Air India Takes Delivery of two A310-300 Converted Freighter Aircraft

Air India took delivery of two Airbus A310- 300Fs at EADS EFW´s facility in Dresden, Germany. Both aircraft bearing the MSN 538 and 544 named “Krishna” and “Narmada” were formerly operated by the Indian airline itself as passenger aircraft. The conversion into freighter configuration started in January 2007.

“Air India made a great choice to convert the popular Airbus A310-300 widebody aircraft to enlarge its freighter fleet”, said Dr. Andreas Sperl, President and CEO of EADS EFW. “With Air India we could win the first customer in South Asia, the most important on the Indian subcontinent”.

Speaking about the transaction, S. Venkat, Executive Director, Public Relations, Air India said “The region has been experiencing an upsurge in the import-export market. Owing to this increase in demand, Air India has decided to deploy the first freighter in the gulf sector. This is a step taken to bolster the AI Cargo operations and cater to the growing import-export demand. The long term plan includes conversion of more aircraft into freighters ”.

Air India has now entered its 75th year - currently operates to 58 destinations worldwide and plans a major expansion of its fleet size and network. Air India plans to reposition itself as one of the leading global airlines both in passenger and cargo.

As of today, EADS has delivered a total of 144 converted freighter aircraft to over 20 customers worldwide. EFW, headquartered in Dresden, Germany, with a workforce of over 1,200 is the centre of competence for Airbus passenger to freighter conversion within EADS.

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