Atlanta-based courier United Parcel Service (UPS) has ordered 14 new Boeing 747-8 cargo jets as it gears to expand fleet capacity on its international air shipping network.
“UPS is making several strategic capital investments for increased global operating capacity,” said David Abney, UPS chairman and CEO. “These investments will help enable customers to expand their presence in new and existing markets while fueling our profitable growth and attainment of UPS’s long term business objectives.”
The 14 aircraft are to be delivered between 2017 and 2020. Based on list prices, the value of the contract, which also contains options for 14 additional jets in the future, is about US$5.3 billion.
The new jumbo freighters will be added to the company’s existing operating fleet of more than 500 aircraft.
The 747-8 freighters carry 34 shipping containers on its main deck and 14 in its lower compartments. The aircraft has a cargo capacity of 307,600 pounds, or about 30,000 packages, and a range of 4,340 nautical miles. It also lays claim to a strong industry safety and reliability record, said a company release.
According to Boeing, the 747-8F is the world’s most efficient freighter, providing cargo operators the lowest operating costs and best economics of any large freighter on the market. With its iconic nose door, the airplane has 16% more revenue cargo volume than the 747-400F. The airplane also reduces the noise footprint around an airport by 30% compared to its predecessor.
The order has revived hopes for the aircraft that Boeing said earlier this year might be scrapped, as the famed “Jumbo Jet” plane struggled against falling orders and pricing pressures. Similar-sized two-engine planes that are more fuel-efficient have overtaken the 747 as passenger planes.
