Malaysia Airlines' cargo unit, MAB Kargo, has removed its Boeing 747-400 freighters from service.

The carrier says the aircraft have been withdrawn in favour of operating Airbus A330-200 freighters. This has been facilitated by the addition of a third A330 freighter to its fleet "recently".

Flight Fleets Analyzer indicates that this is likely to be 9M-MUD (MSN 1180), a 2012-vintage aircraft that was parked for six months before resuming operations in July.

Additionally, the airline will begin twice-weekly Kuala Lumpur-Chongqing service on 30 October. FlightGlobal schedules data shows that it will be the only cargo operator on the route.

"With the A330 operations, it puts us within a seven- to eight-hour radius from Kuala Lumpur, which makes China an important market for us," notes MAB Kargo's chief executive Ahmad Luqman Ahmad Azmi.

Source: Cirium Dashboard