Elbe Flugzeugwerke GmbH (EFW) has announced that AerCap Holdings N.V. (AerCap) has placed firm orders for 15 Airbus A321P2F aircraft conversions and an option for another 15 A321P2F conversions with EFW. The aircraft feedstock for the conversions will come from the A321 passenger portfolio of AerCap, which is the world’s largest owner of the A320 family.

“We are glad that we may finally announce the agreement with AerCap on this volume order for A321P2F conversions,” says Jordi Boto, CEO of EFW. “Our young A320P2F family programme has gone from strength to strength and gained traction very quickly in the market with a dozen aircraft already in operation.”

“Extending the life of our A321 fleet will complement the Cargo portfolio and meet the strong demand from our diverse customer base, from which we’ve seen a significant appetite for this freighter,” said Rich Greener, Head of AerCap Cargo. “The A321 freighter is the best-in-class and most fuel-efficient aircraft to replace the B757-200 freighter. This transaction is in line with our cargo portfolio strategy of diversifying our fleet with improved economics and returns. We look forward to working with the EFW team on this program and thank them for the trust they have placed in AerCap.”

To meet the rising demand for freighter conversions, ST Engineering and EFW have set up new conversion sites in China and the U.S. to ramp up total conversion capacity for all their Airbus P2F programmes comprising the A330P2F, A320P2F and A321P2F.