Etihad Cargo Extends Freight Aircraft Lease with World Airways

USA – Peachtree City, Georgia-based World Airways has extended to December 2012 an agreement with Etihad Crystal Cargo to provide two MD-11 cargo aircraft operating on international freighter routes.

Etihad, who introduced all-cargo services from their Abu Dhabi International Airport hub in February 2005, currently operates a freighter fleet of one Boeing 777F, two Airbus A300-600RF regional freighters and two A330-200 freighters in addition to the two MD-11 freighters from World Airways on thirteen dedicated air freight routes across the globe.

“These two World Airways MD-11 freighters will help us maintain the cargo capacity we require as we sustainably grow our successful cargo business,” said Roy Kinnear, Senior Vice President of Etihad Crystal Cargo.

World Airways, part of the Global Aviation Holdings group, operate a number of wide-body passenger and freighter MD11 and B747 aircraft under multiple contract types, including wet lease and ACMI (aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance) agreements.

Under these contracts, the customer bears the responsibility for filling the aircraft's passenger and cargo capacity and a number of airlines outsource a portion of their wide-body passenger or cargo requirements as it offers greater operational and financial flexibility.

“Etihad Crystal Cargo is one of our longest-term customers, utilizing World’s MD-11 freighter aircraft continuously for the past four years,” said Brian Bauer, Global’s chief commercial officer. “We are pleased to be part of Etihad’s rapidly expanding international network.”

The news follows an announcement in late June that World would also be extending a contract with cargo airline Cargolux on one of its 747-400 freighters.

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