Gh123 From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Posted (5 years 2 months 4 days 7 hours ago) and read 7476 times:
I don't know much about FedEx apart from the fact that they get my documents around the world really, really quickly.
Say I send a package from Kentucky to Sydney , I assume it goes to Memphis and then does it go via California or does the MD11 go (can it) straight to Australia direct?
QF108 From New Zealand, joined Oct 2005, 321 posts, RR: 1 Reply 2, posted (5 years 2 months 4 days 7 hours ago) and read 7454 times:
Would assume thats the case, the FX MD-11 that operates the Sydney Flight is 'Fedex 77', routing MEM-LAX-HNL-SYD. It usually arrives in the afternoon and leaves early evening and heads to Subic Bay in the Philippines followed by a stop somewhere in Asia, not exactly sure where, then to ANC and back to MEM. This is a daily operation.
Only part of your parcel im not sure of is whether is would go to MEM, or would be picked up at LAX.
SW733 From United States of America, joined Feb 2004, 6072 posts, RR: 10 Reply 3, posted (5 years 2 months 4 days 7 hours ago) and read 7437 times:
Quoting Gh123 (Thread starter): I don't know much about FedEx apart from the fact that they get my documents around the world really, really quickly.
Hahahahahahaha...sorry, didn't mean to laugh
If you send it, as mentioned, it will go Memphis - Honolulu - Mascot (where SYD is located)...that's what the tracking will say at least (Mascot as opposed to Sydney) where they have their major Australian sorting center. I send a LOT of packages from MCI to SYD and I don't remember ever seeing one stop in LAX...usually just MEM to HNL.
CosmicCruiser From United States of America, joined Feb 2005, 2211 posts, RR: 16 Reply 4, posted (5 years 2 months 4 days 6 hours ago) and read 7368 times:
Quoting QF108 (Reply 2): the FX MD-11 that operates the Sydney Flight is 'Fedex 77', routing MEM-LAX-HNL-SYD.
The fight doesn't go to LAX. This is my next flight and it's MEM-HNL-SYD-SFS, etc and the only part that's flt 77 is HNL-SYD-SFS and I don't wind up back in ANC. There may be a flt 77 that does go to ANC but that's not my flight.
EMBQA From United States of America, joined Oct 2003, 9286 posts, RR: 13 Reply 5, posted (5 years 2 months 4 days 6 hours ago) and read 7331 times:
I don't think everything goes through MEM anymore. Over the years FedEx has set up a pretty effective network here in the US...I think AA61Heavy could better comment on that. I live in BNA and FedEx just built a big facility... and I've read they are building an even bigger one soon. Our nightly MD-10 flight goes to IND... not MEM.....and don't assume everything goes by air. The 18 wheelers come and go from the sorting facility like ants on sugar all day long
[Edited 2008-03-17 18:49:13]
"It's not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog"
QF108 From New Zealand, joined Oct 2005, 321 posts, RR: 1 Reply 6, posted (5 years 2 months 4 days 6 hours ago) and read 7327 times:
Quoting CosmicCruiser (Reply 4): The fight doesn't go to LAX. This is my next flight and it's MEM-HNL-SYD-SFS, etc and the only part that's flt 77 is HNL-SYD-SFS and I don't wind up back in ANC. There may be a flt 77 that does go to ANC but that's not my flight
My bad, but checking flightaware it show somedays FX77 does go via LAX, and other days FX77 is shown as operating MEM-HNL. But as you obvisously work for FX, I ain't going to argue with you.
SW733 From United States of America, joined Feb 2004, 6072 posts, RR: 10 Reply 7, posted (5 years 2 months 4 days 6 hours ago) and read 7311 times:
Quoting EMBQA (Reply 5): I don't think everything goes through MEM anymore
Very true. When I ship things from MCI to SYD a good chunk of the time it goes via MEM, but I have shipped stuff all over the US and the world from MCI that have gone via IND. They ship a lot of domestic stuff through Fort Worth Alliance too, but I don't think I've seen any of my international packages go via AFW...maybe to Central America?
PWM2TXLHopper From United States of America, joined Jan 2004, 1216 posts, RR: 1 Reply 8, posted (5 years 2 months 4 days 4 hours ago) and read 7209 times:
Quoting QF108 (Reply 6): Very true. When I ship things from MCI to SYD a good chunk of the time it goes via MEM, but I have shipped stuff all over the US and the world from MCI that have gone via IND. They ship a lot of domestic stuff through Fort Worth Alliance too, but I don't think I've seen any of my international packages go via AFW...maybe to Central America?
I live in Maine, and often send parcels with Fedex to destinations up and down the East Coast. Often these packages avoid MEM all together, and will go through their sort facility at EWR. Occasionally, I'll see this with packages going west as well, but not as often. They usually go to MEM.
