Pradhaan Air Express new cargo start-up from India

Pradhaan Air Express is a new cargo airline in India, which has received its "No Objection Certificate" from the Indian government and is now cleared to launch operations in the coming months. It's first aircraft will be the world's first A320P2F, currently registered D-AAES (2737), which is currently being readied at Singapore-Seletar. This aircraft is owned by Vaayu Aero Leasing, which leased the aircraft to Astral Aviation from Kenya, which on its turn sub-leases the aircraft to Pradhaan Air Express.

The start-up is based at Delhi and will fly mainly serve domestic destinations. A second A320P2F is to follow later this year, with plans for more.
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Photo by Logistics Update Africa.

Astral Aviation signs for A320P2Fs

With the Singapore Air Show set to begin on 15 February, some news is already coming out. First of which, is the news that Kenyan cargo-carrier Astral Aviation has signed an agreement with lessor Vaayu Group for two A320P2Fs, making the airline the first operator of the type once certified. Both are scheduled to be delivered this year.

The A320P2F took to the skies for the very first time on 8 December 2021 at Singapore-Seletar and EFW hopes to have the certification finalized later this year. In total, Vaayu Group has agreed to take five A320P2Fs as the type's first customer, two of which have now found a home.

Photo by EFW.

1st A320P2F takes to the skies

the first converted A320 into an A320P2F took to the skies. The aircraft, D-AAES (2737) was converted by EFW at ST Engineering at Singapore-Seletar, a process that started in March. The aircraft will now conduct a flight-testing program to obtain its certification and EFW expects that the first A320P2F can enter commercial service in 2022.

According to EFW's press-release, the aircraft will be leased through ST Engineering Aerospace Resources to the Vaayu Group, which also plans to add four more A320P2Fs in the coming two years.

The A320P2F is able to carry ten ULD containers, plus one pallet on the main deck, which is four containers less than the A321P2F. It is aimed at replacing older B737Fs, while the A321P2F is aimed at replacing older B757Fs.
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Photo by EFW.

EFW STARTS WORK ON FIRST A320P2F CONVERSION

Elbe Flugzeugwerke, the Airbus-subsidiary that teamed-up with ST Aerospace to offer passenger-to-cargo conversions for Airbus-aircraft, has started the conversion process of the first A320P2F. The particular aircraft will be converted at ST Aerospace's facility at Singapore-Seletar and will be used to certify this latest version of the A320.

Airbus already announced the A320P2F (together with the A321P2F) programme in 2015, but decided to prioritze the A321P2F due to its larger cargo capacity (fourteen containers on the maindeck compared to eleven for the A320P2F) and better availability of potential aircraft for conversion. Originally, the goal was to have achieved a Supplement Type Certifcate for the A320P2F in 2021 but this will now be 2022.

The A320/A321P2F-programme of Airbus and EFW isn't the only A320/A321-conversion programme on the market. C Cubed Aerospace from the US is offering the A320/A321CCF and has already started the conversion of a first A320 (N1523, c/n 1523) in September 2019.

With the cargo-business booming, Airbus and EFW, which also offer A330P2Fs, is sold-out until 2024 at all of its (partner) sites at Dresden, Guangzhou and Singapore-Seletar. An additional conversion-line for the A321P2F is due to be added later this year at Mobile (AL).

Illustration by Airbus.