FedEx Express (FX, Memphis International) has taken delivery of its first Cessna 408F SkyCourier with N408FE (msn 408-0003) having been handed over by Cessna Aircraft Company/Textron Aviation on May 9.
As the type's launch operator, FedEx has another 49 on order with options for 50 more. According to FedEx's last financial report, it is expecting two more SkyCouriers to deliver this year followed by twelve in each of 2023, 2024, and 2025, with eleven due in 2026.
The Cessna SkyCourier is a high-wing turboprop powered by a pair of Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-65SC engines and has a maximum cruising speed of more than 200 knots and a 900 nautical-mile (1,700 kilometre) maximum range. In addition to the freighter version, there is also a planned 19-passenger variant.
The clean-sheet aircraft achieved US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) type certification in March 2022.
