What Kind of Freight Does the Military Actually Need Hauled?

When people picture military freight, they imagine convoys of armored vehicles, crates of weapons, or classified equipment surrounded by armed guards. That image comes from movies and news coverage, and it's almost entirely wrong.

The reality is far more ordinary. Most military freight looks exactly like commercial freight because it is commercial freight. The difference is the destination, not the cargo.

Understanding what the military actually needs hauled matters because it shapes what carriers can realistically pursue. The dramatic freight requires special clearances and qualifications most carriers will never obtain. The ordinary freight is accessible to any trucking company that meets the basic requirements.

FAK: The Freight Most Carriers Can Haul

FAK stands for Freight All Kinds. It's the military's category for general commodity freight, and it represents the vast majority of what the Department of Defense moves by truck.

FAK freight includes everything a military installation needs to function as a community. Think about what a small city requires to operate daily, and you'll have a good sense of what FAK covers.

Food and beverages. Military bases have dining facilities that serve thousands of meals daily. That food arrives on trucks. Fresh produce, frozen goods, dry goods, beverages. The same products you'd see going to a large institutional food service operation.

Office supplies and furniture. Bases have administrative buildings, offices, and workspaces. They need desks, chairs, filing cabinets, computers, paper, and all the mundane supplies any office requires. When a unit relocates or a building gets renovated, furniture moves.

Maintenance parts and equipment. Vehicles, buildings, and infrastructure require constant maintenance. Parts for everything from HVAC systems to vehicle fleets move to bases continuously. Tools, equipment, and supplies for maintenance crews follow the same pattern.

Medical supplies. Military bases have medical facilities ranging from clinics to full hospitals. Medical equipment, pharmaceuticals, and supplies flow to these facilities just like they do to civilian healthcare operations.

Clothing and uniforms. Service members need uniforms, boots, and gear. Distribution centers ship these items to bases nationwide. It's textile logistics, not weapons logistics.

Construction materials. Bases undergo constant construction and renovation. Building materials, lumber, concrete products, roofing, and related supplies move to installation projects.

Household goods. When service members receive orders to a new duty station, their household belongings move with them. This is essentially residential moving freight handled through military channels.

None of this freight is sensitive. None of it requires security clearances. None of it involves anything more complicated than what you'd haul for a commercial customer. The cargo is ordinary. The customer happens to be the federal government.

Dispelling the Weapons Myth

The misconception that military freight means weapons and classified materials keeps many carriers from exploring this opportunity. They assume the freight is inaccessible or that they'd need special qualifications they can't obtain.

Here's the reality: the military moves far more toilet paper than torpedoes. More office chairs than ammunition. More frozen chicken than anything classified.

Military installations are communities. Fort Liberty (formerly Fort Bragg) has a population equivalent to a small city. Joint Base Lewis-McChord functions like a town. These places need everything any community needs, delivered constantly. The logistics of keeping a base running dwarf the logistics of moving weapons systems.

Weapons, ammunition, and sensitive equipment do move, but through entirely different channels with different carriers. That freight has its own category, its own requirements, and its own approved carrier base. Regular trucking companies hauling FAK freight never touch it.

The mental image of military freight needs updating. It's not dramatic. It's not dangerous. It's pallets of supplies going to loading docks at government facilities. It's remarkably similar to what you'd haul for any large institutional customer.

TPS: The Middle Category

Between ordinary FAK freight and weapons lies a middle category called TPS: Transportation Protective Services.

TPS freight requires additional security measures during transport. This might include constant surveillance, specific routing requirements, or other protective protocols. The cargo isn't necessarily weapons, but it's sensitive enough to warrant extra precautions.

Carriers hauling TPS freight need additional certifications beyond basic military freight approval. The requirements are more stringent, the compliance obligations are higher, and the carrier pool is smaller.

Most carriers entering military freight start with FAK and never move to TPS. The general freight category provides plenty of opportunity without the added complexity. Some carriers eventually pursue TPS certification to access additional freight, but it's not the entry point.

For carriers evaluating military freight opportunities, TPS represents a potential future expansion, not an immediate requirement. You can build a meaningful military freight business hauling only FAK cargo.

