Become an Air Courier (cont.)

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Finding work as an Air Courier (cont.)

The Internet is obviously a good source for locating information on Air Courier companies, but be warned that many of the top results you’ll find in the search engines are likely to be people wanting to sell you a directory or get you to sign up for the ‘real air courier information’ or pay a membership fee to get the so-called ‘best deals’. Do some digging on the net and be very wary about paying money for information that you could find readily yourself. Don’t take official sounding website names as any kind of guarantee that you’ll be getting value for money. With a little bit of research you shouldn’t have to pay anything to get work as an air courier. After all, the idea is to travel as cheaply as possible so paying membership fees should be avoided as it is absolutely not necessary. I have spent hundreds of hours flying above the clouds as an Air Courier through no more effort than making some phone calls and asking the right questions.

Always keep in the back of your mind that you do not need to pay for memberships or annual fees to find work as an Air Courier (despite what many publications and Internet sites will have you believe), but if you find that it is more convenient to use such services and you do take out a fee paying membership then make sure that you will be guaranteed to get flights that suit your budget, destination and time frame. One very major advantage of making your own calls and developing your own list of companies that you deal with is that you are networking yourself into a position of strength for future flights and deals. If you take two or three flights a year, especially to a particular destination on a particular airline, it won’t take long for you to develop a reputation for good, dependable service. You’ll be near the top of the list for future assignments as they come up.

Another, novel, way of promoting yourself as a freelance Air Courier is to set up a website and send your credentials out to many of the larger corporations. There are a small number of websites like this popping up where people are promoting themselves as professional Air Couriers and offering their services. It’s certainly a very pro-active and cheap method of getting your name out there although how much success you get this way I’m not sure but you only need one company to accept your services and you’re on the way.

If all of this sounds like too much effort then I suggest that you buy one of the following books (you can get them cheap from Amazon) as opposed to any Internet-offered directories. With the following books you at least will be buying the latest editions, and therefore you have some degree of certainty that the author is reputable and the information is up-to-date and relevant. And of course the one advantage over buying a book as opposed to a yearly membership fee is that a book is a one-time cost.

The Courier Air Travel Handbook: Learn How to Travel Worldwide for Next to Nothing by Mark I.Field.

Air Courier Bargains by Kelly Monaghan.

Both books offer up concise and practical information that you need to get started flying around the world as an Air Courier.

Good luck with your travels, and remember that there are some really great deals to be had as an Air Courier if you take the time to look for them.

Bill Adams is a freelance writer who has worked as an Air Courier throughout the U.S. and Europe for over 15 years.