JERUSALEM, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) company will convert 15 Boeing 777 jets to freighters for Irish-American aviation giant GECAS, both companies announced Thursday.
The amount of the deal was not disclosed, but was estimated by the Israeli media at 400 million U.S. dollars.
Under the agreement, the conversion of initial aircraft is expected to take place in Israel's coastal city of Tel Aviv with further conversion lines contemplated in other locations outside of Israel from 2023.
The agreement includes an option for an additional 15 aircraft beyond the first 15. The program agreed will also see IAI enter into conversion agreements directly with airlines as well as other lessors worldwide.
The converted twin-engine aircraft will integrate into the international delivery industry, which is currently enjoying unprecedented growth.
According to the announcement, the converted jets will offer operators 25 percent more capacity than today's smaller twin-engine long-haul freighters.
They are also expected to achieve up to 21 percent lower fuel-burn per ton than the aging 4-engine freighters.
GECAS is a worldwide leading commercial aviation financing and leasing firm headquartered in Norwalk in the U.S. state of Connecticut and in Shannon, Ireland. It is a second-tier subsidiary of the U.S.-based International conglomerate General Electric.
Established in 1953, IAI is considered a global leader in the supply of technologies and systems in the domains of land, air, sea, outer space and cyber.
