Boeing and GAMECO to expand cargo aircraft conversion; Airbus to develop new A350 freighter

Boeing and Guangzhou Aircraft Maintenance Engineering Company Limited (GAMECO) announced plans to create additional capacity for the 767-300 Boeing Converted Freighter (BCF) to help meet continued strong market demand. The agreement, revealed by the two companies during a signing ceremony at the China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai, Guangdong province, will expand freighter conversion capacity at GAMECO, opening two new 767-300BCF conversion lines next year. GAMECO will be the first in China to convert the 767-300BCF and the only company converting both the 767-300BCF and the 737-800BCF. Earlier this year, GAMECO announced plans to open a third 737-800BCF conversion line.

Airbus said the firm's plan to develop a new A350 freighter has been approved, and the first A350 freighter is expected to hit the market in 2025. “We will bring a new choice to the market,” George Xu, CEO of Airbus China said.

Airlines that suffered heavy losses in passenger traffic have realized the huge value of cargo business almost overnight. When the number of cargo planes was insufficient to meet demand, they even did not hesitate to convert a large number of passenger planes into freighters by refitting the cabins. According to the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), in 2020, the cargo and mail transportation volume of China's civil aviation still reached 6.76 million tons, equivalent to 89.8%of the previous year. Brian Pearce, Chief Economist of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said over the next few years, air cargo will continue to play a greater role than before the emergence of Covid-19.

In early May, Boeing completed a passenger-to-cargo 737-800BCF freighter at GAMECO and delivered it to China Post Airlines. This is also one of the three 737-800 passenger-to-cargo production lines Boeing has opened in China. Boeing has launched this modification task on a large scale in China. Since the first delivery in 2018, Boeing has delivered more than 50 737-800BCF freighters. Boeing forecasts that 1,720 freighter conversions will be needed over the next 20 years. Of those, 520 will be wide-body conversions with Asian carriers accounting for more than 40% of total demand. Boeing has more than 95 orders and commitments for the 767-300BCF.