DHL Express sent off a pair of ex-American Airlines 767-300ERs this week to be converted into freighters, as it continues adding to its owned fleet.
Unit 33085 arrived in Singapore (QPG) Feb. 1 for Boeing conversion at the ST Engineering facility, while unit 33081 arrived in Mexico City (MEX) Feb. 3, ahead of conversion at the Mexicana MRO Services facility by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI).
The integrator placed 767 conversion orders with both Boeing and IAI last year, for a total of at least seven freighters expected to enter service by the end of 2021. The first aircraft under these orders was a 767-300BDSF (33087) completed at the Mexicana facility at the end of 2020 and ferried to Shannon (SNN) Dec. 20. DHL recently told Cargo Facts that aircraft is destined to join its Bahrain-based division, DHL International Aviation.
DHL already has another 767 (33086) at MEX, having brought it there in November 2020, while the first aircraft under the Boeing order (33083) made its way to QPG last September and should soon be ready for redelivery.
DHL is not the only operator with multiple 767s undergoing conversion in parallel. Amazon also sent two of the ex-Delta aircraft it recently bought to MEX in quick succession: one (30575) on Jan. 27 and another (30595) on Jan. 31.
These aircraft — entering service in 2022, according to Amazon — will not be converted quite yet; the retail company already has two ex-WestJet 767-300ERs (25363 and 25246) that were sent to MEX in September 2020; Mexicana MRO Services told Cargo Facts last year that it would only start working on unit 25246 after the completion of unit 25363.
Amazon also has two ex-WestJet frames (25274 and 25576) at IAI’s facility in Tel Aviv (TLV), where most of IAI’s six conversion lines there are taken up by 767s for Cargo Aircraft Management (CAM).
Booming demand for 767 freighters prompted Boeing and IAI to increase their conversion capacity last year. In total, there are now ten 767 conversion lines over three sites.
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