First Boeing converted P2F completes maiden flight
The world’s first Boeing 777-300ER passenger-to-freighter (P2F) conversion has conducted its maiden test flight. The freighter may enter service with US-based cargo carrier Kalitta Air later this year. Israel Aerospace Industries completed the conversion for its customer AerCap.
The aircraft began life as a passenger Boeing 777-300ER under Emirates in 2005, serving the carrier for 15 years before passing into the hands of GECAS in 2020, then AerCap after the former’s acquisition in 2021. The widebody P2F will have a maximum payload of 101.6 tons and is powered by two GE90 engines with a 21 per cent reduction in fuel burn as compared to Boeing 747-400F.
The first ‘Big Twin’ Boeing 777-300ERSF—’Extended Range Special Freighter’—took off on Friday as the conversion program nears its entry to service. Offering up to 25 per cent more capacity than the 777-200F and a host of advantages over other large freighters, the ‘Big Twin’ will be an addition to the long-haul cargo game.
New Amazon logistics center opens in Dubai South
Amazon unveiled its new facility in Dubai South’s Logistics District, enabling efficient services, speed, operations, and uninterrupted access to Jebel Ali Port and Al Maktoum International Airport. Among those who were present at the inauguration ceremony included His Excellency Khalifa Al Zaffin, Executive Chairman, Dubai Aviation City Corporation and Dubai South, His Excellency Helal Saeed Al Marri, Director General, Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism, His Excellency Ahmed Mahboob Musabih, Director General, Dubai Customs, and His Excellency Mohsen Ahmad, CEO, Logistics District, Dubai South, and His Excellency Mohamed Shael Alsaadi, CEO, Dubai Corporation for Consumer Protection and Fair Trade.
Following the inauguration, the dignitaries were given a tour of the facility by Ronaldo Mouchawar, Vice President, Amazon Middle East and North Africa (MENA), Prashant Saran, Director, Operations, Amazon MENA, and Zeina El Kaissi, Director, Public Policy and Government Affairs, Amazon MENA. The center has a storage capacity of 2.1 million cubic feet, which will increase Amazon’s total storage capacity in the UAE by 70 per cent.
Supporting Dubai and the UAE’s agenda for a digital economy, the enhanced capacity will provide entrepreneurs and SMBs access to Amazon’s fulfillment capabilities and world-class logistics expertise. The company announced its commitment to host products from 100,000 businesses, including local SMBs, on its UAE website by 2026, in support of the Dubai Economic Agenda D33 to make Dubai a global digital economy.
DP World invests US$ 10 bn in the global logistics sector
DP World has invested more than US$10 billion in the global logistics sector since 2012. The figures make the UAE-based company one of the top five overseas investors during the time, according to the most recent foreign direct investment data.
Despite the demand for logistics services slowing, along with the global economy, DP World invested US$320 million in the last year. Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, CEO, DP World, said, “The data shared by ‘FDI Intelligence’ demonstrates where we stand globally within the logistics sector, not only in the last year but consistently over the past 10 years.”
DP World’s companies touch people’s lives around the world daily. Sometimes it is tangible, and sometimes we are in the background, making sure people and businesses get the goods they require. Other companies in the top five include Amazon, and Denmark’s AP Moller Maersk, making DP World the only company in the group not based in the USA or Europe.`
New board of directors for Uganda Air Cargo
Vincent Bamulangaki Ssempijja, Minister of Defence and Veterans Affairs, urged the new board of directors of Uganda Air Cargo Corporation (UACC) to work towards making it a competitive player in the air cargo industry.
Ssempijja made the statement on Thursday during the inauguration of the new board members at UACC headquarters in Entebbe, Wakiso district. “UACC remains one of our national strategic capabilities that requires our commitment and determination to remain efficiently operational,” Ssempija said.
Ssempijja mentioned that achieving self-reliance is of prime importance for any developing country such as Uganda as otherwise, it would increase the country’s dependence on foreign support. “I wish to thank His Excellency the President and Commander-in-Chief for his strategic vision and emphasis on self-reliance.
Indeed, the only way we can position Uganda as an economic hub in the region is by developing critical infrastructure and investing in key enabling sectors such as communication, transport, and aviation industry,” the Minister added
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