China’s first Airbus A330 P2F delivered to Sichuan Airlines

Sichuan Airlines has taken delivery of China's first Airbus A330-300 Passenger to Freighter converted aircraft.  The cargo jet is on long-term lease from CDB Aviation and was converted by Elbe Flugzeugwerke GmbH with Shanghai Technologies Aerospace Company Limited at its facilities in Shanghai Pudong, concluding EFW’s first-ever A330 P2F conversion to have taken place in China.

“This re-delivery marks a significant milestone for Sichuan Airlines and China as we see the outcome of intense work and collaboration resulting in the arrival of the country’s very first A330 P2F,” asserted Jie Chen, CDB Aviation’s Chief Executive Officer. “We are grateful to the Sichuan Airlines team for trusting CDB Aviation to be a partner in supporting their innovative fleet strategy and for becoming our first A330 P2F customer in China. This aircraft will be a superb addition to their fleet as the airline continues to serve the country’s rapidly expanding air cargo market.”

The freighter, equipped with Rolls-Royce Trent 700 engines, was delivered to Sichuan Airlines on May 15, 2023, becoming the inaugural A330 P2F in the carrier’s fleet. In addition to the A330 P2F, CDB Aviation has two A320 aircraft on lease to the airline.

“We are very happy to build on our relationship with CDB Aviation and thank CEO Jie Chen and his team for their work and cooperation in bringing this aircraft to market,” said Zuyi Shi, Sichuan Airlines’ Chief Executive Officer. “The introduction of this A330 P2F will provide us more freighter capacity to meet the market requirement and further strengthen our development strategy in cargo business.”

Amazon Air has signed a firm agreement to lease ten A330-300P2F freighters from Altavair

Amazon Air has signed a firm agreement to lease ten A330-300P2F freighters from Altavair, taking advantage of the A330’s capacity and economics to help fulfil its one-day delivery promise to Amazon Prime customers. The aircraft will be operated for Amazon by Hawaiian Airlines, which has had A330s as a key element of its fleet since 2010. The ten airframes are being converted from passenger aircraft to freighters by Elbe Flugzeugwerke GmbH (EFW), the centre of excellence for Airbus Passenger-to-Freighter (P2F) conversions. 

“We’re thrilled to welcome Airbus to our Amazon Air fleet,” said Philippe Karam, Director, Amazon Global Air Fleet & Sourcing. “These A330-300s will not only be the first of their kind in our fleet, they’ll also be the newest, largest aircraft for Amazon Air, allowing us to deliver more customer packages with each flight.”

Amazon Air transports customer packages over longer distances in shorter timeframes to deliver on its customer promise of fast, free delivery. The first of their A330-300P2F aircraft is expected to join the Amazon Air fleet in late 2023. 

Hawaiian Airlines to operate and maintain Amazon Air's fleet of 10 Airbus A330 freighter jets

Hawaiian Holdings, has confirmed its special agreement with Amazon to operate and maintain an initial fleet of 10 Airbus A330-300 freighters starting in the autumn of  2023. 

Hawaiian will maintain and fly Amazon’s A330s under Hawaiian’s FAA air carrier certificate to move cargo between airports near the online retailer’s operations facilities. The initial 10 aircraft will enter into service in 2023 and 2024. The agreement also contemplates the ability to expand the fleet depending on Amazon’s future business needs.

“We are excited to help serve Amazon customers by providing additional air cargo capacity and logistics support. This recognizes our experience in providing safe and reliable operations, our incredible front-line team, and our shared focus on the customer,” said Peter Ingram, president and CEO at Hawaiian Airlines. “This relationship provides a catalyst to grow our business and the unique opportunity to diversify our revenue sources while capitalizing on our established strengths.”

“We’re thrilled to work with Hawaiian Airlines,” said Sarah Rhoads, Vice President, Amazon Global Air. “They will maintain and operate the next generation of aircraft in our fleet, which is a reflection of the excellence they deliver as a renowned airline with their own A330 aircraft.”

In preparation for service for Amazon, Hawaiian intends to establish a pilot base on the continental U.S., grow existing maintenance bases, and expand the hiring of pilots, mechanics, dispatchers, supply chain employees and others who will help support this new cargo operation.

In connection with the commercial agreement, the Company issued Amazon warrants to acquire up to 15 percent (post-issuance) of its common shares. The warrants are exercisable over the next 9 years.

Hawaiian – which in 1942 became the first commercial airline to transport scheduled U.S. air cargo with the nation’s first cargo certificate – today carries freight on passenger aircraft across its network of flights within Hawai‘i and between the islands and North America, Asia and Oceania.

