Alaska Air Cargo will add two Boeing 737-800 aircraft to its dedicated freighter fleet serving the state of Alaska.
The two B737-800 converted aircraft will come from Alaska Airlines existing passenger fleet. The planes will be converted from their passenger configuration to an all-freight aircraft beginning this year.
They’re projected to re-enter service as freighters in 2023. These additions increase the freighter fleet from three to five aircraft.
“Fleet expansion positions our growing cargo business to meet increased demand that we see from industry and consumers,” said Adam Drouhard, managing director for Alaska Air Cargo.
“The -800 aircraft provides more load space than our current -700 freighters, essentially doubling Air Cargo’s total freighter lift capacity. We look forward to getting these -800s into service to support Alaska’s supply chain and connect cargo to over 100 cities we serve across North America.”
The -800 aircraft provides a 40% capacity increase per departure over the current -700 aircraft with a payload of nearly 50,000 pounds. With a range of 2,800 nautical miles, the -800 will be the most fuel-efficient aircraft to serve intra-Alaska.
“Alaskans have always relied on Alaska Air Cargo to provide time-sensitive services to their communities,” said Marilyn Romano, regional vice president, Alaska Airlines.
“Whether it is vaccines, medicine, household supplies or fresh food, our freighters keep rural Alaska supplied and connected.
“With service to 20 communities across Alaska, and only three accessible by road, adding new aircraft to the current freighter fleet allows expansion of our vital services to all Alaskans.
“The additional freighter capacity also allows us to quickly move seafood and other commodities from Alaska to points throughout the US.”
Alaska Air Cargo transports more than 200 million pounds (91,000 tonnes) of cargo annually – including seafood, mail, and freight – and operates the most extensive air cargo operation on the US West Coast of any passenger airline.
