Pharmaceuticals air freight from Israel to United States

Why pharmaceuticals by air freight?

Pharmaceuticals require speed, control, and traceability — three core qualities of air freight. Medicines, vaccines, and biologicals are valuable, time-critical, and temperature-sensitive. Sea transport takes weeks and offers insufficient control over the cold chain. Air freight takes 1–3 days — with continuous monitoring.

Schiphol is one of Europe's leading pharma cargo hubs: KLM Cargo's Pharma Gateway Amsterdam (PGA) is certified for GDP transport and offers specialized storage and handling facilities for pharmaceutical air freight at the airport itself.

When is air freight indispensable for pharma?

• Clinical trials: samples and study medication must arrive exactly on time
• Acute drug shortages where every day counts
• Vaccines and biologicals with short shelf life or strict cold chain
• High-value APIs where risk of delay is unacceptable
• Compassionate use: individual patient shipments

Exporting to Israel

Israel is one of the most advanced technology economies in the world and a key market for Dutch machine parts, medical technology, and agri-tech. Schiphol operates multiple direct cargo flights per week to Tel Aviv (TLV), ensuring most shipments are cargo-to-cargo within 5–7 hours.

Customs & regulations

Israeli customs (Israel Tax Authority) use the Sha'ar Olami system for digital declarations. For most industrial goods, a commercial invoice, packing list, and— for goods covered under the EU-Israel Association Agreement — a EUR.1 or invoice declaration for preferential tariff treatment are sufficient. Separate registration requirements apply for medical, telecom, and cosmetic products through the Ministry of Health or the Standards Institution of Israel (SII).

Practical tips

• Request a EUR.1 or exporter’s declaration in time for preferential clearance — this can significantly reduce import duties
• Be mindful of Shabbat (Friday evening through Saturday) and Jewish holidays when processing is halted
• Dual-use goods require export licenses from the Netherlands and an end-user statement

Aircargo.nl works with dedicated agents at Ben Gurion and manages the full documentation chain — including preferential certificates and end-user declarations — for smooth handling.

Importing from the United States

Imports from the US often involve high-value goods: medical equipment, semiconductors, aerospace parts, pharmaceuticals, and specialized machinery. The approximately 9-hour flight time makes air freight the logical choice for time-sensitive or valuable shipments.

Customs on imports from the US

The US and EU do not have a free trade agreement, so standard EU import duties apply. Additional MDR/IVDR requirements apply for pharmaceuticals and medical devices when importing into the EU. Aerospace parts fall under EASA regulations and require specific certificates (EASA Form 1 or FAA 8130-3).

Frequently requested goods from the US

• Medical and surgical equipment
• Semiconductors and chipsets
• Aerospace parts (AOG)
• Pharmaceuticals and biotech products
• Machinery and industrial tools

Aircargo.nl manages daily import shipments from the US — including customs clearance, any FDA documentation, and delivery throughout the Netherlands.

Israel as a crosstrade destination

Schiphol serves as a major European hub for crosstrades with Tel Aviv as the final destination. Many American and European tech and defense suppliers route high-value shipments via AMS to TLV, as the Dutch customs regime is predictable and efficient for transit.

Aircargo.nl has permanent agents in Tel Aviv and can coordinate routing via El Al, KLM Cargo, or Cargolux as well as Israeli customs clearance — without the shipment having to touch Dutch soil.

Points of attention for air freight pharmaceuticals

GDP transport mandatory

Pharmaceuticals must be transported according to Good Distribution Practice (GDP) guidelines. This means an unbroken cold chain with temperature recording, certified storage, and documentation proving that the temperature remained within the required range during the entire transport. Aircargo.nl works exclusively with GDP-certified handlers and airlines.

Temperature requirements

Most pharmaceutical products require transport at 2–8°C (cold chain) or 15–25°C (room temperature). Biologicals, vaccines, and certain diagnostics require -20°C or lower (frozen transport). Each shipment is provided with a calibrated temperature logger and a temperature excursion report if applicable.

Regulatory documentation

• GDP certificate from the sender
• Import or export permit depending on product type and destination country
• Controlled substances: DEA license (US) or national narcotics permit
• Batch release certificates for biologicals