AirAsia parent to add three A321 freighters to fleet (updated)

Singapore Technologies Engineering

12/09/2022 05:38

(Adds executive comments, BBAM order details)
    Sept 12 (Reuters) - Capital A Bhd  CAPI.KL , the parent of
Malaysian budget airline AirAsia, said on Monday its Teleport
cargo arm would add three Airbus SE  AIR.PA  A321 freighters to
its fleet starting in the first quarter of 2023. 
    The freighters would be leased from BBAM Limited
Partnership, Capital A said in a statement. 
    Teleport last year began operating its first freighter, a
Boeing Co  BA.N  737-800 based in Bangkok, as the parent company
looked to diversify revenue and take advantage of a boom in
e-commerce.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2RU06Y
    Francis Anthony, head of commercial cargo at Teleport, said
the A321s would allow it to serve such key markets as China from
Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines.
    A321 freighters are converted from passenger aircraft into
dedicated cargo carriers.
    BBAM last year ordered freighter conversions of at least 20
of A320s and A321s through to 2025 in a deal with Elbe
Flugzeugwerke, a joint venture between Singapore Technologies
Engineering Ltd  STEG.SI  and Airbus.

 (Reporting by Jamie Freed in Sydney; Editing by Tom Hogue and
Bradley Perrett)
 ((Jamie.Freed@thomsonreuters.com;))