“737 Arrives For Conversion at EADS EFW” Wait! How can this be?

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When is a 737 not a 737? Our Headline-Of-The-Month award goes to Elbe Flugzeugwerke (EFW, the conversion arm of European aerospace giant EADS), which recently announced the induction for freighter conversion of another A300-600 for DHL under the banner “737 Arrives For Conversion at EADS EFW.” This was actually a true statement, because the A300-600 in question was ex-Japan Airlines unit msn 737, but the headline no doubt caused some consternation at Aeronautical Engineers Inc, Bedek Aviation Group, and Pemco World Air Services – all of which offer passenger-to-freighter conversion programs for the Boeing 737, while EFW specializes in P-to-F conversions of Airbus aircraft.

This particular A300-600 is the eleventh of thirteen ex-JAL units acquired by DHL to arrive at EFW’s Dresden facility, where it is scheduled to undergo conversion in early 2012. DHL will use the freighter-converted A300-600Fs to replace the A300B4Fs (shown above) currently used in its European air operation.

EFW currently has sixteen A300-600 conversions in its backlog, including two for MAXIMUS AIR CARGO and one for RUS AVIATION, as well as the thirteen for DHL. While no official announcement has been made on the subject, Cargo Facts expects Airbus and EFW to launch an A330 passenger-to-freighter program in the near future, probably including both the -200 and -300 variants.