Avianca (Bogotá) will convert two of its recently retired A330-200s into freighters for avianca cargo (QT, Medellín José Maria Córdova), Cargo Facts has reported. The first airframe, N342AV (msn 1342), was ferried to Mobile Downtown for conversion by VT Mobile Aerospace Engineering on September 12, and is scheduled for redelivery in 2024.
The Colombia carrier retired all four remaining A330-200s by March 2023. Two remain in storage at Cali and one at Medellín José Maria Córdova. Avianca did not confirm the identity of the other A330 it will convert.
The two A330-200(P2F)s are covered by a commitment announced earlier this year, which also includes two A330-300(P2F). The -300s are already under contract with CDB Aviation. These four converted A330s will join Avianca Cargo's existing fleet of six production A330-200Fs. Last year, Avianca Cargo announced a separate lease deal with CDB Aviation for up to four A330-200(P2F)s, which have yet to be delivered.
The then Chief Executive Gabriel Oliva told ch-aviation last year that the cargo carrier, which is now a strategic focus for the entire group, had to turn to conversions due to the lack of appropriate mid-sized new freighters.