CDB Aviation gets first Airbus A330 P2F freighter

CDB Aviation, a wholly-owned Irish subsidiary of China Development Bank Financial Leasing Co., Limited has taken delivery of the first freighter aircraft in the lessor’s history, an A330-300 passenger-to-freighter.

The aircraft was converted by Elbe Flugzeugwerke GmbH -EFW and is the first of two A330 P2Fs leased to the lessor’s launch customer, Mexico-based cargo carrier, mas. The carrier is expected to take delivery of the second aircraft in May.

“This is an important and historic day for CDB Aviation as we see the fruit of two years of intense work and collaboration, culminating in the delivery of our very first A330 P2F since we made the strategic entry into freighter aircraft leasing,” asserted Patrick Hannigan, CDB Aviation’s Chief Executive Officer. “We are grateful to the mas team for trusting CDB Aviation to be a partner in supporting their innovative fleet strategy and for being our very first A330P2F customer.”

Luis Sierra, mas’ Chief Executive Officer, remarked: “We feel honoured that CDB Aviation trusted mas to be its first A330 P2F customer. For us, operating the -300 variant will open amazing opportunities in regional markets where there is a need for highly reliable aircraft, providing enough volume. Working together on this process was amazing, and we are already looking at ways to do more business with the CDB Aviation team.”

“We are glad about the in-time, in-quality re-delivery of the first A330P2F to our customer CDB Aviation. With this first of many more to come conversions we proved meeting customer expectations in these very challenging times,” commented Jordi Boto, Elbe Flugzeugwerke GmbH‘s Chief Executive Officer.

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Air Transport Services Group commitment to 29 Airbus A330P2F aircraft....

 Air Transport Services Group, Inc. (ATSG), the world’s largest lessor of freighter aircraft, has committed to a total of 29 Airbus A330 Passenger-to-Freighter (P2F) conversion slots with Elbe Flugzeugwerke (EFW), center of excellence for Airbus freighter conversions and a joint venture between ST Engineering and Airbus.

The commitment of 29 A330P2F reflects a strategic step by ATSG to diversify its existing in-service fleet of 117 aircraft with the addition of next generation wide-body freighters.

“The A330-300 passenger-to-freighter conversion is a natural next step for ATSG as it is an excellent complement to the Boeing 767-300 medium wide-body freighter, which has long been the freighter of choice for the e-commerce air cargo market,” stated Mike Berger, chief commercial officer of ATSG. “The availability of feedstock combined with impressive cargo capacity make the A330 a very attractive option for conversion and will enable ATSG to continue to meet the demands for full-capacity freighters long into the future. The customer response to the news that we will have A330-300 freighters available for lease has been exceptionally strong, and we already have customer deposits toward future leases for half of these 29 converted freighters.”

A330P2F conversions for ATSG will be performed from mid-2023 through 2027 mainly at EFW’s facility in Dresden, Germany

CDB Aviation moves forward with A330 P2F strategy with new conversion order and freighter introduction in China

CDB Aviation detailed new developments in its A330 passenger-to-freighter (“A330 P2F”) strategy and related commercial activity at the Singapore Airshow. 

Advancing its already leading position in the A330 P2F conversion segment, CDB Aviation committed to an additional twelve conversions with EFW, expanding its A330 P2F fleet to fourteen aircraft. Moreover, the lessor is on pace to launch the A330-300 P2F freighter type in China in 2022, with lease commitments from Sichuan Airlines and Jiangxi Cargo Airlines.

Orders twelve more conversions from Elbe Flugzeugwerke GmbH (“EFW”), bringing the A330 P2F fleet to fourteen aircraft

Launches the A330-300 P2F type in China, backed by new leases with Sichuan Airlines and Jiangxi Cargo Airlines

Debuts first A330 P2F conversions to be performed in Shanghai, China, and Mobile, Alabama, U.S.A.

Becomes the largest lessor of EFW-converted A330 P2Fs

“We have strategically positioned our platform to be the A330 P2F program frontrunner among lessors,” commented Patrick Hannigan, CDB Aviation’s Chief Executive Officer, adding that the A330 P2F marked the lessor’s first entry into the air cargo space. “We’re very satisfied with this program’s progress and momentum to date and look forward to further expanding our freighter fleet in collaboration with our partners at Airbus, ST Engineering, and EFW.”

CDB Aviation was one of the first lessors to secure conversion commitments for the A330 P2F, contracting two initial conversions with EFW in November 2020. With this latest order, the company will become the largest lessor of EFW-converted A330 P2Fs, with a total of fourteen aircraft in its fleet.

