TAAG to source two preighter 777-300ER from Carlyle

MADRID, Spain — in the event that celebrated its first flight connecting Luanda to Spain last week, TAAG Angola Airlines, Angola’s flag carrier, confirmed it will source two additional Boeing 777-300ER to operate its cargo operation between China and Brazil, announced two weeks ago.

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This was confirmed by the airline’s CEO, Eduardo Fairen Soria, in a speech granted to invitees in a cocktail at the Reina Victoria Hotel, in downtown Madrid.

The executive said an agreement was closed with Carlyle Aviation Partners, the aviation branch of private equity firm Carlyle Group, for the sourcing of these new aircraft.

Soria further told Aviacionline, in an interview after his speech, that both of the 777s will be preighters, given the low availability of «full» freighters in the market.

«Preighter» aircraft have become common during the COVID-19 pandemic, and consist in a mixed cabin configuration; they don’t carry passengers as most seats are removed to accomodate cargo in the passenger deck, which is kept.

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According to the FAA registry, two Boeing 777-300ERs belong to Carlyle (registered through the UMB Bank, in the state of Utah): serial number 29062, currently registered as N962CL, and sn 29063, registered N906CL. According to Planespotters.net, both were originally delivered to Emirates in 1999, being returned in 2017.

TAAG currently operates a fleet of five Boeing 777-300ER and three Boeing 777-200, of which one —  is currently operating as a preighter. The other two are currently undercurring maintenance, but are in the same cabin setup.