Levu Air Cargo's Airbus sole A321 freighter will be returned to its lessor after SmartLynx decided to exit freighter operations.
The Brazilian airline launched operations in November, operating an Airbus A321 passenger to freighter (P2F) aircraft on behalf of DHL Express that it had dry leased from SmartLynx Airlines.
But SmartLynx Airlines recently announced it would phase out its A321 freighter operations by mid-2025.
In response to Air Cargo News' (ACN) enquiry about how this decision will impact Levu Air Cargo’s A321P2F leased from SmartLynx, a SmartLynx spokesperson said that "the aircraft is still part of the SmartLynx fleet, however, due to the phase-out of the A321F fleet, SmartLynx will soon exit the lease agreement with the lessor".
SmartLynx currently has 10 A321P2Fs in its fleet, but no other freighter types. Therefore, the move would see it cease to have any freighters.
According to Planespotters, Levu's A321F, registered as PS-LVU, is currently parked.
Brazilian publication AEROIN recently stated that PS-LVU is leased from Cross Ocean Partners. The aircraft has been in Manaus since December, with no departure date scheduled, according to Planespotters.
Levu Air Cargo has not recently commented on plans for its operations, but Air Cargo News has requested comment from Levu Air Cargo on the matter.
Data from Planespotters shows that it is due to take delivery of two more A321P2Fs, though there is no information on where these aircraft are due to be acquired from.
In May last year, DHL Supply Chain announced a partnership with Levu Air Cargo for the launch of a domestic air transport solution for cargo in Brazil.
The project was expected to receive an investment of €90.5m and include the deployment of four cargo aircraft. ACN is awaiting an update from DHL on the partnership.
Levu Air Cargo is headquartered in Campinas, one of the primary air hubs in Brazil. It also has bases in Recife, Belém, and Manaus.
