What is Air Waybill?
An air waybill (AWB) is the transport document for international air cargo that evidences the contract of carriage between the shipper and the airline. Under Article 4 of the Montreal Convention 1999 (MC99) an air waybill must be delivered for cargo, although any other means that preserves a record of the carriage, such as an electronic record, may replace it. On paper it is made out in three originals: one for the carrier, one that travels with the goods to the consignee, and one handed to the shipper once the cargo is accepted. Each AWB carries an 11-digit number whose first three digits identify the issuing airline. In consolidations the airline issues a master air waybill (MAWB) to the forwarder, who in turn issues house air waybills (HAWBs) to each underlying shipper.
Why it matters for forwarders
The shipper, or the forwarder acting for it, is responsible for the accuracy of the particulars entered on the AWB, and errors in weight, pieces or commodity description cause rebooking, offloads and customs holds at destination. The AWB is not a document of title, so cargo is released to the named consignee without surrender of an original, which matters when the seller is relying on the document for payment security. Liability is capped by MC99 unless the shipper declares a higher value for carriage and pays any supplementary charge, a box that is often left as NVD (no value declared) without the cargo owner understanding the consequence. Damage must be notified in writing within 14 days of receipt and delay within 21 days, deadlines that are frequently missed when claims are routed through several parties. Most major trade lanes now run on the e-AWB, where the shipment data message replaces the paper document, so data quality in the booking system directly determines whether the cargo flies.