jeff lee
Hello. Welcome to this episode of Cargo Facts Connect. The Cargo Facts podcast is a newsletter chronicling his more than 40 years in the air cargo and cargo aircraft industry. I'm Jeff Lee, Cargo Facts editor. Today is Friday, February 23rd. A new cargo airline is scheduled to enter the United States and begin operations using two 737-800 cargo planes. We are, of course, talking about the seven air cargoes that are going through the certification process with the Department of Transportation and the FAA. However, the first aircraft already appeared in aircraft carrier colors. Last week, I spoke with CEO Amos Rodriguez and Vice President of Commercial Operations Carlos Koch for an update on 7 Air Cargo's plans.
jeff lee
Hello Amos and Carlos, thank you for joining us. So what's the latest? Where can I find my certificate?
Amos Rodriguez
As of today, the FAA certification process is proceeding as planned. All of our pilots, all trained, all in the training phase with the FAA, doing tabletop sometime in March, doing demonstrations towards the end of March, probably the first week of April. Certification is scheduled to take place in orbit. On the timeline with the FAA, this is where we are right now. As of today, things are going well.
jeff lee
It was good. On the aircraft side, I know you're going to start with two 737-800s, can you tell me about that?
Amos Rodriguez
Well, at least we currently lease from Air Castle to an MSN number. And the first aircraft is being painted in Goodyear, Arizona. I just took this photo on Friday, and the entire fuselage had already been polished. And we also asked this company to install about 10 cameras all around when they painted the aircraft. And they monitor and record the entire procedure. And at the end, you'll see a speedy video of how we progressed and what the final product looked like. So let's bring it out. Once the product has been painted. I washed the car over the weekend and will start painting it today. I'm planning on applying a primer today and a coat of color tomorrow. And you can use the other colors you get every two days to make another color. In other words, from what I've heard, the aircraft should be painted by the middle of next week.
jeff lee
But you know the funny story. Rob and I kept guessing who had which two planes. And actually, my guess was air casters. And I think it was last week, I don't know if that's exactly this. However, I saw a photo of one of them on the cover of another airline, and I guess that deal didn't go through and the aircraft was repainted. I don't know if it's that or not, but it's different.
carlos cock
No, it's secured. We have been working on securing these two leases for the past five months. It has not been painted as it has only been carbon converted. His first one took off from Miami. You know, it's been a good year for paint. Number two, I think we just flew out of commercial last week, no?
Amos Rodriguez
Oh my god. The second one is still here and still in commercial use. A few minor touches have been added to finish it off at sea check, where it awaits the 20 learners coming from overhaul. We are ready too. And it's probably going to be a couple of weeks from now that I'll be painting.
carlos cock
Needless to say, it is AEI conversion.
jeff lee
Yeah. Was there any particular reason why you chose AEI conversion over BCF or BDS F?
Amos Rodriguez
The thing is, we started negotiating with Air Castle and at that point they modified the aircraft, so we didn't have any other choice, but we got a good deal on these two leases, so we went ahead and We secured it. Yes, he has secured two other serial numbers but has not completed the transaction yet. Therefore, I will give you the one that is still working once I can secure it.
jeff lee
interesting
Amos Rodriguez
So we included DLT in our DLT application and submitted it. And because I don't want to know how it works. DLT applications will be filed within that period depending on the number of aircraft requested. Once that year comes, you will have to invest that amount in a proper backup. So I don't want to say I want to fly 10 planes, but then I have to put a million dollars in a bank in the West, and I can't do that.
jeff lee
Once you receive your AOC, what types of operations and routes will you target?
Amos Rodriguez
We have two options: go with AC Charter or carry the cargo ourselves. So instead of just chartering, we want to do both. We're going to do charters with different operators, different companies. We also plan to carry the cargo ourselves.
carlos cock
Until the first route. We are focused on Central America. There are several destinations in Central America. Once it's solidified further, I'll share it with you all.
jeff lee
What do you mean by your own luggage? Perhaps it means putting yourself on the spot? So, is there an agent, her GSA partner, etc.?
carlos cock
Yeah, us? Yes, we are in the early stages of these partnerships and developments. But we've got the right mix and more than 50% of our work will be integrated for free.
jeff lee
interesting. And I think we'll end up with two different conversion types. How important is it? Does it make a difference to you? Or are you testing two different types? Is it because different customers have different requirements? Or does the version not really matter?
Amos Rodriguez
That doesn't really matter, Jeff, the only problem is that you're better off switching to Boeing. Because if you use it like AEI conversion, you have to pay royalties to Boeing. No big deal. And there are also differences in our manual system. So having to deal with a virus is no big deal. The cargo loading system is the same and the loads are the same.So everything
jeff lee
Although the position of the door is slightly different,
carlos cock
There are differences with other conversions. For example, 400 pretty much meets the standard. Therefore, all three transformations are approximately the same.
Amos Rodriguez
Same, everything is the same. No big deal.
jeff lee
From a timing perspective, how much are you planning for the recovery in air cargo demand, or are you less concerned given the commercial relationships you already have?
carlos cock
And the answer is that in terms of cargo, it's actually a combination of both. This is strategic timing as the region is seeing a decline in narrow-body aircraft carriers. We apologize for the inconvenience, but Wi-Fi in the area is reduced. So it's probably a good time for narrow bodies. So, again, the reason we chose the narrowbody aircraft, as we had planned, was because of this strategic partnership that we had and that it was necessary for the routes that we were targeting. It was supposed to be an aircraft. So, somehow they are lined up.
Amos Rodriguez
Loading a 767 300 is even more difficult. It takes a lot of cargo to load all the cargo onto an aircraft and make a profit. Therefore, a narrow body is a little easier. It's a full pallet position so you can kind of load it onto a truck and it's much easier and more manageable to go to different countries and pick up that load and it works perfectly for us.
jeff lee
Speaking of manageable, Miami is a fairly competitive market, especially for air cargo transportation throughout the Americas.
carlos cock
You know, we've been going through this process for two years. And during that time, we have the advantage of playing on our home court because Miami is our home. So it becomes very easy. absolutely.
jeff lee
And you're also going to stick here in the long run, we're talking about narrowbody and widebody, but you're still going to only stick to the 800 or maybe eventually go a little bigger. Planning.
Amos Rodriguez
Yeah. Eventually, he plans to grow the company to a size where he can rent to 7 companies, or maybe up to 1,400 companies, because he has customers. Then, around 7 o'clock or 10 o'clock, I plan to decide on a wide body. And we already have a good sense of where and what to use for the wire, and that's going to be the triple seven.
jeff lee
Seven, seven, eight, hundred, triple seven. Sounds like a perfect number.
Amos Rodriguez
yes. Well, our number here is seven. There are sevens in the paint and she has three, so the triple seven was perfect.
jeff lee
Yes, it looks like everything went according to plan.
Amos Rodriguez
So we're going to keep the same flow.
jeff lee
It was Amos Rodriguez and Carlos Koch of 7 Air Cargo and Xtreme Holdings. thanks again. That's all for today. For more information on the cargo aircraft market, visit cargo things.com. Thank you very much for watching. Please join us next time.