“The A330 P2F continues to gain traction as the preferred next-generation type in the fast-growing Medium Widebody Freighter space. It is delivering to cargo operators the most advanced fly-by-wire technology, increased volumetric capacity for today’s less dense freight, reduced fuel consumption, a lower environmental footprint, and the benefits of Airbus fleet commonality,” added Hannigan.

“We are proud to have leading lessor CDB Aviation on board, growing its orders for A330 P2Fs,” said Andreas Sperl, EFW’s Chief Executive Officer. “The A330 P2F program is proving highly popular, and we now have over eighty aircraft on order. EFW is leading the overall A330 P2F program, which is a collaboration between ST Engineering, Airbus, and EFW. To ensure we can meet the rising demand for freighter conversions, EFW and ST Engineering are in the process of ramping up their conversion capacity.”

Photo Airbus

Avolon to partner with IAI, world’s leading independent freighter conversion company, as launch customer for the IAI A330-300 P2F cargo conversion programme

Avolon to partner with IAI, world’s leading independent freighter conversion company, as launch customer for the IAI A330-300 P2F cargo conversion programme

Avolon commits to 30 Airbus A330-300 P2F conversion slots between 2025 and 2028

Air cargo revenues forecasted to be over US$150 billion in 2021 with traffic expected to double over next 20 years reflecting growth in e-commerce

 

Avolon, the international aircraft leasing company, announces a significant commitment to the global air freighter market to capitalise on the growth in e-commerce. Air cargo revenues are forecasted to exceed US$150 billion in 2021 with traffic expected to double over the next 20 years.

 

To capitalise on this clear opportunity, Avolon has signed an agreement with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), the world’s leading independent freighter conversion company. Avolon will be IAI’s launch customer for their Airbus A330-300 freighter conversion programme. The agreement will see Avolon partner with IAI on its STC development and take 30 A330-300 conversion slots with IAI between 2025 and 2028.

IAI A330 Freighter

Avolon has identified IAI as the global leader in the passenger-to-freighter (P2F) conversion market. With a range of over 3,600 nautical miles at maximum payload of 61 tonnes, the IAI A330-300 freighter is uniquely placed to support the forecasted growth in e-commerce over the next 20 years. The IAI A330-300 product will offer a competitive edge to air cargo operators looking to expand or replace their medium wide body freighter fleets.

IAI’s A330-300 P2F will increase cargo volume capacity with up to 27 main deck pallet positions, one more than the competition, and will drive enhanced cargo loading performance due to its optimized door position. These product advantages will drive improvements in the most important operating measures for companies in the air freight market.

 

Dómhnal Slattery, Avolon CEO, commented: “We identified IAI as a long-time global leader in the aircraft conversion business and the right partner for Avolon to capitalise on the unparalleled growth in e-commerce. The global air freight market is worth over US$150 billion annually today and the sector is transforming, with air cargo traffic expected to double over the next 20 years. This agreement signals Avolon’s intention to be a leading player in that expansion.

We believe the IAI A330-300 P2F will be the wide body freighter of choice this decade and beyond, replacing retiring aircraft and providing the volume capacity required to meet market needs. In partnering with IAI we have identified the most efficient operator in the freight conversion market, guaranteeing more cargo pallet capacity and crucially, faster turn around times, in a market where every inch and second count.”

IAI President & CEO, Boaz Levy, said: "For the second time in recent years, IAI's Aviation Group is making history. Just two years ago we announced that we will be the first in the world to perform a passenger-to-freighter conversion on the B777-300ER, and today we are announcing that we will perform the cargo conversions for the Airbus A330-300 aircraft. IAI has proven time and again its leading position as the powerhouse of cargo conversions, globally. I am grateful to our partners at Avolon for their faith in our abilities."

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Two A330-300 P2F aircraft for Mexico’s MasAir

Global leasing giant, CDB Aviation, announced over the weekend that it had reached an agreement with Mexico-based MasAir Cargo Airline for the lease of two Airbus A330-300 Passenger-to-Freighter (“P2F”) aircraft, marking the lessor’s first-ever lease transaction with an airline operator for the aircraft type.

The A330 P2Fs on long-term lease to its newest customer in the Americas represent the first two positions from CDB Aviation’s agreement with Germany-based EFW for the aircraft type’s conversion announced in November 2020. The aircraft are scheduled to deliver to MasAir during the first half of 2022.

“We are thrilled to welcome MasAir as the newest member of our growing customer base in Mexico and the Americas,” commented CDB Aviation Chief Marketing Officer Peter Goodman, pointing to the lessor’s distinctive provision of a customized fleet solution that will aid the dedicated freighter operator’s strategic move to expand the fleet with more efficient and capable medium-sized widebody freighters.