Lufthansa Cargo proceeds with accelerated fleet renewal, buys two more 777Fs

German carrier Lufthansa Cargo has committed to buying two more 777Fs from Boeing and will go ahead with its plan for an accelerated withdrawal of its MD-11Fs [FATs 005226-005227]. The two new aircraft will be delivered next year and will be based at the Frankfurt (FRA) hub, while the remaining ten MD-11Fs will all be retired by the end of 2020.

Lufthansa Cargo told Cargo Facts that a decision on whether to place orders for additional 777Fs would be made next year, and that it would be highly dependent on the market.

This year, as part of its fleet renewal, the carrier took delivery of two 777Fs (66089 and 66090) in February and March, and has already removed two MD-11Fs – unit 48805 in October and unit 48785 in August, ferrying both aircraft to Victorville (VCV).

At the same time, Lufthansa Cargo is also expanding its 777F capacity through AeroLogic, its joint venture with DHL Express. AeroLogic added four 777Fs this year, two operated for Lufthansa (66164 and 66632) and the other two for DHL Express (66081 and 66082).

Lufthansa, which began considering bringing forward the retirement of its MD-11Fs earlier this year, had previously planned to keep operating its MD-11Fs until about 2024 to 2025, given that they are late-model frames and delivered in the late 90s. The carrier’s newest one (48806), for example, was the last MD-11F to roll off the production line and was delivered in 2001.