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You can't 'crush' regular black powder - you can bust up some of the granules, but to actually crush it to a finer powder - enough to reduce volume - takes either a grinding motion or much more force than you can generate with a loading lever.
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Not to be contrary, but I have compressed BP so hard that it seemed to be one contiguous mass, almost like a Pyrodex or 777 pellet. Only way I could get it back out of the case was to scrape it out. If there were air gaps between granules, it was not detectable by the naked eye. I couldn't make out granules at all.
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As far as needing air, you are correct that black powder produces it's own oxygen for combustion, but additional oxygen will help the reaction progress.
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If that is so, then BP would burn quicker in a pile than it would confined in a case or chamber. Don't believe that's the case.