Bahrain’s newest all-cargo carrier ready for takeoff

Following the successful completion of proving flights, MENA Cargo Airlines was awarded an air operator’s certificate and can now officially operate out of Bahrain utilizing a sole 737-300F. MENA Cargo, a division of MENA Aerospace Enterprises, will initially operate within the six countries that make up the Gulf Cooperation Council and to India, with plans to expand into North and Eastern Africa. [caption id="attachment_416859" align="alignright" width="560"] The aircraft arrived in Bahrain in May 2021. (Photo/MENA Cargo)[/caption] The demand for air cargo and the global expansion of e-commerce helped jumpstart the decision to launch the newest freighter airline, Peter Hewett, MENA Cargo director of ground operations and deputy general manager, told Air Cargo World . “It’s booming at the moment,” Hewett said. “You see air cargo figures have more than doubled and tripled with some airlines, and a lot of airlines have now started this process of converting their passenger aircraft into mini freighters, so obviously there’s a lot of influence around the world of what global managers were doing,” he added. “That allowed us to make a decision to look at this to see how we can make this work, and we decided it was a stepping stone for us.” An end customer is already lined up for the first aircraft, Hewett said. “These are long-term deals. Then obviously we want to [be able to] do a few of the short-term charters as well because of the market.” According to Hewett, MENA Cargo went with the 737-300F because of the range and tonnage it would get within the Gulf, and because it was reasonably priced. Due to high demand, freighter availability is scarce and converting a plane would take more than four to six months, assuming a company already holds a slot. “If you start looking at some of the newer freighter types,” while there are the benefits of additional capacity and range, “there's a massive increase in terms of lease costs,” Hewett said. “The -800s are now starting to become available and we’re in discussions with a lessor to see how we can firm up a deal for an -800,” he added. MENA Cargo will continue to lease planes but would consider purchasing if the opportunity arises. In the long term, MENA is looking to develop strategic partnerships with integrators, premium freight forwarders and cargo agents to meet the growing demand in untapped markets in the Europe, Middle East and Africa region. “We will probably need a fleet of maybe up to fifteen aircraft that will be distributed between Bahrain, the U.A.E. and Saudi Arabia.” MENA Cargo joins DHL International and Texel Air as freighter operators in Bahrain.

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