EFW has secured two Letters Of Intent with a leasing company and an undisclosed airline for its A321 passenger-to-freighter conversion programme at the 2019 Paris Air Show.

The A321 passenger aircraft of both customers will be inducted for conversion into a 14-pallet cargo configuration in 2020.

The A321 P2F programme was launched in 2015 with the A320 P2F, and is the result of a collaboration between EFW, ST Engineering and Airbus.

EFW leads the overall programme and marketing and sales, with Airbus contributing Original Equipment Manufacturer data and certification support.

ST Engineering is responsible for the engineering development phase, up to obtaining the Supplemental Type Certificate approval by the European Aviation Safety Agency and US Federal Aviation Administration.

Dr Andreas Sperl, CEO of EFW says: “We are pleased to broaden our customer base to now include leasing companies as well as airlines.”

The A321 P2F is the first in its size category to offer containerised loading in both the main deck, up to 14 containers positions, and lower deck offering up to 10 container positions.

It can carry up to 27.9 tonnes over 2,300 nautical miles, and the prototype will be completed by the end of the year while the STC is expected to be obtained in early 2020.