EFW signs deal with China’s HNA Aviation

Elbe Flugzeugwerke (EFW) has announced its third business development in a week – a memorandum of understanding with carrier HNA Aviation Group.

Under the deal, signed at the China International Aviation and Aerospace Expo in Zhuhai City on November 12, German freighter conversion company EFW will support HNA’s Grand China Aircraft Maintenance Services (GCAM) arm with A330P2F conversions. It will also set up capacity for the converted planes at its aerospace facility at Meilan International Airport, Haikou.

The move expands EFW’s presence and network in China, where it already has three modification sites for its freighter conversion programmes.

The partners will convert an initial batch of A330 aircraft from HNA’s existing A330 passenger fleet, with the first scheduled to take place at EFW’s conversion facility in Shanghai in the first half of 2025 and an option to continue with another in the second half. The remaining aircraft in the batch will be converted at GCAM’s site after its conversion facility has been set up.

Hainan currently operates 20 A330-300 passenger aircraft and eight A330-200s.

EFW is a subsidiary of ST Engineering and Airbus which combines manufacture of components for the Airbus family and maintenance and repair with conversion of passenger aircraft into freighters. It has over 40 conversion customers worldwide, including express operators in North America and Europe along with general freight and combination carriers.

EFW chief executive, Jordi Boto said: “We look forward to working with our latest strategic partner to tap the growing Chinese market and beyond, and to better support the growing global demand for air cargo with our widebody P2F solution.”

Chairman of HNA Aviation Group, Ding Yongzheng stated that with the rapid recovery of the global aviation logistics market and the boom in cross-border e-commerce, demand for long-range wide-body freighters is increasing.

EFW announced yesterday that it had redelivered its 100^th converted aircraft. This was an Airbus A330 passenger to freighter (P2F) aircraft from EFW’s facility in China.

MRO Japan (MJP) and EFW also formally signed a partnership this month that will see MJP provide third-party conversion services for EFW’s Airbus A320 passenger to freighter (P2F)/A321P2F programmes.

EFW redelivers 100th converted freighter aircraft

EFW and MRO Japan partner on A320P2F/A321P2F conversions