PARIS/SINGAPORE - DHL Express has ordered an additional four firm and 10 optional A330-300 passenger-to-freighter (P2F) conversions from Elbe Flugzeugwerke (EFW), a subsidiary of Singapore Technologies Aerospace and Airbus.

The contract was signed at the 52nd International Paris Air Show on Monday, and witnessed by Guests-of-Honour Singapore's Second Minister for Defense Mr Ong Ye Kung and chief of the Saxon State Chancellery and State Minister for Federal and European Affairs Dr Fritz Jaeckel, the Germany-based EFW said in a release.

The second contract follows another from July last year when DHL Express ordered for four similar A330-300P2F conversions. The first aircraft under the first launch contract is currently undergoing conversion at EFW's Dresden facilities, and is on track to be redelivered by the end of 2017.

ST Aerospace president Mr Lim Serh Ghee said the second contract DHL Express underscores the right decision that ST Aerospace, Airbus and EFW had made in 2012 to launch the A330P2F programme. "We are confident that the A330-300P2F aircraft will be an invaluable part of DHL Express's global aviation fleet and serve the air cargo market well," he said.

DHL Express is EFW's first customer for the A330-300P2F conversion programme which was launched in 2012 as a collaboration between ST Aerospace, Airbus and EFW. As the programme and technical lead for the engineering development phase, ST Aerospace is responsible for applying for the supplemental type certificates for the freighter conversions from the European Aviation Safety Agency and the US Federal Aviation Administration.

Aircraft original equipment manufacturer (OEM), Airbus, contributes to the programme with OEM data and certification support, while EFW leads the industrialisation phase and marketing for the freighter conversion programme.

"We are very proud to further our partnership with our launch customer, DHL Express, with another A330-300P2F contact even before the first redelivery from the first contract has been made," said Dr Andreas Sperl, President and CEO of EFW. "This reflects the confidence that DHL Express has in our A330P2F programme and the viability of our conversion solution, which marries the deep operational and engineering expertise that ST Aerospace and EFW have accumulated over the years as an integrated solutions provider."

EFW is ramping up its capacity at its facility in Dresden, with a new single-bay wide-body hangar being completed recently, in order to take on the expanded conversion programme for DHL Express.

ST Aerospace's global network of facilities will also be utilised for some of the conversions to ensure on-time redeliveries and to handle increasing demand. Conversion work on the second aircraft, which is also scheduled to be redelivered by the end of 2017, is set to begin at ST Aerospace's facility in Paya Lebar.