When a Narrowbody Freighter Makes Sense
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The load is too big for a turboprop but won't fill a widebody. Most full charters of general cargo, garments and perishables fall in this range.
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Medium haul routes. Gulf to Africa, South Asia to the Gulf, intra Europe and intra Africa, typically sectors of two to six hours.
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Palletised cargo on a main deck. Standard pallets and containers load through a large side cargo door.
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Airports without widebody handling. Many secondary airports can take a 737 freighter but not a 747.
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Regular lanes. Narrowbody freighters are the most common aircraft for charter series and freighter ACMI.
Narrowbody Freighter Types
Aircraft | Approx. max payload | Notes |
|---|---|---|
Boeing 737-300 freighter | around 16 to 19 tonnes | Common in Africa and Asia |
Boeing 737-400 freighter | around 20 tonnes | Widely available for charter and lease |
Boeing 737-800 converted freighter | around 23 tonnes | Newer, more efficient, growing fleet |
Airbus A321 converted freighter | around 27 tonnes | Largest volume of the single aisle freighters |
Boeing 757-200 freighter | around 32 to 36 tonnes | Most payload and range in the class |
Volume often runs out before weight. Garments, e-commerce parcels and perishables in cartons are light for their size, so the A321 and 757 freighters, with the largest main deck volume, often carry more of that kind of cargo than their payload figure suggests. We size the aircraft on your weight and your volume together.
Under 9 tonnes? A small cargo plane is usually cheaper. Over 40 tonnes? See heavy freighters.
Cargo We Move on Narrowbody Freighters
General cargo, garments and garments on hanger, perishables and flowers, pharmaceuticals, e-commerce, automotive and spare parts, and dangerous goods including lithium batteries, with operators approved for the class. See all cargo types.
Examples
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Garment lanes out of South Asia. Main deck capacity for apparel exporters and their forwarders out of Dhaka and Pakistan into the Gulf and Europe.
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Long term freighter lease in East Africa. A Boeing 737-400 freighter on a five year dry lease for an operator in Kenya.
