Qatar Airways Cargo is facing delays in receiving its first Boeing 777 freighter conversions from Mammoth Freighters due to the federal government shutdown in the US, according to FlightGlobal sister publication Air Cargo News.
The Doha-headquartered airline had decided to invest in five 777-200LRMF aircraft from the Fort Worth, Texas-based conversion company partly because of the delays to delivery for its new-generation 777-8Fs, and was due to receive the first and second 777-200LRMFs this quarter as the launch customer for the modification programme.
But while Mammoth is close to securing supplemental type certification (STC) for the 777-200LRMF, Mark Drusch, chief cargo officer at Qatar Airways, tells Air Cargo News that the continued US government shutdown has delayed the certification process and the first aircraft is now expected in January.
“That timeline is still indeterminate, because the US government shutdown means that the certification process has slowed down,” says Drusch. “We need to see how much work can get done and how long the shutdown will be to determine when we get [the aircraft]. Right now, we are assuming that we get the first aircraft in January.”
Drusch says the government shutdown, which has been in place since 1 October, could potentially push back the deliveries of all five aircraft, but points out that disruption in the air cargo industry is routine and expected now, with tariffs and the end of the de minimis exemption impacting trade and supply chain flows throughout this year.
“We were expecting to get the first and second aircraft this quarter,” adds Drusch. ”Until we really know when the first one comes, we won’t know when units two through five arrive.
“It’s a waiting game, which is not the best thing when you’re trying to plan a business. But the whole industry is in a waiting game right now with uncertainty.”
However, Drusch states that Qatar Airways Cargo is not concerned about the delays, because the deliveries are a matter of when, not if.
“Those airplanes are going to come. It’s just a matter of what month. So I’m not worried. It’s not like they could be two or three years delayed. It’s not a longer-term issue.”
Air Cargo News contacted Mammoth for comment.
In May, Qatar Airways Cargo was confirmed as the launch customer for Mammoth’s 777-200 conversion programme after signing an agreement for five of the aircraft with Texas-based lessor Jetran.
Drusch said in June that one reason for the 777 conversion commitment was delays to the delivery of the new 777-8Fs the airline has on order.
In 2022, the carrier ordered 34 of new 777-8Fs, with options for 16 more. But the launch date for the new widebody freighter has been pushed back from 2027 to 2028 at the earliest.
In September, Mammoth was undertaking the final test flights for the 777-200LRMF as it progressed towards STC for the aircraft.
Mammoth said in August that it had been carrying out company and formal Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) test flights for the 777-200LRMF and planned to complete these by early October.
