Cleveland Rocks

FedEx currently runs 72 Airbus A300 freighters, almost all of them are A300-600’s, like N719FD (id: 388).

This A300 was originally built for Air Algerie in 1986, but wasn’t taken up by that airline. It ran an Airbus test reg until Korean Air took delivery in 1989. FedEx bought it in 2003.

Only one FedEx A300 visits Seattle on a daily basis, but unfortunately for photo ops, it comes in pre-dawn and leaves post-dusk. So in this case, we see 719FD about to touch down at Cleveland Hopkins International.

Cleveland isn’t a big cargo airport but is well served by FedEx & UPS. CLE is a Continental hub and Continental and Southwest both run some belly cargo there as well.

Cleveland faces an uncertain future with the United-Continental merger putting the hub in limbo and passenger numbers declining quite a bit over the last decade.

Click on the Photo to see it at full size. Photographer: D. Kappa.