The cargo-only passenger jet may be a dying breed among passenger airlines, but a few aviation companies are actually embracing an all-cargo business model that involves the use of aircraft with seats removed as a faster, cheaper way to market than buying full freighters.
One of them, AELF FlightService, plans this year to begin operating 10 large Airbus A330 and A340 aircraft that have been retrofitted to carry freight on the main deck. Management believes that making the configuration more...
European aviation regulators said Monday they won’t extend a safety exemption allowing airlines to carry critical supplies in the passenger cabin to make up for capacity lost when the pandemic closed down most commercial flights.
“The logistical challenges that arose in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 crisis no longer exist to the same extent,” the European Union Aviation Safety Agency said in a notice. The permission for cabin cargo expires July 31.
EASA was one of the first civil aviation...
https://www.freightwaves.com/news/eu-ends-airline-exemption-for-cargo-in-passenger-cabin
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Brazilian airline Azul has introduced the first cabin freighter for an Embraer 195 aircraft following a reconfiguration that involved removing the seats.
The ability to use the main deck and lower hold more than doubles the aircraft’s cargo capacity to 16.5 tons, improving efficiency and reducing carbon emissions because fewer flights will be required to move orders.
Use of cargo-only passenger aircraft was widespread for a year after the start of the COVID pandemic as airlines tried to...
https://www.freightwaves.com/news/azul-introduces-1st-embraer-195-cabin-freighter
Tired of waiting to get passenger service off the ground during the pandemic, startup low-cost carrier flypop has decided to switch gears and debut as a cargo airline.
The U.K.-based airline said last week that it has redeployed its first Airbus A330 for dedicated cargo operations as a passenger freighter with its seats removed. The cargo-only flights are being operated for flypop by air charter specialist Hi Fly.
Flypop intends to deploy the passenger aircraft as an auxiliary freighter for...
Three small passenger airlines new to the air cargo business are deploying temporary and fully converted freighters for the first time in the latest example of niche carriers branching out to take advantage of strong market conditions. The extra capacity is a positive — if small — positive development for an airfreight market that remains woefully short of supply.
Experts say air cargo capacity is at a 13% deficit compared to 2019 while demand for goods is up 3% to 9%, depending on the source....
https://www.freightwaves.com/news/cargo-attracts-small-european-passenger-airlines
Passenger aircraft dedicated purely to cargo operations have played an important role during the pandemic in delivering critical humanitarian and commercial supplies, as well as generating revenue for cash-strapped airlines when travel plummeted.
Most airlines used the bottom half of airplanes for cargo, where it normally shares space with baggage, but some added extra capacity by storing light shipments in the passenger cabin and even removing seats to allow for full floor loading.
The economics...
https://www.freightwaves.com/news/cargo-in-cabin-innovation-remains-popular-for-some-airlines
Latvia’s SmartLynx Airlines, responding to strong market incentives, is diving deeper into the cargo business with the lease of five Airbus A330 widebody aircraft that have had their seats temporarily removed to increase cargo capacity.
The global economic recovery from the COVID pandemic is on a 6% growth trajectory this year, but the supply of aircraft is 14% to 18% below pre-crisis levels due to severe flight reductions by international passenger carriers. Interest in air is high to quickly...
https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/latvian-airline-leases-a330-jets-removes-seats-for-cargo
Azerbaijan-based Silkway West Airlines is the latest carrier to begin flying to Rickenbacker International Airport in Columbus, Ohio, a cargo-focused airport that recently marked the arrival of its 500th passenger aircraft with only cargo onboard.
The first Silkway B747 freighter touched down at Rickenbacker (LCK) this week under a long-term lease with Trinity Logistics USA, the Columbus Regional Airport Authority said.
New York-based Trinity operates one of the largest private air networks into...
https://www.freightwaves.com/news/azerbaijan-cargo-airline-debuts-at-rickenbacker-airport
When COVID decimated passenger travel last year, airlines pivoted to air cargo like never before, turning many idle aircraft into temporary freighters. It was an innovation born of necessity that helped bring in much-needed cash.
Shippers were desperate when nearly all widebody aircraft were eliminated from service a year ago, because they carry more than 50% of total air cargo in the hold below people’s feet. Big freighters couldn’t make up the difference and airfreight rates skyrocketed. High...
https://www.freightwaves.com/news/who-is-king-of-cargo-only-passenger-flights
