TNT Airways has agreed to lease three 777-200 LR freighters from Guggenheim Aviation Partners.
The first aircraft will be delivered and enter service by July 2011; while the others will be delivered by the end of 2011.
The new freighters, offer a maximum payload of 107 tons compared to the 117 tons payload of a B747 the cargo carrier already operates, will operate on long-haul routes between Europe and Asia.
“We are delighted to have concluded this agreement with Guggenheim for these aircraft and we are thrilled by the prospect of introducing the new type in our fleet,” said Niky Terzakis, managing director, TNT Global Air Network. “Like the legacy 747, the B777 is a mature and very successful product and the most fuel efficient freighter aircraft available, while offering near equivalent performance to our 747 capacity.”