Aviation Support

What Aviation Support does

Aviation Support, operating through Mapcargo International Ltd, is a UK-headquartered global freight forwarding and supply chain management company headquartered in Bedfont, Middlesex. The firm provides multimodal freight services spanning air, ocean, and road forwarding, complemented by customs brokerage, ATA Carnet documentation, marine cargo insurance, time-critical logistics (including Next Flight Out, On-Board Courier, AOG support, and aircraft charter), temperature-controlled cold-chain transport, and specialist packing plus 3PL warehousing. Operations are organized around ten industry verticals — aerospace and aviation, automotive, media and production, pharmaceuticals, project logistics, fashion and retail, sports, wine and spirits, e-commerce, and temperature-controlled transport — which allow the firm to package vertical-specific compliance expertise (for example, GDP-compliant pharma handling or aerospace AOG response) on top of generic freight forwarding capability.

The technology stack centers on two proprietary platforms: Chartis by Mapcargo, which provides end-to-end supply chain visibility, purchase order management, origin management, multi-vendor load consolidation, and container utilisation tracking; and Boxtrax, a PO management and shipment visibility tool. Customs operations are supported by HMRC-integrated, AEO-accredited compliance software, and cold-chain moves are backed by real-time temperature monitoring. Global coverage is delivered through WCA Network membership, providing access to 12,000+ partner offices across 197 countries, supplemented by direct operations through MapCargo USA and four UK offices (Heathrow, Southampton, Manchester, Bradford). The company holds IATA, AEO, BIFA, UKWA, Cargo iQ, AEI, and ISO 9001:2015 accreditations.

The business model is transaction-fee based across the freight services, with revenue tied to shipment weight, volume, urgency, destination, and mode. Pricing is quote-based and pay-as-you-go, with credit accounts extended to commercial customers through a Creditsafe-referenced credit application process. Go-to-market is primarily enterprise field sales supported by 24/7 inside-sales coverage for time-critical moves, plus direct-to-consumer e-commerce fulfillment. The customer base is described as "over 100 logistics professionals" in the UK, with Mark Hawkins serving as Managing Director. Headcount, revenue, and ownership are otherwise private, with no disclosed parent company, external funding, or acquisition history identified in the available data.

Name

Aviation Support

Legal name

Mapcargo International Ltd

Website

https://aviation-support.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Aviation Support (Mapcargo International Ltd) is a UK-headquartered global freight forwarder providing air, ocean, and road freight, customs brokerage, and time-critical logistics to ten industry verticals including aerospace, pharmaceuticals, automotive, and e-commerce. It operates four UK offices plus a USA subsidiary and reaches 197 countries via the WCA Network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

NAICS

Freight Transportation Arrangement (488510), Support Activities for Air Transportation (4881), Nonscheduled Chartered Freight Air Transportation (481212)

SIC

Arrangement Of Transportation Of Freight & Cargo (4731), Air Courier Services (4513)

akta.pro primary industry

AOG (Aircraft-on-Ground) & Critical Spares Logistics (TLADANAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Aerospace & Defense (TLAIALAB), Air Cargo Charter Specialists (On-Demand) (TLADAAAE)

Keywords

• Freight forwarding
• Air freight services
• Ocean freight forwarding
• Customs brokerage
• Time critical logistics

Headquarters

HQ city

New Bedfont

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Air Freight Services: IATA and aviation security accredited air freight services with priority, economy, consolidation options, and guaranteed space with major airlines. Revenue generated from cargo weight, urgency levels, and destination.
2. Ocean Freight Services: Full container load (FCL), Less than Container Load (LCL), buyers consolidation, and breakbulk/oog cargo handling. Revenue based on container volume, shipment weight, and trade lanes.
3. Road Freight Services: FTL transport, LTL shipping, consolidation services, and specialist cargo transport including hazardous and oversized freight across European networks.
4. Customs Brokerage Services: Import and export declarations, transit procedures, bonded warehousing (ETSF), duty management, and compliance advisory services across all major UK ports.
5. Time Critical Logistics: 24/7 emergency logistics including Next Flight Out (NFO), On Board Courier (OBC), European express delivery, aircraft charter, and AOG support. Premium pricing for urgent delivery services.
6. Value Added Services: Specialist packing, 3PL/warehousing, cargo insurance, and supply chain technology solutions. Revenue from storage, handling fees, insurance premiums, and technology service subscriptions.
7. ATA Carnet Services: Temporary export documentation services including carnet applications, express processing, remote print services, and door-to-door logistics for temporary imports across 80+ countries.
8. Marine Cargo Insurance: Transactional shipment cover, annual insurance policies, and all-risk coverage for cargo loss, damage, theft, and piracy. Revenue from insurance premiums.
9. E-Commerce Logistics: B2B and B2C e-commerce logistics including warehousing, order fulfilment, cross-border shipping, last-mile delivery, and returns management.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Aviation Support is a UK-based logistics company offering aircraft engines logistics, on-board courier, sea, and air freight services. The company delivers multimodal freight forwarding across air, ocean and road modes alongside customs brokerage, ATA Carnet handling, marine cargo insurance, temperature-controlled transport, and a 24/7 time-critical logistics product covering NFO, OBC, and AOG support. It also provides vertical-specific supply chain solutions across aerospace, pharmaceutical, automotive, media, sports, e-commerce, fashion and retail, wine and spirits, and project logistics industries.

