Cargo Handling & Carriage

Crew reference for the six cargo categories flagged by the ACARS dispatch system. When a Cargo Manifest alert appears on your booking embed, find the matching class below for ground handling, in-flight safety, and required crew action.

APPLIES TO · ALL AOCs
AZD · EFY · ESA · SHK
SOURCE · IATA/ICAO adapted
Live animals Dangerous goods Fragile / medical Mail Cold chain Lithium / flammable
IATA LAR

Livestock

Welfare Critical
Contains: Live animals — bloodstock, zoo transfers, day-old chicks, companion animals, aquatics. Carried under the IATA Live Animals Regulations (LAR) as AVI.
Ground Handling
  • Load last, offload first — minimise time in the hold.
  • Stow in the ventilated, temperature-controlled compartment only. Confirm the bulk/aft hold heat is selected ON.
  • Keep containers upright and separated from dry ice, HAZMAT, and any heat source.
  • Verify the AVI NOTOC (Notification to Captain) is on the flight deck before pushback.
In-Flight Safety
  • Select and monitor hold heating/ventilation for the loaded compartment throughout.
  • Avoid abrupt manoeuvres, hard turns, and rapid descents — animal welfare and load shift.
  • Plan cabin altitude conservatively; brief a lower cruise if pressurisation is marginal.
  • On extended ground holds, request the compartment stays ventilated — do not seal and leave.
Crew Action
Confirm compartment temp control active. If a welfare concern arises (heat, pressurisation), declare it early and prioritise a timely arrival over schedule.
ACARS on booking🐾 Cargo Manifest — Livestock Live animals on board. Be mindful of climate control settings and avoid abrupt manoeuvres where possible.
IATA DGR

HAZMAT / Dangerous Goods

DGR — NOTOC Required
Contains: Declared dangerous goods across the nine transport classes — flammables, corrosives, oxidisers, toxics, compressed gases. Carried under the IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations (DGR).
Ground Handling
  • Accept only against a completed Shipper's Declaration and correct package marking/labelling.
  • Observe segregation tables — keep incompatible classes apart (e.g. oxidisers away from flammables).
  • Secure against movement. Damaged or leaking packages are not carried — reject at acceptance.
  • NOTOC must reach the flight deck before departure. No NOTOC, no carriage.
In-Flight Safety
  • Know the hold and class carried — brief it. Locate the cargo fire suppression for that compartment.
  • Test/verify the cargo smoke detection system serviceable before or shortly after departure.
  • On any hold smoke/fire indication: fire drill, suppression discharge, divert to nearest suitable.
  • Fumes in the cabin — consider a leaking shipment; don oxygen, run smoke/fumes checklist.
Crew Action
Confirm NOTOC content matches the manifest. Any suppression fault or detection failure on a DG flight is a no-go item — resolve before departure.
ACARS on booking⚠️ Cargo Manifest — HAZMAT Hazardous materials on board. Exercise extra caution. If able, test the cargo fire detection system before or shortly after departure.
Cold Chain

Fragile / Medical

Time & Temp Sensitive
Contains: Medical equipment, vaccines, pharmaceuticals, diagnostic samples, delicate instruments. Often temperature-controlled (COL / CRT) and shock-sensitive (FRG).
Ground Handling
  • Keep "This Way Up" orientation. No stacking heavy freight on fragile ULDs.
  • Minimise tarmac dwell for cold-chain shipments — active containers have finite battery/coolant.
  • Note any dry-ice (UN 1845) sublimation — it's a DG asphyxiant; check the NOTOC quantity.
In-Flight Safety
  • Keep the cargo compartment cool for the duration — select hold cooling, avoid over-temp.
  • Smooth handling on approach and landing — shock-sensitive contents.
  • Where dry ice is aboard, ensure compartment ventilation to prevent CO₂ build-up.
Crew Action
Treat as priority offload where connections or cold-chain limits are tight. Flag delays that risk temperature excursion.
ACARS on booking❄️ Cargo Manifest — Fragile / Medical Fragile or medical cargo on board (e.g. medical equipment, vaccines). Keep the cargo compartment cool for the duration of the flight.
Standard

