Jet Airways (India) Ltd, the country"™s second largest airline by passengers carried, will launch dedicated cargo operations in April, becoming the first private Indian passenger airline to do so.
The services will have New Delhi as the operating base. These services will be operated using an Airbus A330-200F aircraft wet-leased from partner Etihad Airways PJSC. While dry lease implies leasing of the aircraft only, wet lease includes pilots and cabin crew as well.
Jet Airways will fly cargo to several international and domestic destinations including Bengaluru, Hong Kong, Hanoi and Singapore. The launch will be subject to regulatory approvals. "The launch of dedicated freighter operations is a landmark moment for Jet Airways as it enables the airline to provide, for the first time, freighter services for customers in India and around the world," Cramer Ball, chief executive officer, Jet Airways, said. "India is now the second fastest growing air cargo market in the world and this growth is expected to continue in line with the country"™s economy and we look forward to cargo making a strong contribution to the annual revenues of Jet Airways," Ball said.
The wet lease agreement for the freighter aircraft is another illustration of the strong partnership between Jet Airways and Etihad Airways which has enabled the Indian carrier to embark upon new activities, such as cargo-only services, which will improve its revenues further, Jet Airways said in a statement. Etihad Airways had acquired a 24% stake in Jet Airways last year.
Jet Airways has spoken to various international airlines and dedicated freighter companies since 2007 to start all-cargo airline operations. However, those discussions did not fructify against the backdrop of the global economic slowdown. However, growth in cargo has started to pick up now. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released full-year air cargo data in February for 2014, which showed a 4.5% growth in demand compared to 2013, as measured by freight tonne kilometres (FTKs). That is higher than the 1.4% growth recorded in 2013 over 2012…