Product overview

MAPCARGO is a global freight forwarding and supply chain management company offering a portfolio of multimodal logistics services built around core freight forwarding capabilities (air, ocean, and road freight) complemented by specialised services and technology platforms. The core freight services provide international cargo transportation across all major trade lanes, supported by customs brokerage, ATA Carnet services, marine cargo insurance, and temperature-controlled transport. The technology layer consists of Chartis by Mapcargo (a supply chain visibility and PO management platform) for end-to-end shipment tracking, origin management, and container optimisation. Specialised vertical solutions serve Aerospace & Aviation, Automotive, Media & Production, Pharmaceuticals, Project Logistics, Fashion & Retail, Sports, E-Commerce, and Wine & Spirits industries. Value-added services include specialist packing, 3PL/warehousing, and cargo insurance. The company operates from multiple UK locations (Heathrow, Southampton, Manchester, Bradford) with global reach through WCA Network partnerships across 197 countries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Chartis by Mapcargo: Supply chain visibility and PO management platform providing end-to-end visibility of shipments, CFS compliance, QS checks, origin management, and container utilisation tools.
• Boxtrax

Quantifiable outcome

• 24/7/365 time-critical logistics support with immediate response for urgent shipments
• +2 more outcomes

Segments10 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• WCA (World Cargo Alliance)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLong-standing member of WCA Network providing access to over 12,000 member offices across 197 countries. This partnership enables Mapcargo to coordinate reliable global logistics solutions and provide seamless international coverage through trusted partner offices worldwide.
• UK Chamber of CommercecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUnique 'Remote Print' agreement with UK Chamber of Commerce allowing in-house printing of ATA Carnets and direct expedite to UK Customs for clearance. EDI linked to UK Chamber of Commerce for efficient carnet processing.
• IATAcoreTechnology or IntegrationInternational Air Transport Association accreditation ensuring air freight services meet strict global aviation standards, providing secure and efficient air transport solutions with IATA-approved procedures.
• BIFA (British International Freight Association)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBIFA-accredited logistics provider operating in accordance with industry best practices and recognized standards for freight forwarding services.
• UKWA (United Kingdom Warehousing Association)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUKWA accreditation confirming that warehousing operations meet high standards for security, operational efficiency, and storage management.
• HMRCcoreTechnology or IntegrationAuthorised Economic Operator (AEO) status maintained through HMRC, providing recognized global standards of customs compliance and supply chain security. Customs links to all major UK customs ports.
• CreditsafeminorOthersCredit referencing outsourced to creditsafe.com. Mapcargo abides by their recommendations for credit assessment. Used for credit application processing for commercial accounts.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Worldwide Flight Services (WFS): WFS is a major air cargo handling and ground services provider at airports worldwide, serving airlines, freight forwarders, and integrators. Comparable as a directly aviation-focused logistics peer operating in cargo handling for time-critical air freight.
• Hellmann Worldwide Logistics: Hellmann is a German-headquartered mid-sized global forwarder with strong air freight, automotive, and aerospace verticals including AOG support. Comparable as a privately held forwarder of similar scale competing in the same time-critical and aerospace niches.
• AIT Worldwide Logistics: AIT Worldwide Logistics is a US-headquartered global forwarder with strong verticals in aerospace, life sciences, and automotive plus time-critical and AOG-style services. Comparable as a similarly positioned mid-sized forwarder with industry-vertical specialism.
• Yusen Logistics: Yusen Logistics is a Japan-headquartered global forwarder with strong automotive, aerospace, and healthcare verticals plus air/ocean/road forwarding and contract logistics. Comparable as a similarly structured multimodal forwarder serving overlapping industry verticals.
• Menzies Aviation: Menzies Aviation is the world's largest aviation services provider offering cargo handling, ground handling, and fuel services to airlines. Comparable as a directly aviation-focused logistics peer addressing airlines, MROs, and OEMs in the AOG-adjacent cargo handling space.
• Expeditors International: Expeditors is a US-headquartered global freight forwarder specialising in air and ocean freight with strong customs and visibility capabilities. Comparable as a similarly positioned mid-to-large forwarder competing in the same multimodal, technology-enabled forwarding space.

Broad incumbents

• Kuehne+Nagel: Kuehne+Nagel is one of the world's largest freight forwarders with deep air, ocean, and road capabilities plus customs brokerage. Comparable to the subject as a global full-service forwarder, but with substantially larger scale, owned infrastructure, and air freight volumes.
• CEVA Logistics: CEVA Logistics is a global 3PL and freight forwarder (CMA CGM group) operating across air, ocean, road, contract logistics, and industry-specific verticals. Comparable as a broader incumbent offering similar multimodal capabilities, but at significantly larger scale.
• DSV: DSV is a top-3 global freight forwarder (post-Schenker acquisition) with strong air, sea, and road forwarding plus specialist verticals including aerospace. Comparable as a large incumbent in the same multimodal forwarding market.
• DHL Global Forwarding: DHL Global Forwarding is the air and ocean freight arm of Deutsche Post DHL, offering multimodal forwarding with strong AOG and time-critical capability through its Aerospace & Aviation vertical. Comparable as a much larger, broader incumbent serving the same customer types.

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/aviation-support

Compliance9 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Aviation Support