Air Transport Services Group (ATSG) subsidiary Cargo Aircraft Management (CAM) is leasing three Boeing 767-300 freighters to Northern Air Cargo, the Northern Aviation Services (NAS) subsidiary.
The aircraft will serve three NAS airlines: Aloha Air Cargo based in Hawaii, StratAir based in Florida, and Northern Air Cargo based in Alaska.
NAS operates Boeing 737 freighters and provides B767 freighter services under ACMI agreements with ATSG’s airline subsidiaries.
Under the agreements, CAM will lease the aircraft to NAS for seven-year terms, beginning with the first lease in October 2017. The agreements also provide for the potential lease of additional 767-300s from CAM in 2018.
Some of the leased B767-300s will replace CAM-owned B767-200/300s currently operating on an ACMI basis under ATSG’s Wet-2-Dry program, which allows carriers to prove their business case for B767s under ACMI arrangements, then transition to long-term dry lease arrangements.
ATSG president and chief executive Joe Hete said: “Our relationship with Northern Aviation Services and its affiliates began in 2015 and is expanding based on the solid relationship the companies have developed over that time. We are pleased that NAS has come to appreciate the advantages of our midsize B767s and the benefits they can provide to regional air cargo networks like the one that NAS is developing.
"We hope to provide more details about our continuing role as a provider of reliable midsize freighters to NAS in the coming months.”
NAS president and chief executive David Karp said: “We’re pleased to be moving forward with our transition from wet leasing to dry leasing with CAM. Our experience over the past two years has given us the confidence to move ahead with this initiative.
"We look forward to continued mutually beneficial collaboration with ATSG, CAM, and their family of companies. We have already commenced hiring and training of pilots to accommodate this expansion and our operating companies are excited about providing expanded services to our valued customers.”
ATSG, which is leasing up to 20 B767 freighters to global e-tailer Amazon, bought the passenger to freighter aircraft conversion specialist Pemco in January this year and is due to launch Chinese express airline United Star Express before the end of 2017.
The new carrier, a joint venture between ATSG, airline Okay Airways and online retailer VIP Shop Holdings, had originally been planned for launch in 2016.
