Time critical logistics provider Flytrix has launched DocumentJet, a new online service that allows businesses and private customers to book international on-board courier (OBC) shipments for urgent documents directly online.
While OBC and hand carry services have traditionally been used primarily by industries such as aerospace, manufacturing and healthcare, DocumentJet is designed to make the same type of dedicated transport accessible without the traditional quoting process. Customers enter the pick up and delivery locations online and receive a price and estimated delivery window within seconds. The shipment can then be booked directly by credit card. Behind the platform, Flytrix assigns an available courier, selects suitable scheduled passenger flights and arranges the first and last mile transportation.
Despite the automated booking process, the physical transportation remains deliberately human: a dedicated courier personally accompanies the document from origin to destination as a passenger on scheduled flights.
DocumentJet is limited to documents with no commercial customs value, including contracts, passports, court documents and civil status records.
‘We deliberately designed DocumentJet around a narrowly defined type of shipment that can be booked online with as little friction as possible,’ said founder Adrian Kaesberg.’“Shipments involving commercial goods or more complex customs requirements will continue to be handled individually through our regular Flytrix channels.’
At launch, DocumentJet is available for pick ups and deliveries across approximately 120 countries.
Adrian continued, ‘A woman in the United States called us because her mother was stuck at Zurich Airport after accidentally travelling with an expired passport,’ he said. ‘We had a courier on the way with the correct passport within about an hour. It was one of those cases where a normal courier network simply wasn’t fast enough.’
Flytrix has placed particular emphasis on making the booking process understandable to customers with no logistics background. ‘We didn’t want DocumentJet to look or feel like software built for freight forwarders,’ Adrian said. ‘There are no complicated logistics terms or lengthy account set ups. If someone can book a flight or a hotel online, they should be able to book DocumentJet.’ No customer account is required to place a booking.
The platform is available in English, German, Spanish, French and Italian. Most DocumentJet shipments are expected to be delivered on the same day or the following day, depending on routing and flight availability.
A key element of the platform is an automated pricing and feasibility engine.
DocumentJet combines flight schedules, current courier availability and a matrix built from operational data and experience gathered across thousands of Flytrix shipments. The system uses this information to calculate pricing and estimated transit times within seconds. ‘With a time critical shipment, you can’t simply take an airfare and add a margin,’ Adrian said. ‘There are dozens of operational dependencies that have to work at the same time, from airport accessibility and connection times to immigration requirements and the availability of a suitable courier.’
DocumentJet is built on ticris, the company’s technology platform for digitising and automating time critical logistics workflows. An integrated decision support system evaluates approximately 40 operational parameters during shipment planning. According to internal evaluations, the technology has reduced error rates across sales, fulfillment and operations by more than 90%.
Flytrix plans to make ticris available to other time critical logistics providers as a software as a service platform from 2028. ‘DocumentJet is the first time we are showing externally how far highly complex, time critical logistics processes can be automated,’ Adrian said. ‘Our longer term goal with ticris is to make this technology available to other logistics companies and help make urgent transportation faster, more reliable and more economical.’
He explained that DocumentJet is not intended to compete with conventional express parcel operators on everyday shipments. ‘DocumentJet will never be a mass market service,’ he said. ‘It is designed for exceptional situations where time and predictability matter more than price.’
International DocumentJet shipments typically cost between $2500 and $6000, although pricing varies significantly depending on distance, flight availability and routing. ‘If a shipment can comfortably arrive one or two days later, a traditional express carrier will almost always be the more sensible and much cheaper option,’ Adrian added. ‘DocumentJet is for the cases where those options are no longer fast or predictable enough.’