Cebu Air Inc., the operator of Cebu Pacific and CebGo, said Monday it converted two ATR 72-500 passenger planes into a dedicated cargo aircraft.
The low-cost airline of the Gokongwei Group said it signed an agreement with Switzerland-based IPR Conversions Ltd. for the conversion of the aircraft.
This marks the foray of Cebu Pacific in operating specialized aircraft to transport cargo.
“We will be able to offer cargo capacity that no other carrier in the Philippines can provide,” Cebu Pacific president and chief executive Lance Gokongwei said.
“With the freighter aircraft, we will further support the growing needs of the logistics industry, especially as the Philippines’ e-commerce businesses expand rapidly and look for faster delivery schedules,” he said.
Cebu Pacific said it expected to receive the first of the two converted aircraft in the fourth quarter of 2018.
The cargo aircraft will continue to be operated through wholly-owned subsidiary CebGo.
IPR Conversions, based in Lausanne, Switzerland, is one of the leading ATR freighter conversion service providers in the world.
The conversion of two of CEB’s passenger ATR 72-500 aircraft into dedicated air freighters involves the installation of a large cargo door, allowing standard containers and pallets used throughout the aviation industry to be loaded.
Meanwhile, Cebu Pacific said it sold 60 percent of its shares in 1Aviation Groundhandling Services Corp. to the Philippine Airport Ground Support Solutions Inc. and businessman Jefferson Cheng.
Gokongwei said the investment by Cheng and PAGSS would bring decades of experience in ground handling for the benefit of airline passengers.