A 777F for Turkmenistan?

• Charles Kauffman
• June 29, 2020
• All Posts, Editorial, Equipment, News, Production Freighters

Turkmenistan Airlines is looking to add a 777F to its fleet. Turkmenistan President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov has approved the state-owned carrier’s purchase of the freighter, according to a government briefing [FAT 005487]. Local sources report the involvement of Lufthansa Consulting and suggest that lessor Aircraft Finance Germany (AFG) will be facilitating the transaction. AFG, for its […]

Cainiao hires Atlas 747F to bridge Asia and Latin America

• Charles Kauffman
• June 16, 2020
• Logistics, News, Production Freighters

This month, Atlas Air commenced weekly flights to Sao Paulo (GRU) and Santiago (SCL) from Hong Kong (HKG) utilizing a 747-400F (29260). The flight segments are chartered by a partnership between Alibaba’s logistics affiliate, Cainiao, and freight forwarder Sinotrans, Cargo Facts has learned. Starting next week, Atlas will add a second weekly frequency between Asia […]

ACE Belgium Freighters resolves name dispute, to fly as Challenge Airlines

• Charles Kauffman
• June 15, 2020
• Aircraft, All Posts, Carriers, Equipment, Logistics, News, Production Freighters, Widebody Conversions

ACE Belgium Freighters is working with regulators in Belgium and the United States to change its name to Challenge Airlines (BE) S.A. The new name will put to rest a trademark dispute with U.S.-based Alaska Central Express, and is expected to advance the carrier’s receipt of a foreign air carrier permit from the U.S. Department […]

Volga-Dnepr and Boeing in legal spat over order backlog

• Charles Kauffman and Jeff Lee
• June 1, 2020
• Aircraft, All Posts, Business, Carriers, Equipment, Freighter Fleet Analysis, News, Production Freighters, Strategy, Widebody Fleet Analysis

Volga-Dnepr Group, through its U.K. affiliate, is motioning for a temporary restraining order against Boeing in an attempt to reclaim delivery rights to a 747-8F and three 777Fs Boeing began remarketing earlier this year, after the group signaled earlier this year that it was no longer in a position to take delivery of the aircraft. […]

777-300ER dominates passenger-freighter fleet

• Charles Kauffman
• May 8, 2020
• Aircraft, All Posts, Capacity & Demand, Carriers, Editorial, Equipment, Freighter Fleet Analysis, News, Widebody Conversions, Widebody Fleet Analysis

The number of passenger aircraft that have been used as freighters on cargo-only flights and recorded by Cargo Facts in our recently launched passenger-freighter database has now surpassed 1,000. While the type of operation varies widely, from one-off charters to regularly scheduled networks, the sheer scale of the utilization is unprecedented, much like the impact […]

ATSG growth fueled by e-commerce in Q1

• Charles Kauffman
• May 6, 2020
• Aircraft, All Posts, Carriers, Conversions, Equipment, Widebody Conversions

Air Transport Services Group (ATSG) reported first-quarter net income from continuing operations of $134 million, up from $23 million in Q1 of 2019. The increase reflects the demand for ATSG’s core business of leasing and operating 767 freighters. “Despite the pandemic, we remain cautiously optimistic about the rest of 2020, as we deploy more 767 […]

Cargolux ushers in 50th business year with 2019 net profit

• Charles Kauffman
• April 29, 2020
• All Posts, Carriers, Editorial, Equipment, News, Production Freighters

All-cargo carrier Cargolux reported a net profit of $20.2 million in 2019, on total revenues that were down 14.2% to $2.26 billion. The lower net profit represents a 90% decrease from the previous year’s net income of $211.2 million but is otherwise decent for a year that saw a 3.3% decline in overall cargo traffic, […]

CFA 2020: COVID-19 forces supply chains to reassess freighter value

• Charles Kauffman
• April 23, 2020
• Aircraft, All Posts, Cargo Facts Asia, Carriers, Editorial, Equipment, Events, Exclusive, News, Production Freighters, Strategy

The COVID-19 pandemic will permanently alter the way carriers treat cargo, and the reliance of supply chains on freighter capacity, according to speakers at this week’s Cargo Facts Asia 2020. Although the cavernous lower holds of passenger aircraft are normally efficient for transporting much of the world’s cargo, this crisis reveals that capacity is only available when […]