Aircraft modification joint venture EFW has secured an order for six Airbus A321 passenger-to-freighter conversions from Latvian operator SmartLynx Airlines, which will operate the freighters for DHL in Europe.
Work will take place between 2022 and 2023 at ST Engineering’s facilities in Singapore and China.
SmartLynx currently operates one A321P2F, and ST Engineering says the latest order – announced during the Singapore air show – will “greatly boost the narrowbody freighter aircraft fleet”.
EFW chief Andreas Sperl adds: “These new orders, which came after SmartLynx leased and operated its first A321P2F freighter converted by EFW, is a stamp of approval for our conversion solutions. ”We are confident that our P2F programmes will create great value for customers such as SmartLynx, as they plan on growing their fleet with reliable and high-performance freighter aircraft.”
In 2020, the first A321P2F converted by EFW entered service with Qantas. Since then, the German company – a joint venture between ST Engineering and Airbus – has started A320 modifications, with the first example entering service this year.
EFW also performs passenger-to-freighter conversion work on other Airbus types, including the A330-200 and -300.
ST Engineering and EFW have announced a ramp-up in conversion capacity, targeting about 60 slots for A320 family freighters per year by 2024.
