Lufthansa Cargo keeps MD-11 retirement plan

• Jeff Lee
• April 3, 2020
• Aircraft, Capacity & Demand, Carriers, Editorial, Equipment, News, Production Freighters, Strategy

For now, Lufthansa Cargo is sticking to its plan to withdraw all six of its remaining MD-11Fs by the end of the year, despite the current high demand for capacity. Lufthansa Cargo CEO Peter Gerber told Cargo Facts the carrier had begun an internal discussion earlier this year about phasing out the MD-11Fs even earlier […]

Atlas Air begins reactivating stored 747s

• Jeff Lee
• April 2, 2020
• Aircraft, Capacity & Demand, Carriers, Conversions, Equipment, Logistics, News, Production Freighters, Strategy, Widebody Conversions

Atlas Air has started to bring its converted 747-400Fs out of storage to handle the surge in demand for freighter capacity. One of the four freighter-converted aircraft previously parked by Atlas, a 747-400BCF (24833) was ferried from Marana (MZJ) to Los Angeles (LAX) on April 1, after being stored in MZJ since Jan. 2. The […]

Join our ‘Aircraft Values in the Age of Coronavirus’ Zoom meeting (Subscribers Only)

• Charles Kauffman
• April 2, 2020
• Aircraft, All Posts, Conversions, Editorial, Equipment, Narrowbody Conversions, News, Strategy, Webinars, Widebody Conversions

Cargo Facts will hold a Zoom meeting today at 11:30 ET to discuss the implications of the coronavirus pandemic on values for freighters and conversion feedstock. The Zoom meeting will feature Doug Kelly, senior vice president of asset valuation at AVITAS. He will provide analysis on how past crises have affected aircraft values and will […]

AA to retire dozens of 737s, releasing more feedstock

• Jeff Lee
• April 1, 2020
• Aircraft, Carriers, Conversions, Editorial, Equipment, Logistics, Narrowbody Conversions, News, Strategy, Widebody Conversions

American Airlines is reportedly planning to retire seventy-six 737-800s, nine A330-300s and twenty E190s in light of the COVID-19 crisis, making a large batch of potential conversion feedstock available. American Airlines President Robert Isom shared the plans during a video session with employees during the weekend, according to Reuters. Although no precise timeline for the […]

130+ passenger aircraft added to ‘COVID-19 freighter fleet’

• Charles Kauffman and Jeff Lee
• March 31, 2020
• Aircraft, Capacity & Demand, Carriers, Equipment, Exclusive, Freighter Fleet Analysis, Logistics, News, Strategy

As borders are severely restricted and passenger flights are cancelled around the world because of the COVID-19 pandemic, at least forty airlines have operated some 135 empty passenger aircraft for the sole purpose of carrying cargo, analysis by Cargo Facts has found. With bellyholds traditionally moving 40%-80% of the cargo on a given lane, the […]

Request for your support

• JJ Hornblass
• March 31, 2020
• Aircraft, Capacity & Demand, Carriers, Conversions, News, Strategy

Dear Reader, For 25 years, Royal Media, Cargo Facts’s publisher, has dedicated itself to serving its business communities with professionalism and integrity. Today, the coronavirus pandemic has created significantly more complexity and uncertainty in our daily lives. Still, we at Royal remain committed to guiding you through this difficult time. But to do so, we need […]

Air Hong Kong adds second own-operated A330F

• Jeff Lee
• March 30, 2020
• Aircraft, Carriers, Conversions, Editorial, Equipment, Express, Logistics, News, Production Freighters, Strategy, Widebody Conversions

Air Hong Kong (AHK) has transferred a second A330F to its own air operator’s certificate (AOC). While the first was a freighter-converted A330-300F (116, ex-Malaysia Airlines), the latest is a production A330-200F (1414, ex-ASL Airlines Ireland). Unit 1414 is one of five production A330-200Fs DHL Express acquired from Abu Dhabi-based Etihad in 2018. It was handed over […]

Coronavirus relief package offers air cargo a safety net

• Caryn Livingston and Charles Kauffman
• March 27, 2020
• Editorial, News, Strategy

On Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump signed into law the massive, $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, under which U.S. airlines and other cargo operators will be eligible to receive billions in loans and — if they are willing to grant an equity share to the U.S. government — direct cash […]