Boeing to bolster presence in India with freighter conversion plant

New Delhi, Mar 10 (EFE).- US aeronautics firm Boeing announced Friday the setting up of a facility to convert its “737” passenger aircraft into cargo planes.

The facility is to be set up at a plant of the Indian company GMR Aero Technic in the southern city of Hyderabad, in the state of Andhra Pradesh.

“India’s first Boeing Converted Freighter (BCF) line is on the way! We are proud to be working with GMR Aero Technic to establish the new BCF line as we continue supporting India’s aspiration to become an aviation & aerospace hub for the region,” tweeted Boeing India.

This announcement responds to the growing demand in India for freighters, which Boeing estimates will increase at a rate of 6.3 percent annually in the coming years “driven by the country’s manufacturing and e-commerce sectors,” the company said in a statement.

Although Boeing did provide further details on the amount of the investment or when production would begin, it estimates that India will require more than 2,200 new aircraft and up to 80 new freighters in the next 20 years.

The US company’s investment in India amounts to $1 billion annually, with its presence only increasing following the recent signing of several agreements.

The most recent one was in February with the Indian airline Air India, owned by the Tata group, purchasing 220 Boeing aircraft – which added to the acquisition of another 250 aircraft of the European firm Airbus, marking the biggest order in the history of commercial aviation.

Although the companies did not reveal the amount involved in the operation, as per the catalog prices of Boeing aircraft, it would cost a total of about $46 billion dollars, according to calculations by The Wall Street Journal. EFE

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