Is the air cargo industry riddled with corruption?

STORIES  abound about the ‘good old days’ of air cargo when deals were done in the bar or over the phone and a brown paper bag often lubricated the wheels of this industry. But times have changed right?

With airlines under investigation for illegal collusion and employees of forwarders accused of taking illegal backhanders, maybe not.

Allegations of customs bribery, Russian customs officials being murdered and even the heads of airline allegedly chucking bungs to UN officials, give the industry a reputation that it maybe does not deserve.

The air cargo industry is truly global and in many parts of the world business could not be done without some ‘incentives’ but are these isolated cases, or is financial lubrication still a major tool to secure business in the air cargo industry?