Airway bill tracking India Post queries usually come from people who’ve spotted an unfamiliar code on their shipment, often starting with AW, and want to know exactly what it means and how to track it. This guide explains what an airway bill number actually is, how it relates to your regular India Post consignment number, and the exact steps for tracking it from booking through delivery.
Air waybills are common with shipments that involve air transport at some point in their journey, including many international items and packages that pass through a partner carrier before India Post takes over for final delivery. Once you know how to read the code and where to enter it, tracking an AWB is no different from tracking any other India Post shipment.
The confusion around AWB numbers usually comes from online shopping, where a marketplace hands a shipment off to India Post partway through its journey rather than booking it directly at a post office. In these cases the tracking history you see may begin later than the actual shipping date, since India Post only starts logging events once the item physically enters its network. Understanding this handoff point is often the missing piece that makes an otherwise confusing tracking result make complete sense.
Table of Contents
- What Is an Airway Bill Number?
- Airway Bill vs. Consignment Number
- How to Track Your Airway Bill
- Why Your Tracking Number Starts With AW
- Understanding Cross Border Status Terms
- When It Shows Delivered but You Have Not Received It
- Frequently Asked Questions
What Is an Airway Bill Number?
An airway bill, commonly shortened to AWB, is a shipment reference originally used in air cargo to track goods moving by air freight.
In the context of India Post, the same concept applies to Speed Post and EMS items that travel by air for at least part of their route.
Rather than being a separate system, the AWB usually functions as your main tracking number and follows the same 13 character format used across India Post’s network.
Airway Bill vs. Consignment Number
A common point of confusion is whether an airway bill and a consignment number are different things. In practice, on most India Post labels they are the same code.
The term airway bill tends to get used specifically in the context of air transport and international shipments, while consignment number is the more general term used across all India Post services.
If your receipt or shipping label refers to an AWB, you can use that exact code in any standard tracking tool without needing to look for a separate consignment number.
How to Track Your Airway Bill
Tracking an AWB with India Post follows the same simple process as tracking any other shipment:
- Locate your AWB or consignment number on your receipt, shipping label, or order confirmation email.
- Enter the code into a tracking tool such as indiaposttrackings.com.
- Review the current status along with the full history of scan events from booking to the present.
- For official confirmation, you can also cross check the result on the India Post Track and Trace portal directly.
Because AWBs are often tied to items that involve air transport, allow a little extra time for updates around the export and import stages, since scans during flight legs and customs handling don’t always sync as quickly as domestic transit scans.
Why Your Tracking Number Starts With AW
A tracking number starting with the letters AW usually signals that the shipment was first handled by another party before India Post took over.
This is especially common with online marketplace orders, where the seller’s own logistics network manages the shipment for part of its journey and then hands it to India Post for last mile delivery.
When this happens, you may notice that the marketplace’s own app shows movement earlier than India Post’s tracking page does, since India Post’s system only begins logging scans once the item reaches its network.
Understanding Cross Border Status Terms
International AWB tracking sometimes shows status terms that look unfamiliar compared to standard domestic updates. A few worth knowing:
| Status | What It Means |
|---|---|
| Send Receptacle Abroad (OTB) | The shipment has been bundled and dispatched to an international exchange office for onward transit. |
| Received Receptacle From Abroad | An incoming international shipment has arrived at an Indian exchange office. |
| Item Bagged | The shipment has been grouped with others for onward transport, a routine step in both domestic and international handling. |
| Dispatched to BO | The item has been sent to a Branch Office, typically a smaller local office closer to the final delivery address. |
These terms simply reflect the additional handling steps involved when a shipment crosses a border, and seeing them is a normal part of the process rather than a sign of a problem.
When It Shows Delivered but You Have Not Received It
Occasionally an AWB status updates to delivered before the recipient has actually received the item, which understandably causes concern. This can happen due to a scanning error at the delivery office, a handoff to a building or office reception rather than the named recipient directly, or in rare cases a delivery to the wrong address. If this happens, contact your local delivery post office with the AWB number as soon as possible, since resolving this usually requires checking internal delivery records that aren’t visible on the public tracking page.
Final Thoughts
Airway bill tracking India Post is far less confusing once you realize an AWB is simply your standard tracking number viewed through the lens of air transport and cross border handling. For a fast, reliable check anytime, indiaposttrackings.com lets you track your AWB or consignment number in seconds, with no login or app required.
FAQs
What is an airway bill number in India Post tracking?
An airway bill, or AWB, is a shipment reference used for items that travel by air, and for India Post it usually appears as the same 13 character code used for regular consignment tracking.
How do I track my airway bill with India Post?
Enter the AWB number into a tracking tool such as indiaposttrackings.com the same way you would track a regular consignment number, since both use the same underlying system.
Why does my tracking number start with AW?
A code starting with AW often indicates the item was first handled by another carrier, such as an e-commerce platform’s own transport service, before being handed to India Post for final delivery.
What does OTB mean in India Post tracking?
OTB stands for Office of Trans-shipment and Booking, and status messages referencing it usually relate to a package being sent to or received from an international exchange office.
Is an airway bill different from a consignment number?
On most India Post labels, the airway bill number and the consignment number are the same code, though airway bill is the term more commonly used for shipments involving air transport.
My AWB shows delivered but I have not received the item, what should I do?
Contact the delivery post office directly with your AWB number, since a status of delivered without an actual handover usually needs to be resolved at the local office rather than through the tracking page alone.