in and out of airports was a constant challenge for the airline’s transportation manager. Carriers handling airport freight have to meet strict rules, requirements and certifications, which narrows the pool of trucks that can take a load.

Most of the airline’s freight is reefer, a mode known for high tender rejection rates and limited capacity, and some lanes required team service. Contracts broke down when the market moved, and leaning on the spot market exposed the airline to service risk.

Like many transportation teams, the airline had more loads than planners. With limited bandwidth, repricing lanes through frequent mini-bids and hunting for spot capacity wasn’t a long-term answer.

Solution: A Reliable Contracts Program on 15 Critical Lanes

To get better coverage and guarantee capacity, the airline worked with Loadsmart to set up a Reliable Contracts program. It started with 15 of its most critical lanes, under a contract built around five terms:

• Ceiling rate: A maximum cost the airline pays on each lane.
• Dynamic rate: The cost floats with the market, so the team doesn’t have to reprice when rates move.
• Margin incentives: A sliding fee structure pushes Loadsmart to find the best rate. Margins only go up when shipper costs go down.
• Rate transparency: The airline receives a personalized report with costs and fees for every load.
• Guaranteed capacity: Loadsmart accepted 100% of tenders throughout the program.

Strategy: Guarantee Capacity, Cap the Cost and Share the Math

Start with the lanes that matter most. The airline didn’t move its whole network at once. It began with 15 critical lanes, where failed tenders carried the biggest service risk.

Cap the cost, then let it float. The ceiling rate protects the airline if the market spikes. Below that ceiling, the dynamic rate follows the market down, so savings show up without another mini-bid.

Make the incentives work for the shipper. Because Loadsmart’s margins grow only when the airline’s costs fall, both sides want the same thing: the lowest rate that still covers the load.

Show the math on every load. Per-load cost reports give the team a clear view of what it pays and why.

Result: 20%+ Savings and Double the Volume

With a floating rate, the airline took advantage of the softening market in 2022 and saved more than 20% compared with contract rates at the start of the program. Loadsmart held 100% PTA the whole way through.

With capacity locked in on its toughest lanes, the airline expanded the program to new outbound locations and doubled the volume moved through its Reliable Contract.