ATSG to buy and convert three 767-300ERs

AIR Transport Services Group (ATSG) has reported that its Cargo Aircraft Management (CAM) subsidiary has committed to buy three 767-300ERs from Qantas Airways, with delivery in the third quarter.

The aircraft will be converted to freighters for deployment in the first half of 2011 on a leased or ACMI basis.

Joe Hete, chief executive officer of ATSG, said: “The purchase of these 767-300ERs gives us the means to transport greater cargo volumes over longer non-stop routes than our 767-200s can today.”

Depending on the terms of agreement, ATSG expects the cost of purchase and modification will be somewhere between US$28.5 million and $31.5 million.

ATSG will finance the purchases and modifications from existing credit facilities, and it expects to deploy the aircraft at attractive returns on invested capital.

“Our investment here reflects continued strong demand for our existing 767-200 freighters, our confidence that the Boeing 767 will remain the preferred medium wide-body freighter platform for many years to come, and our comprehensive range of value-added products and services that assure our customers a successful transition and our full operating support,” Hete said. “We are eager to launch this next phase of our growth and development with the 767-300.”