On close inspection one may choose to believe Kalitta is going to play a bigger role than we think with Baltia. Connie is not going to just dabble at this ... he will go all in. They are buying more 767's ... 4 recently and 6 more as well as more 747-400's. So now we have a lease agreement with more good news to come... and a stockholders meeting. How many naysayers were proved wrong on these latest developments. Bet they will be buying like me come Monday. This is going to rip... get ready for the ride. Bet they outfit a new 747 too at some point relatively soon. I see at least two 767's anyway before long. There is no way around it. AS Tony said before... new revenue streams. Pehaps expanded cargo delivery as well into Eastern Europe.
From Feb.8 2016 issue of Air Cargo World
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...That is changing. The airline recently purchased four 767-300 passenger aircraft, two of which it is having converted to freighter configuration by Bedek Aviation Group, the MRO arm of Israel Aerospace Industries, and two that will be used for parts only. The first of the freighter converted 767s is scheduled to begin operations in May 2016. The second 767 was scheduled to be ferried to the Bedek facility in Tel Aviv for conversion Feb. 1, and should enter service around mid-year. And more may be on the way. Connie Kalitta recently said the carrier was planning to acquire as many as five or six more 767s “in the near future.”
“We got them because we want to diversify,” Sanderlin said, adding that most of Kalitta’s work is on the international stage. “We do little in the U.S. domestic market,” he said, but the plan is to test the waters with the new 767 freighters.
The U.S. domestic freight market is dominated by UPS and FedEx, so where is the business potential that would justify Kalitta’s attempt to enter it? Sanderlin said the 767s could appeal to DHL, which uses 767s in the U.S. to support its international operation, and with which Kalitta already has a relationship. Or, perhaps the other integrators, or even Amazon – which is rumored to be planning a major U.S. domestic 767 operation – would be potential customers.
Of course, bringing in a new freighter type does not mean abandoning the old. In addition to acquiring the 767s, Kalitta Air also plans to expand its fleet with more 747s. In fact, Sanderlin said, they are in negotiations right now for the purchase of another 747-400 freighter.
Kalitta Air is not a huge airline, but with 1,500 employees and almost 20 freighters, it’s not small by any means. In addition to the airplanes, Kalitta Air has its own engine shop, airframe maintenance facility, and training facility with three simulators, which Sanderlin said is unmatched by carriers of its size.
Perhaps one reason Kalitta Air has continued to thrive is because it does so much in-house. Another reason is leadership. “Connie is very close to the business, very hands on."
AI
