Australia's air freight sector will get its first dedicated national forum in 2027, with the inaugural Australian Air Freight Summit confirmed to launch at the Avalon Australian International Airshow.

The AMDA Foundation, organiser of the airshow, has lined up two early anchors for the event: Avalon Airport as first major partner and the Freight and Trade Alliance (FTA) as program delivery partner. Sponsorship opportunities opened immediately, with registration and the full program set for release in the coming weeks.

For a sector that has long lacked a single national convening point, the move gives carriers, forwarders, airport operators and customs brokers a fixed date on the calendar to work through capacity, connectivity and compliance questions.

"Avalon Australian International Airshow has always been a meeting point for industry, and the Australian Air Freight Summit will extend that platform to a sector that is increasingly important to Australia's trade future," said Justin Giddings, Chief Executive Officer of the AMDA Foundation.

The summit will sit within the broader Avalon program and combine conference sessions with networking formats, all built around what organisers describe as the next phase of air freight growth and its role in strengthening Australia's trade capability.

Avalon Airport's involvement signals the gateway's ambitions beyond hosting the airshow itself. The airport, located west of Melbourne, has positioned itself as a key hub for Victoria's aviation and freight sectors, and the partnership puts its name at the centre of a national industry conversation.

"Air freight plays a vital role in connecting Australian businesses with global markets, and Avalon Airport Melbourne is proud to be the first major partner of the Australian Air Freight Summit," said Ari Suss, CEO of Avalon Airport. "The Summit will bring together the people who move freight, operate our gateways and rely on those connections to grow. It's an opportunity to identify what the sector needs next and how we can work together to strengthen Australia's air freight capability."

The FTA's role as program delivery partner is telling. The alliance, co-founded by Paul Zalai, represents freight forwarders and customs brokers — the intermediaries who handle the compliant movement of air cargo on behalf of Australian exporters and importers. Its involvement points to a program weighted toward the operational and regulatory realities of the trade rather than purely policy-level discussion.

"Air freight is a critical enabler of Australia's international trade, supporting exporters and importers in an increasingly fast-moving and complex environment," said Zalai, Co-Founder and Director of the FTA. "The Summit provides a national platform to unite the industry and, importantly, recognise freight forwarders and customs brokers as the professionals who connect Australia to global markets, facilitate the compliant movement of air cargo and help businesses navigate evolving regulatory and operational requirements."

For shippers, the significance is straightforward. Australia's air cargo market depends heavily on belly capacity and a limited set of gateway airports, and any forum that concentrates decision-makers from airlines, airports and the forwarding community in one room has potential to accelerate practical fixes — smoother customs processes, better ground handling coordination and clearer direction on capacity investment.

For forwarders and brokers, the summit offers visibility that the sector has rarely had at national level in Australia. Their inclusion as a named constituency in the FTA's framing suggests the program will treat them as principals in the supply chain, not just service providers.

Organisers say the program has been developed with input from across the sector, though the specific session topics, speakers and dates within the 2027 airshow schedule remain to be published. Registration details are expected in the coming weeks, and sponsorship packages are open now for operators looking to position themselves ahead of the launch.

With sponsorship slots already moving and two major industry bodies attached before the first agenda has dropped, the Australian Air Freight Summit enters the market with momentum — the real test comes when the program lands and the sector sees whether the event can convert convening power into concrete outcomes for capacity and trade facilitation.