Boeing 747-400ERF offers a capacity of 124,000 tonnes and aims to meet strong cargo capacity in Asia and Europe. The additional capacity, says Paul Bennett, Chairman & CEO, One Air, will enable them to provide more space to its clients. The carrier plans to add fourth freighter to its fleet in the first half of 2025.
CT Bureau
British cargo airline, One Air, has added a third Boeing 747 freighter to its fleet to meet demand for capacity in Asia and Europe. The Boeing 747-400ERF has joined One Air on a five-year lease from AeroTransCargo FZE and completed its first flight for the airline in mid-September from Hong Kong to East Midlands Airport in the UK.
The Boeing-built freighter is the first aircraft in One Air’s fleet to offer a nose door as well as a side door for loading and unloading. The 747-400ERF version also offers a higher payload capacity of up to 124,000 kg.
“Our business case was always based on the high demand for a British cargo airline, and this is being borne out by the volume of flights we are operating. The arrival of our third Boeing 747-400 ERF with its increased capacity and capability will enable us to provide more availability to our growing client base. We are pressing ahead with our future fleet plans and expect to add one more freighter in the first half of 2025 based on our current growth plan,” Paul Bennett, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, One Air, said. One Air commenced B747F flights in July 2023 after receiving its Air Operator certification from the United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority and added a second 747-400 aircraft to its fleet in December to support its growing flying programme between China, Hong Kong and Europe.
The airline’s first 12 months of charter operations included flights from airports across the UK, including London Heathrow, London Stansted, East Midlands Airport, Birmingham, Doncaster/Sheffield, Glasgow Prestwick, and Cardiff cities.
Supporting its growing client base of freight forwarders, logistics providers, and charter brokers, One Air’s 747s have also served points in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, Almaty, Amsterdam, Astana, Châteauroux, Hahn, Hong Kong, Jinan, Larnaca, Maastricht-Aachen, Muscat, Shannon, and Singapore.
Most recently, as well as ad hoc charter flights, One Air has been operating a contract for seven 747F flights a week ex Hong Kong into Europe carrying general cargo.
Earlier this year, One Air announced it was starting regular flights using East Midlands Airport (EMA) for the United Kingdom flight operations. With its favourable slot availability and fewer restrictions for all-cargo aircraft, the central UK airport is now the destination point for the airline’s weekly flights from Hong Kong. This strong demand also reflects the successful commercial activities of Air One Aviation, the airline’s launch international sales agency.
