Uni-Top Airlines adds sixth A300-600F

Yesterday, Uni-Top Airlines took redelivery of its sixth passenger-to-freighter converted A300-600F (741, ex-China Eastern), after its conversion at the EFW facility in Dresden. The aircraft is now headed to the Guangzhou Aircraft Maintenance Engineering Co, Ltd (GAMECO) facility for painting before it enters operations. The China-based carrier announced plans to add converted A300Fs into its […]

• Caryn Livingston
• October 8, 2018

The distribution of widebody freighters

Last month, we presented a detailed multi-part analysis of the widebody freighter fleets of airlines worldwide. That analysis (available here) showed that, as of the end of January 2018, seventy-three airlines operated 1,035 widebody jet freighters in commercial service, with 122 more widebody production freighters on order. While the number of freighters increased slightly over […]

• David Harris
• March 5, 2018

The widebody freighter fleet — Part II

Yesterday, in Part I of this analysis of the widebody freighter fleet as it stood at the end of January 2018, we offered an overview of the entire fleet – which carriers are operating which freighters. We concluded Part I with a chart showing every airline that operates widebody jet freighters in commercial service, including […]

• David Harris
• February 13, 2018

The widebody freighter fleet: Growing again, but slowly

Today we begin a multi-part analysis of the worldwide fleet of widebody jet freighters in commercial service, as of 31 January, 2018. We start with a look at the entire fleet – which carriers are operating which freighters – and in the coming days will move on to the ways in which the fleet has […]

• David Harris
• February 12, 2018

UPS firms up options for fourteen 747F-8Fs, orders four 767Fs

Concurrent with the release of its 4Q17 earnings, Atlanta-based UPS announced two major deals with Boeing for new-build freighters. First, the company doubled-down on its commitment to large widebody freighters by converting existing options for fourteen 747-8Fs into firm orders.  Separately, the global logistics giant placed an order for four 767-300Fs, adding that like the […]

• Charles Kauffman
• February 1, 2018

The distribution of widebody freighters — Part II

Yesterday we began an analysis of the way the 1,002 widebody freighters currently in service are operated and how the different types of widebody freighters are distributed within the fleet by type. You can read Part I here, and today we conclude with an examination of the distribution by manufacturer, by operator type, and by geographical […]

• David Harris
• March 9, 2017

Uni-Top takes first A300-600F… now what?

China-based Uni-Top Airlines took redelivery of an A300-600F (763, ex-China Eastern), following conversion to freighter configuration by EFW. This is the first of seven A300-600s Uni-Top is having converted by EFW, and marks a significant change in the carrier’s strategy. Uni-Top currently operates three 747-200Fs in international service to India from its base in Wuhan, but, […]

• David Harris
• August 25, 2015

Blue Skies, nothing but blue skies…

Blue Sky Aviation Services, a startup all-cargo carrier based in Dubai, acquired an A300-600 Freighter (788, ex-Maximus Air) and says it will soon launch operations from Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC). This is hardly the first small all-cargo carrier to operate in the Gulf Region, and the acquisition of a 16-year-old A300 freighter is not […]

• David Harris
• November 13, 2014