An air ride suspension system is not as complicated as it might sound. Air ride suspension system simply replaces a standard steel spring with bladder or bag of compressed air. The resulting effect is a much higher shock absorbency ratio to provide a smoother ride to the truck and therefore the trailers cargo.

A leaf-spring stack is attached to the frame at two locations, one in front of the axle and one behind the axle. They usually rest on the axle, but sometimes the axle rests on the leaf springs. An air ride system has air bags that usually sit between the frame and the axle.

An air-ride suspension is a kind of suspension that supports the load on air-filled rubber bags rather than steel springs. Compressed air is supplied by the same engine-driven air compressor and reservoir tanks that provide air to the air brake system.