What aircraft age restrictions mean for freighter fleets in Asia, Africa and the Middle East

About two-thirds of the 2,800 or so freighter aircraft to be added to operator fleets over the next twenty years is likely to have had a previous life as passenger aircraft. With the average age at conversion increasing over the last decade from under to over twenty years, age restrictions imposed by many countries in Asia and some parts of Africa and the Middle East are constraining capacity growth.

Cargo Facts Consulting has taken stock of age restrictions around the world as well as how these are applied.

Many governments or aviation authorities impose limit on the age of aircraft imported into or operated by carriers based in their respective countries. Mostly these limits are found in Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Restrictions are less common in Europe and across the Americas.

While age limits vary across jurisdictions, they tend to be more strict for passenger than freighter aircraft. Restrictions tend to range between 10 and 20 years for passenger aircraft and 15-25 years for freighter aircraft. They also apply primarily to the age at time of importation. In other words, once an aircraft is on a national air operator certificate, it can continue to operate indefinitely in that country or be converted to a freighter aircraft.

The interactive map below shows an overview of restrictions by country. A number of Asian countries have import age restrictions: China (15 years), India (27), Indonesia (25), Myanmar (25), South Korea (20),Taiwan (12) and Thailand (18). Chinese restrictions have been in place since 2011, but the Government was already imposing restrictions from 2006. Outside Asia Jordan, Ethiopia, and Turkey all impose 25 year limits on the importation of freighter aircraft.

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Source: Corporate Jet Investor, National Government Data, Cargo Facts Consulting Analysis

When we look at other regions in the world like Europe or the Americas, we don’t usually see age ceilings for commercial aircraft but in some cases like Indonesia or Thailand, the limits were announced after international bodies like ICAO reacted to certain aviation safety concerns raised in audit processes and that identified many deficiencies. Thailand currently limits the age for a new freighter to be deployed at 18 years versus 16 years for a passenger plane while Indonesia has imposed strict measurements and back in 2016, they imposed age limits of 10 years for passenger aircraft and 15 years for freighters operating at the time.

Since numerous freighters are converted passenger planes, some aircraft may be already too old when they reach their prime age for conversion in these countries. The purpose of these measures is sometimes intended to undergo a more rigorous scrutiny of safety, historical maintenance, ownership and financial matters. Authorities also scrutinize the ownership credentials of an operators’ shareholders to ensure nationals are not used as front for foreign interests. However, there appears to be a large deal of flexibility in the application of age restrictions, as the table below shows: Country

Official Age Limit

Actual Average Age at Importation

Min Actual Age

Max Actual Age

China 15

19

17

24

Ethiopia 25

25

21

27

Indonesia 10

25

21

28

South Korea 20

22

18

23

Taiwan 12

17

15

23

Thailand 18

20

19

27

Turkey 25

24

21

26

Source: Freighter Aircraft Transactions Database, Cargo Facts Consulting Analysis for transactions between 2005 and 2020

Even though there are countries with very strict rules, the above examples show that most aviation authorities allow a certain degree of flexibility and look beyond the age of the aircraft on a case-by-case basis. The number of cycles, historical maintenance records in place, ownership and operators are among the final deciding factors. In those cases where strict measures apply, operators can either convert newer aircraft or use older airframes imported previously.

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