Mail / Postal

Standard Handling
Contains: Letter and parcel mail carried under Universal Postal Union agreements (MAL). Routine, but time-definite and occasionally screened for undeclared DG (e.g. batteries in parcels).
Ground Handling
  • Standard load and securing. Mail moves to a schedule — respect the connection window.
  • Undeclared lithium cells are the main hidden risk in parcel mail; trust the acceptance screening.
In-Flight Safety
  • No special environmental handling. Normal hold monitoring applies.
  • Treat any hold smoke indication the same as any other freight — fire drill, divert if needed.
Crew Action
None beyond normal operations. Keep to schedule to protect downstream mail connections.
ACARS on booking📦 Cargo Manifest — Mail / Postal Mail/postal cargo on board. Standard handling applies.
Cold Chain

Perishables

Time Critical
Contains: Fresh produce, flowers, seafood, meat, dairy (PER / PES). Short shelf life — value is lost to time and temperature more than to rough handling.
Ground Handling
  • Load last, offload first. Every minute on a warm tarmac erodes the shipment.
  • Keep away from heat sources and, where relevant, from ethylene-sensitive co-loads.
  • Confirm any gel-pack / dry-ice coolant against the NOTOC if DG quantities apply.
In-Flight Safety
  • Select hold cooling appropriate to the compartment; avoid over-temp on long sectors.
  • No abrupt handling needed for safety, but delays directly cost the shipment — fly efficiently.
Crew Action
Prioritise on-time performance and fast offload. Report ground delays that threaten the cold chain.
ACARS on booking🍃 Cargo Manifest — Perishables Perishable cargo on board (e.g. food, flowers, seafood). Time sensitive.
IATA DGR Class 9

Lithium Battery / DG

Thermal Runaway Risk
Contains: Lithium-ion (UN 3480/3481) and lithium-metal (UN 3090/3091) cells and batteries — Class 9. The defining hazard is thermal runaway: a self-sustaining fire that standard Halon suppression may knock down but not fully extinguish.
Ground Handling
  • Accept only against the Shipper's Declaration with correct state-of-charge (≤30% for bulk ion shipments).
  • Reject swollen, damaged, or previously-recalled batteries at acceptance — non-negotiable.
  • Keep clear of other DG and heat sources. NOTOC to the flight deck with exact positions.
In-Flight Safety
  • Know the exact hold and pallet position. Verify cargo fire detection serviceable before departure.
  • On a fire indication: discharge suppression and plan an immediate diversion — runaway can reignite.
  • Do not delay descent hoping suppression alone holds; get it on the ground.
  • Brief the diversion field early; treat a lithium hold fire as a land-ASAP emergency.
Crew Action
Highest-caution DG class. Detection or suppression unserviceable = no-go. If it lights up, suppress and divert without hesitation — do not ride it out.
ACARS on booking🔋 Cargo Manifest — Lithium Battery / DG Hazardous materials on board. Exercise extra caution. If able, test the cargo fire detection system before or shortly after departure.
All Flights

General Cargo Duties

Every Sector
Before Departure
  • Read the cargo alert on your booking embed and match it to a class above.
  • For any DG class (HAZMAT, Lithium), confirm the NOTOC is on the flight deck.
  • Verify cargo smoke detection and suppression are serviceable on DG sectors.
Stand Info
Request arrival stand allocation via the SimUnion Discord: .STAND <ICAO>. Have handling positioned for priority offload classes (livestock, cold chain).
In an Emergency
A hold fire is handled the same regardless of class: fire drill, suppression, divert to the nearest suitable field. Lithium and HAZMAT get there faster — don't wait it out.