A321 freighter conversions to begin in China
21 / 12 / 2020
Image courtesy of ST Engineering
The first A321 freighter conversion in China will soon be underway on behalf of launch customer Vallair.
The work is being undertaken for Vallair by EFW at the ST Engineering facility in Guangzhou and the aircraft is planned for delivery in Q3 2021 to cargo-operator, SmartLynx.
“We are excited to be embarking on the next phase of our A321 passenger to freighter conversion activity” said Gregoire Lebigot, chief executive of Vallair. “MSN 1017 will be the first of nine aircraft scheduled to be converted in China, this is an important milestone.”
The first A321 freighter conversion was completed by EFW on behalf of Vallair at its Singapore facility and delivered to launch operator Qantas Freight in October.
Recently, the company signed a Memorandum of Understanding with US operator GlobalX for ten conversions, and it has leased a further two to SmartLynx Malta.
Lebigot added: “Vallair is keen to introduce the A321F to the Chinese market as we see strong potential for the freighter in its active e-commerce sector. Our decision to commission the conversion process for a significant number of our lease portfolio ‘in-country’ demonstrates not only our confidence in the future implementation of this type, but also our commitment to local technical and engineering resources.”
