Amazon Air's First In-Service A330-300P2F Flight (+Video)

DALLAS — On October 2, Amazon Air (MZN) undertook its "first in-service flight" with the first of 10 A330-300P2F (passenger to freighter) aircraft leased for operation by Hawaiian Airlines (HA).

The A330-300P2F, provided by lessor Altavair and converted by Elbe Flugzeugwerke (EFW), a joint venture between ST Engineering and Airbus, is not only the first of its kind in Amazon Air's fleet but also the newest and largest aircraft for the company. This will enable MZN to transport more customer packages with each flight.

Hawaiian confirmed in July that it had received the first of the 10 freighters and was scheduled to begin operating them in October. The A330 freighter, registration N4621K, touched down at Honolulu International Airport (HNL) following its delivery flight from Shanghai via Seoul.

The MZN agreement with HA is set to last for eight years, with options to extend it for an additional two and three years.

Operational Changes, Market Conditions

According to Air Cargo News, while MZN continues to expand its fleet, it has recently made some operational changes that may reflect the challenging market conditions in the air cargo industry.

One notable change is the closure of the cargo airline's airfreight facility at Leipzig/Halle Airport (LEJ) in Germany, which was its first-ever regional air hub in Europe.

Leipzig/Halle Airport is an international airport located in Schkeuditz, Saxony, Germany, and serves both Leipzig, Saxony, and Halle, Saxony-Anhalt. It is the second-largest cargo hub in Germany and the fifth-busiest airport in Europe in terms of cargo traffic. According to the air cargo news outlet, the closure is set to take place by the end of this year.

Last July, the cargo airline said it was reducing flight operations across Europe, focusing on increasing its presence in South America. This announcement followed its terminated charter agreement with Florida-based Silver Airways (3M), causing them to lose five ATR 72 aircraft.

Featured image: oading Amazon Air's new A330-300P2F. Video Still: Amazon

https://airwaysmag.com/amazon-air-cuts-ops-in-europe/