Avianor and AKKA partner on passenger-freighter conversions

[caption id="attachment_413921" align="alignright" width="460"] Avianor has now reconfigured four A330-300s and three 777-300ERs for Air Canada. (Photo: Air Canada)[/caption] Montreal-based Avianor has partnered with Brussels-headquartered AKKA Technologies to have its passenger-freighter reconfiguration package approved and certified by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). AKKA has also been granted rights to use the solution. Matthieu Duhaime, president and COO of Avianor, told Cargo Facts EASA approval is expected in six to eight weeks. While Transport Canada requires a supplemental type certificate (STC) for each configuration and customer, AKKA only needs to seek EASA approval for a generic STC and then develop specific service bulletins for each customer, multiplying the reach of the package much faster. The conversion kits will be supplied by Avianor. Avianor has already obtained certification from Transport Canada for its solution on Air Canada ’s A330-300s and 777-300ERs, having reconfigured three A330-300s and four 777-300ERs for the airline. The package involves the partial or total removal of seats from the passenger cabin and the creation of designated cargo-loading zones on the floor, intended for lightweight cargo that can be restrained with nets attached to rails. The modification adds up to nineteen tonnes of capacity. According to Duhaime, Avianor will soon complete the reconfiguration of an A340-300 and the relevant certification with Transport Canada, and has started the validation process of that STC with EASA. Avianor has also received interest from around thirty airlines and lessors for a range of aircraft types, from Embraers all the way up to the A380. Duhaime said Avianor might start looking at the 787 in the next couple of weeks, based on some “serious” interest in that aircraft. Originally an aircraft cabin and engineering specialist based in Montreal-Mirabel (YMX), Avianor has quickly adapted and is now concentrating its efforts on temporary freighter conversions while other passenger-related projects have been put on the backburner. Duhaime said the experience has been “very exciting” and pointed out that it only took about a week from the initial conversation with Air Canada to the redelivery of the first 777-300ER (41525). An increasing number of carriers are carrying out some form of modification to their passenger aircraft instead of carrying cargo on seats only. Duhaime said this makes sense during this severe downturn in the passenger market, adding that such modifications aren’t cost-prohibitive, even if only in service for several months, given the fast turnaround and relatively low cost. But he said he doesn’t see temporary conversions competing with full freighter conversions, and would be surprised if airlines continue operating reconfigured aircraft beyond a year or so. More than 100 aircraft have now been reconfigured into freighters by removing seats, according to Cargo Facts’ Passenger-Freighter Database ; these include twenty-two aircraft with Ethiopian Airlines . Aircraft manufacturers and MRO specialists alike are developing their own STCs for the modification of aircraft into makeshift freighters, including Airbus , ATR, Boeing , De Havilland and Lufthansa Technik .

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