The first A330-200P2F to operate in the Americas has been delivered to Mexico City-based Aerotransportes Mas de Cargo (mas) on lease from Altavair. The aircraft was converted by Elbe Flugzeugwerke (EFW), a joint venture between Airbus and ST Engineering.
On Monday (February 21, 2022), Airbus announced that Mexico City-based cargo airline Aerotransportes Mas de Carga (mas) has received the first A330-200 P2F (passenger-to-freight) aircraft in the Americas. The aircraft was converted by Elbe Flugzeugwerke (EFW), a joint venture between Airbus and ST Engineering. The A330-200P2F is a member of the proven Airbus A330 Family. The freighter can carry up to 61 metric tons of cargo and has a range of up to 4,200 nautical miles (7,778 kilometers), allowing mas to expand into new markets, including China, where the company obtained certification to fly in 2021.
In Monday’s announcement, Airbus’ President – Latin America and the Caribbean, Arturo Barreira, said,
“We look forward to having mas join the Airbus family of operators in Mexico and experience the benefits of operating this freighter. The A330-200P2F will provide mas with a highly-efficient operation thanks to its greater payload and range capability. Its optimized fuselage cross-section offers flexibility to carry a wide variety of pallet and container sizes. Airbus is confident that the A330-200P2F will successfully support mas’ expansion plans.”
Also commenting on the A330-200P2F delivery, mas’ CEO, Luis Sierra, said,
“mas will take advantage of the increased payload and range of the A330 to expand our global presence, increasing flights to Europe and South America and starting to fly into China. The A330P2F’s reliability and reduced environmental impact makes it the ideal aircraft for mas to succeed in the global cargo market.”
Mexico City-based mas has been operating cargo aircraft since 1992. In December 2018, the carrier launched an ambitious expansion plan under new ownership and management by Discovery Americas, a private equity fund in Mexico. Mas’ scheduled and charter network spans the Americas and is gearing up for further expansion with new long-haul capacity.
To accommodate increasing demand for freighter conversions, ST Engineering and EFW will set up new conversion sites in China and the U.S. this year, ramping up Airbus P2F programs to approximately 60 slots per year by 2024.
Airbus has sold over 1,100 aircraft and has a backlog of over 500 aircraft in Latin America and the Caribbean. Currently, there are over 700 Airbus aircraft in operating in the region, representing more than 60 percent of the in-service fleet. Since 1994, Airbus has secured approximately 70 percent of the net new orders in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Source: Airbus Latin America