ISTAT Jetrader - Spring 2023 - 38

APPRAISAL
Airbus A321-200P2F
Mike Yeomans
ISTAT Certified Senior Appraiser
Director - Valuations and Consulting
IBA Group
mike.yeomans@iba.aero
iba.aero
Photo courtesy of Andre Giam.
T
he Airbus A321P2F
is a cargo aircraft
with a 27-tonne
maximum payload
and 14 pallet
positions on the
main deck (88 "
x 125 " ), with a further 10 (LD345)
in the belly. The aircraft is a
passenger-to-freighter conversion of
the Airbus A321-200ceo, hence the
name P2F (passenger to freighter).
The P2F program was launched in
2015 with Airbus, Elbe Flugzeugwerke
Gmbh (EFW) and ST Aerospace in
a joint venture and is the Airbusapproved
conversion program for the
A320 family.
Competition
There are no factory-delivered options
for cargo aircraft in the narrowbody
space, so the Airbus A321P2F
competes with converted passenger
aircraft derived from Boeing passenger
aircraft, along with the three non-OEM
conversion options offered by Precision
Aircraft Solutions (A321-200PCF), C
Cubed Aerospace (A321-200CCF) and
Sine Draco (A321-200SDF).
The A321P2F sits between the
Boeing 737-800 and 757-200 converted
freighters in terms of main deck
capacity and payload. While the A321
is closer to the 737-800 in terms of
its payload and range, it is closer to
38 * THE OF F I C I AL PUBL I CAT I ON OF ISTAT
Two to three years ago, the earliest A321 deliveries
exhibited lease rates in the mid- to upper US$200,000
range. For the latter 2022, IBA now observes monthly
contracted lease rates in the low US$200,000 range.
the 757-200 in terms of main deck
volume and pallet capacity. This makes
converted A321s an attractive fit for the
e-commerce market, where volumetric
capacity rather than absolute payload is
paramount, given lower density cargoes.
The Boeing 737-800 converted
freighter is offered through an official
Boeing program, the Boeing Converted
Freighter (BCF), as well as two thirdparty
conversions from Aeronautical
Engineers Inc. and Israeli Aerospace
Industries (IAI). Although the 737
has historically " owned " the small
narrowbody freighter market, there
are few 737 Classics available for
conversion remaining.
The Boeing 757 converted freighter
is offered through two conversion
programs: the 757-200SF and the
757-200PCF. The 757-200SF was
developed by Boeing and is offered
by ST Aerospace in Singapore but has
not seen a delivery in a number of
years, as the organization has pivoted
toward the Airbus A320/A321P2F
and A330P2F. The 757-200PCF
is the Precision Aircraft Solutions
conversion, performed at HAECO (Hong
Kong Aircraft Engineering Company
Limited), which now effectively controls
the market. Due to its success as a
converted freighter and its last delivery
being in 2005, however, supply of
suitable and available feedstock is
diminishing. There are attractive fleets
at Icelandair and United Airlines, but
the population is limited.
Outlook for Supply
and Demand
As of December 2022, 14 Airbus A321200P2F
freighters have been delivered,
of which 11 are in service, according
to data from IBA Insight. Qantas was
the launch operator for the A321P2F,
with the first delivery to Qantas Freight
in 2020 to fly for Australia Post. The
fleet with Qantas is expected to grow
in the coming years. Express Freighters
Australia, a subsidiary of Qantas, is
the largest operator with three. Other
key operators include Lufthansa Cargo,
http://www.iba.aero
ISTAT Jetrader - Spring 2023

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