MRO AND SUPPLY CHAIN
African horticulture pulls freighter capacity that belly space no longer supplies
Perishables need scheduled reliability that passenger networks stopped providing, and operators are converting narrowbodies to meet it.
Aerospace Garage desk
East African flower and vegetable exporters lost a substantial share of their belly capacity when passenger schedules were cut, and the recovery has been uneven. Freighter operators have stepped in, and the economics are proving durable rather than opportunistic.
Perishables reward schedule reliability far more than they reward rate. A grower whose consignment misses a European auction loses the entire value, which makes a dedicated freighter at a premium cheaper than cheap belly space that may not appear.
Conversion feedstock is the constraint. A321P2F and 737-800BCF slots are booked well ahead, and operators report that delivery certainty now decides a conversion contract ahead of unit price.
Our read: watch conversion slot quotes rather than published freight rates. Slot scarcity moves first and predicts operator commitments by about two quarters.
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