Atlas Air orders 12 next generation Boeing 747 freighters

Atlas Air orders 12 next generation Boeing 747 freighters

Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings has ordered 12 Boeing 747-8 freighters, making the carrier the first North American buyer of the plane.

   The current value of the order is about $3.4 billion, Boeing said. Atlas will begin taking delivery of the planes in 2010, and expects all 12 freighters to be in service by the end of 2011.

   “Worldwide air cargo traffic is projected to grow by over 6 percent annually for the next two decades, tripling over current traffic levels for our ACMI (aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance), charter and scheduled service customers,” said William J. Flynn, president and chief executive officer of Atlas Air, in a statement released at the International Air Cargo Forum and Exposition in Calgary on Tuesday.

   Atlas Air operates the world’s largest fleet of 747 freighters, with 20 747-400s and 15 747-200s in service with airlines around the world.

   The 747-8 freighter improves on the current 747-400 design with 16 percent more payload capacity, due to a larger airframe that allows it to hold seven additional standard pallets while maintaining the operator-preferred nose-door-loading capability, Boeing said.

   In addition, Boeing points out that the 747-8 freighter provides improved fuel burn, which is achieved by improved wing design and the installation of new General Electric engines.

   Including today’s order, Boeing has received orders for 30 747-8 freighters from three customers since the launch of the plane in November 2005.

   Atlas officials made it clear last summer that they didn’t think much of the A-380 superjumbo jet currently being built for the first time by Boeing rival Airbus, saying it will be too expensive to operate for normal scheduled cargo operators.