AA&E: The Category Most Carriers Will Never Touch

AA&E stands for Arms, Ammunition, and Explosives. This is the freight category that matches the dramatic mental image of military logistics. It's also almost entirely inaccessible to typical trucking companies.

AA&E freight involves actual weapons, ammunition, explosives, and related materials. The requirements to haul this freight are in a different league entirely.

Carriers need specific certifications and approvals beyond standard military freight authorization. Drivers require security clearances and background investigations. Team drivers are mandatory for many AA&E shipments. Insurance requirements jump dramatically, with liability coverage of $5 million or more. Equipment must meet specific security standards. Routes are often prescribed. Stops are restricted.

The carriers hauling AA&E freight have invested heavily in the specialized requirements. They've built their operations around this specific freight category. They're not typical trucking companies that added military freight to their portfolio. They're specialized operators in a niche that demands specialization.

For carriers exploring military freight as a diversification strategy, AA&E isn't part of the conversation. It's mentioned here only to clarify what it is and why it's separate from the freight most carriers can pursue. When you hear about military freight opportunities, AA&E isn't what's being discussed.

Volume and Frequency: Why This Freight Never Stops

Military bases don't have slow seasons. They don't cut back orders during economic downturns. They don't pause operations while waiting to see how the market develops.

Every day, bases need resupply. Dining facilities need food. Medical clinics need supplies. Maintenance operations need parts. Administrative offices need materials. The consumption is constant, which means the freight is constant.

This consistency is fundamental to why military freight appeals to carriers seeking stable revenue. Commercial freight rises and falls with economic conditions. Retail freight surges and drops with consumer spending. Manufacturing freight follows industrial cycles.

Military freight follows appropriations. Congress funds the Department of Defense. That funding supports operations. Operations require logistics. The cycle is disconnected from commercial market conditions.

During the freight recession that battered commercial carriers from 2022 through 2025, military freight kept moving at essentially the same pace. Bases still needed supplies. Service members still relocated. Equipment still required maintenance. The carriers approved to haul that freight had work while others scrambled on load boards for whatever they could find.

Geographic Distribution: Freight Goes Everywhere

The military operates installations in every region of the country. This geographic spread creates freight opportunities across diverse lanes, not just in specific corridors.

Major installations cluster in certain areas. The Southeast has significant concentrations in North Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. Texas has multiple large bases. California hosts numerous facilities. But smaller installations, reserve centers, recruiting stations, and support facilities exist nationwide.

This distribution means military freight isn't limited to carriers operating in specific regions. A carrier based in the Midwest can find military freight relevant to their lanes. A carrier in the Northeast can access opportunities. The national footprint of military installations creates a national footprint of freight movement.

When carriers register for military freight, they select which states they want to operate in. Bond requirements scale with geographic coverage: $25,000 for a single state, $50,000 for two to three states, $100,000 for four or more. Carriers can match their coverage to their operating area rather than committing to nationwide authority.

This flexibility lets carriers integrate military freight into their existing operations rather than rebuilding around it. You don't have to become a nationwide carrier to haul military freight. You can operate in your current region with your current equipment.

What This Means for Your Operation

The freight the military needs hauled isn't exotic. It's the same general commodities moving across commercial supply chains. The difference is reliability: consistent volume, predictable payment, and demand that doesn't disappear when the economy softens.

Carriers considering military freight don't need to worry about security clearances or classified materials. FAK freight, which is where most carriers operate, is regular cargo going to government facilities. If you can haul freight for a commercial customer, you can haul FAK freight for the military.

The requirements to become approved are administrative and financial, not operational. Three years of authority. Proper registrations. Insurance and bonding at specified levels. Completion of the FCRP process. None of this changes how you run your truck. It just opens a new customer category.

Understanding what military freight actually involves is the first step in evaluating whether it fits your operation. For carriers with established authority and stable operations, FAK freight represents accessible, consistent business that looks remarkably like what you're already doing, just for a different customer.

Curious about how payment works for military freight? Read How Military Freight Payments Actually Work (And Why Carriers Love It) for details on the 72-hour payment system.