Air France Cargo Human Remains

When a family needs to transport a loved one's body from France to the United States, the shipment almost certainly routes through Air France-KLM Cargo at Paris-Charles de Gaulle. As France's flag carrier and the dominant international cargo operator out of CDG, Air France handles human remains under strict protocols that most families (and even some funeral directors) have never navigated.

The "Specialized Care" Product

Air France-KLM Cargo classifies human remains transport under their "Specialized Care" service with PLUS priority handling. This is not a standard cargo booking. The service guarantees:

• Priority loading — the casket is loaded before general freight
• Temperature-controlled, pressurized cargo hold — monitored directly from the cockpit during flight
• Expedited rerouting during flight disruptions — if a connection is missed, the remains are prioritized on the next available routing rather than waiting in a general freight queue

The booking must be initiated by the French funeral home (pompes funèbres) or a licensed cargo agent, not by the family directly. The funeral home provides the shipment documentation; the cargo station handles the technical booking.

The OK2FWD Process

This is the step that catches families off guard. Air France uses a mandatory "OK2FWD" (OK to Forward) confirmation before any human remains shipment is released for flight.

Here's how it works: the originating cargo station at CDG contacts the destination station (JFK, ORD, LAX, or whichever US airport the remains are routed through) and verifies that all receiving-end requirements are met. Specifically, the destination station confirms that:

• A licensed US funeral home has been designated to receive the remains
• US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) clearance requirements have been pre-arranged
• Any necessary CDC import permits are in order (required when the cause of death involves certain infectious diseases, or when the body was not embalmed)
• All consular transit documents check out against the airline's records

The booking stays in pending status until the OK2FWD confirmation comes back. Standard repatriations generally take 7–14 days overall, and weekend customs constraints can extend the schedule.

Casket Specifications for Air Cargo

The casket must comply with both the Strasbourg Agreement (the international standard France follows for cross-border transport of remains) and IATA cargo handling standards:

• Inner casket: hermetically sealed zinc liner, minimum 1mm thick, with a gas filter valve, soldered airtight
• Outer casket: solid wood shipping container that fully encloses the zinc inner
• Sealing: a French police officer or municipal agent must physically witness the coffin closure, verify the deceased's identity, and apply a wax seal to the screws

The sealed, double-walled casket is then crated or palletized according to the airline's cargo handling requirements for delivery to the CDG cargo terminal.

What the Family Needs to Arrange at Both Ends

France side: The French funeral home handles body preparation, embalming, the zinc casket, coffin sealing under police supervision, and delivery to CDG cargo. They also apply for the laissez-passer mortuaire (transit permit) from the departmental préfecture, which authorizes the remains to leave French territory.

US side: The family must designate a licensed US funeral home at the receiving airport. That funeral home handles CBP customs clearance, takes physical possession of the remains from the cargo terminal, and arranges domestic transport to the final destination. This needs to be arranged before the Air France booking can be confirmed through OK2FWD.

The two funeral homes — one in France, one in the US — need to coordinate directly. Gaps in this coordination are the most common source of delays.

Costs and Timing

The French-side preparation and air cargo typically cost approximately $6,000 for East Coast destinations, $6,200 for Midwest destinations, and $6,400 for West Coast destinations. US receiving funeral-home fees (typically $3,000+) are separate.

Air transit and US customs clearance typically take 2–4 days after departure, but the total time from death to US arrival runs 7–14 days because of the document assembly, police sealing, and OK2FWD confirmation that must happen before the remains can fly.

The American Dies in France — Family Emergency Guide includes a complete air cargo coordination checklist and the document sequence for both the French and US funeral homes.