Air Gateway Operations Leader: Cost, Compliance & Growth

FTZ Fritz; Bensenville (IL); On-site; USD 97,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical coverage

Dental coverage

Vision coverage

401(k) plan

Paid vacation

Job summary

UPS is seeking an Air Gateway Manager in the United States (Illinois) to own gateway initiatives, drive efficiency, and ensure regulatory compliance. You will coordinate with airlines, ground handlers, and internal teams to optimize routing and cost structures.

Responsibilities include negotiating airline/vendor agreements, analyzing market rates, and supporting pricing for RFQs and tenders. Lead staff development and ensure staffing aligns with demand.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Logistics, Supply Chain, or related field preferred.
• 5+ years in air freight forwarding or airline cargo operations, with at least 2 years in a supervisory/managerial role.
• Strong knowledge of IATA, TSA, CBP, and international air cargo regulations.
• Proven track record in vendor management and cost control.
• Commercial mindset with cost and revenue alignment awareness.
• Understanding of air freight market trends and industry dynamics.
• Excellent leadership, communication, and problem-solving skills.
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Office suite.

Responsibilities

• Negotiate airline and vendor agreements and buy rates, balancing service, capacity, and profitability objectives.
• Ensure market competitiveness by regularly comparing and validating vs market rates.
• Provide cost inputs to pricing teams for RFQs, tenders, and ad-hoc opportunities.
• Drive routing, capacity, and carrier optimization to reduce costs and improve transit performance.
• Manage ULD planning, consolidation management, and capacity allocation with airlines and regulations.
• Monitor and support operations to meet KPIs for import/export velocity, cost and service levels.
• Drive cost optimization for gateway expenses and manage vendor costs and risks.
• Support gateway compliance with IATA, TSA, CBP and other regulatory requirements.
• Manage, coach, and develop gateway staff, emphasizing commercial mindset, negotiation, and customer service.
• Ensure staffing aligns with volume patterns and seasonal demand.
• Collaborate with product, sales, and service teams to support growth and profitability.
• Coordinate with customs brokerage, warehouse, hub, service center, dispatch teams and international partners.

Skills

Vendor management

Cost control

Leadership

Negotiation

Excel

Microsoft Office

Air freight market trends

Communication

Problem-solving

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Logistics or related field

Tools

Microsoft Excel

Microsoft Office

Job description

UPS is seeking an Air Gateway Manager in the United States (Illinois) to own gateway initiatives, drive efficiency, and ensure regulatory compliance. You will coordinate with airlines, ground handlers, and internal teams to optimize routing and cost structures.

Responsibilities include negotiating airline/vendor agreements, analyzing market rates, and supporting pricing for RFQs and tenders. Lead staff development and ensure staffing aligns with demand.