At the Singapore Airshow Tuesday, Boeing announced an order for three 737-800 Boeing Converted Freighters (BCF) by aircraft lessor BBAM. The lessor has one of the largest 737 NG fleets in the world and the three aircraft will be converted from their existing fleet.
Boeing announced at the Singapore Airshow on Tuesday an order for three 737-800 Boeing Converted Freighters (BCF) by aircraft lessor BBAM. The lessor has one of the largest Next-Generation 737 fleets in the world and the conversions will take place on existing aircraft in BBAM’s fleet. In Tuesday’s announcement, BBAM’s President and CEO, Steve Zissis said,
“Through the Boeing freighter conversion program, these 737-800s will continue to deliver value for our customers and investors for many years to come. The 737-800 is an integral part of BBAM’s managed fleet of commercial passenger jet aircraft, and we see strong interest from our customers in the standard-body freighter. We chose Boeing’s conversion program because we believe it maximizes the platform’s capability and reliability.”
Built on the Next Generation 737 platform, the 737-800BCF is a reliable and efficient freighter with a payload capacity of 52,800 pounds. Boeing has received 130 orders and commitments for the 737-800BCF since it was introduced in 2018. Also commenting on the announcement, Boeing’s SVP Commercial Sales and Marketing, Ihssane Mounir added,
“BBAM is one of the world’s leading leasing companies, known for their smart approach to investment. We are delighted that BBAM has selected the Boeing Converted Freighter program to extend the life of their Next-Generation 737s and capture a new market opportunity in the years ahead. This agreement shows how we can serve our customers by delivering efficient and reliable airplanes and a portfolio of services that extracts value throughout the life of those jets.”
Boeing will add a production line at Guangzhou Aircraft Maintenance engineering Company Ltd. (GAMECO) this summer to meet the expected 20-year market demand for 2,820 freighters, including 1,220 narrow-body passenger-to-freighter conversions. GAMECO is a joint-venture between China Southern Airlines and Hutchison Whampoa (China) that specializes in aircraft and component MRO. The company provides efficient, high-quality service in areas such as line and base maintenance, component repair and overhaul, aircraft engineering and training and technical service of ground support equipment (GSE).
BBAM is the largest manager of investments in leased commercial jet aircraft in the world. The company serves more than 200 airline customers in over 50 countries with fleet and financing solutions. For over 30 years, BBAM has focused exclusively on generating returns for third-party investors and currently has over $27B of assets under management. Headquartered in San Francisco, the company employs more than 150 professionals and maintains offices in Tokyo, Singapore, Zurich, Dublin and Santiago.
Source: Boeing