National Airlines (N8, Orlando Sanford) has acquired the world's only B747 aerial firefighter and is currently in the process of converting it back to a standard full freighter configuration, Cargo Facts has reported.
Earlier this year, Global SuperTanker Services (GST, Colorado Springs) announced that it would no longer operate N744ST (msn 25308) in light of necessary but costly upgrades and the expiration of a fixed ten-year lifespan of the special purpose investment fund Alterna. The 1988 build B747-400(BCF) was ferried from Moses Lake to San Antonio International on May 28, 2021, Flightradar24 ADS-B data shows. Once its firefighting systems are removed, it will be deployed by National Airlines as a standard dedicated freighter, the role it used to play before it was sold by Evergreen International Airlines (Marana) to Global SuperTanker.
The Florida-based cargo specialist currently operates five B747-400(BCF)s, one B757-200, and one A330-200. In 2020, it announced that it would take another A330-200 by early 2021. It is not clear if this plan has been deferred or cancelled. National Airlines did not respond to ch-aviation's request for comment.