Warszawa From United States of America, joined Nov 2003, 726 posts, RR: 7 Reply 9, posted (5 years 2 months 4 days 2 hours ago) and read 7144 times:
Just an interesting note, however, you can tell which hub your package will transit through before it even is picked up by a fedex driver.
Heres an example of a package that I would send (FYI, my FX packages flew out of FNT on FX 727's, either to IND or MEM).
Say I send a package to Boston, MA, via Standard/Priority overnight. The label prints, and the routing codes are something like:
BOS
NF-TSSA
To tell which airport it'll transit through, the "N" is the code for IND, X is for MEM. This package, because it has an N, will transit through IND, and then to BOS. Not just some mere "coincidence" - this IS how they are routed.
I cant say what other airports are because out of FNT, the package will only transit through IND or MEM, hence I only had X or N on my labels. I used to ship a hell of a lot of packages via Fedex-Overnight back in 2004-2005.
Alternatively, I did ship overnight to some locations which the ultimate-end point was Fedex Feeder service, such as, lets say, EUG. In that case, the label code would read:
PDX
XA-UEUG
Or something to that effect. This tells me it'll transit FNT-MEM (the "X"), MEM-PDX (final major airport, PDX), PDX-EUG (sub-airport, "UEUG", or EUG, Eugene OR, by Fedex Feeder C208's)
It was always a "surprise" to see how my package would fly when I was printing the label out of my thermal printer. I shipped several packages to BOS, and many times, they had an X (for Memphis). I dont get that, why fly FNT-MEM-BOS, when you can fly FNT-IND-BOS? I would ship 8-10lb packages too.
Can anyone whom works for FX answer this? I never understood that. Is it for volume purposes? Does FX know how many packages are coming into the system for say, a FNT-IND flight, before the packages are even picked up? So the label system starts printing FNT-MEM routing codes instead? I dont get it.
Say, on Tuesday, I have an 8lb Standard Overnight package for BOS. I print the label, it comes out:
BOS
NF-TSSA
Or something to that effect, nonetheless, to be routed through IND.
A day later, I print a label going to the same destination, same service, same package size and weight, and this time it'll say:
BOS
XA-TSSA
And it was always like that. One day, IND, next day, MEM. Two days later, MEM again. Next week, IND. There was no "set" routing for the same address, which I found to be quite odd. How does Fedex decide whether to route a package to MEM, or to IND?
A bit off topic, however I see similar abnormalities with UPS Overnight too. I recently shipped a 14lb Next Day Air Saver package to Fort Myers, FL via UPS. UPS uses no codes on their labels, so I have no idea how it'll fly, I only know my packages fly out of LAN, and it'll fly to either RFD (752'), SDF (A306), or PHL (752'). I expected it to fly LAN-SDF-RSW. Instead, to my surprise, they routed it like this: LAN-PHL-PBI-RSW (The PHL-PBI-RSW was all on the same aircraft, "direct" flight). Why not just route it through SDF and to RSW? Seems to easiest, most direct or economical way to route the package, instead of flying it all the way east to PHL, then connecting in PBI, then finally to RSW.
Keep in mind, these oddball routings have nothing to do with aircraft issues or cancelled flights (its not like LAN-SDF was cancelled, it was not), and the same holds true for all my oddball FX routings.
Anyone with some insight into the FX or UPS air-routing operations would be appreciated - i've always wondered what the deciding factors were in routing a package. What is with the weird routings, instead of what would be thought to be more economical - one stop, straight, routings?
Flying a plane is no diff. from riding a bicycle. Its just a lot harder to put baseball cards in the spokes. -'Airplane'
GentFromAlaska From United States of America, joined Feb 2005, 2066 posts, RR: 2 Reply 10, posted (5 years 2 months 3 days 17 hours ago) and read 7009 times:
IMO the best way to see routing is to type the airbill/waybill tracking # into the FedEx tracking software on their site to see how your letter or parcel is routed. the software shows each stop along its journey.
If memory serves me much of the volume headed for the pacific region is routed thorough OAK. Southeast Alaska (panhandle region) is another unique routing. If you have something shipped from the lower 48 and the shipper affixes the green ground label. the parcel will actually go ground part of the way and at one time was placed on a FedEx contract flight in BOI. You get ground and air service for the price of ground. Because ANC has a huge FedEx base I thought everything wood actually go there first.
As recently as a couple of years ago the weirdest shipment location I've ran across is Pago Pago, American Samoa
I believe FedEx ships into American Samoa but you can't ship FedEx out.
Man can be taken from Alaska. Alaska can never be taken from the man.
AA61Hvy From United States of America, joined Nov 1999, 13975 posts, RR: 59 Reply 11, posted (5 years 2 months 3 days 17 hours ago) and read 7005 times:
Quoting GentFromAlaska (Reply 10): As recently as a couple of years ago the weirdest shipment location I've ran across is Pago Pago, American Samoa
I believe FedEx ships into American Samoa but you can't ship FedEx out.
It's typically done via a contractor (typically an airline)
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