Texel prepares to grow 737-700FC fleet

• Charles Kauffman and Jeff Lee
• October 26, 2020
• Aircraft, Carriers, Conversions, Editorial, Equipment, Logistics, Narrowbody Conversions, News, Strategy

Bahrain-based Chisholm Enterprises has acquired a second 737-700 to be converted into a FlexCombi for its Texel Air subsidiary. Texel Air told Cargo Facts the aircraft (34170, ex-Transavia), currently in Amsterdam (AMS), is scheduled for induction at PEMCO’s Tampa (TPA) facility in November. As the second 737-700 to enter conversion with PEMCO, the redelivery schedule is greatly […]

Allied Air receives first African-owned 737-800SF

• Jeff Lee
• October 12, 2020
• Aircraft, Carriers, Conversions, Editorial, Equipment, Freighter Aircraft Transactions, Narrowbody Conversions, News, Strategy

Nigeria-based Allied Air has taken redelivery of its first 737-800SF [FAT 005658]. The aircraft (36846, ex-Jet Airways), converted by Aeronautical Engineers Inc. (AEI), was manufactured in 2007 and is the youngest 737NG to have been converted to date. Unit 36846 was inducted for conversion at the Commercial Jet facility in Miami (MIA) in March. After […]

Amazon 737-800BCFs idled

• Charles Kauffman and Jeff Lee
• October 1, 2020
• Aircraft, Conversions, Editorial, Equipment, Narrowbody Conversions, News

Over the past week, five of the seventeen 737-800BCFs leased from GECAS by Amazon and currently operated on a CMI basis by Sun Country Airlines have stopped flying. Four of these aircraft (32348; 32578; 32605; 32739) were ferried to Kansas City (MCI), while a fifth (29947) was sent to Everett (PAE) on Sept. 29 or […]

Aviation slump does little to slow part-out interest in narrowbody feedstock

• Charles Kauffman
• September 17, 2020
• Aircraft, Conversions, Editorial, Equipment, News

Competition for narrowbody feedstock from the part-out market remains strong despite an unprecedented aviation slump, according to APOC Aviation, an aircraft part-out company based in Rotterdam. The prospect of lower feedstock acquisition prices has catalyzed interest in newer narrowbody conversion types from participants in the freighter market, but interest from part-out companies continues to attract […]

A trio of 737-800 conversions for Aero Capital Solutions

• Jeff Lee
• August 28, 2020
• Aircraft, Capacity & Demand, Carriers, Conversions, Editorial, Equipment, Exclusive, Freighter Aircraft Transactions, Logistics, Narrowbody Conversions, News, Strategy

U.S.-based Aero Capital Solutions (ACS) is bullish on narrowbody freighters and has committed to at least three 737-800SF conversions with Aeronautical Engineers Inc. (AEI). ACS confirmed to Cargo Facts that it had ferried all three aircraft (28231, ex-Smartwings; 28655, ex-Eastar Jet; and 29925, ex-Go2Sky) to the Taikoo (Shandong) Aircraft Engineering Company Ltd. (STAECO) facility in […]

737-700BDSF lands in China with Tianjin Air Cargo

• Charles Kauffman
• August 24, 2020
• Aircraft, Carriers, Conversions, Editorial, Equipment, Freighter Aircraft Transactions, Narrowbody Conversions, News, Strategy

Tianjin Air Cargo has added to its fleet its first 737-700BDSF (29086, ex-Xiamen Airlines) [FAT 005571-005572].   The aircraft is on a long-term operating lease from Spectre Cargo Solutions, through its Irish entity NGF Overseas Aircraft, and is the first 737-700 freighter on lease to a carrier based in mainland China.  Touch labor for the conversion was performed by Israel Aerospace Industries’ […]

E-commerce growth pushes Russia’s S7 to freighters

• Jeff Lee
• August 18, 2020
• Aircraft, Capacity & Demand, Carriers, Conversions, Equipment, Freighter Aircraft Transactions, Logistics, Narrowbody Conversions, News, Strategy

Russia-based S7 Airlines will become a freighter operator when it takes delivery of the first of two 737-800BCFs in November, in part to accommodate the region’s burgeoning e-commerce market. The carrier expects the second aircraft to arrive in January 2021. Both are being leased from GECAS [FATs 005562-005563]. S7 told Cargo Facts it had made […]

737-800 conversion market diversification accelerates in 2020

• Jeff Lee
• August 14, 2020
• Aircraft, Capacity & Demand, Carriers, Conversions, Editorial, Equipment, Logistics, Narrowbody Conversions, Narrowbody Fleet Analysis, News, Strategy

In a year that has seen rising interest in 737NG conversions, at least four companies new to the model have placed orders for up to eleven 737-800Fs so far in 2020, with more yet to be disclosed or announced. The following chart shows orders for 737 family and A321 conversions since January 2019.   Many 2020 […]