Pradhaan Air Express, India’s brand new all-cargo airline, to be based in Delhi, will begin commercial operations later this year with the world’s first A320 converted freighter. The first converted freighter, likely to arrive in Delhi later this month, will offer charter capacity to Indian shippers and freight forwarders on domestic and international routes. The launch of Pradhaan Air Express endorses the Govt’s vision to achieve 10 million tonnes of annual cargo throughput by 2030 and pushes the Indian air cargo market in global ranking. The conversion was done by Elbe Flugzeugwerke (EFW), a JV of ST Engineering and Airbus, at its facility in Singapore. The aircraft has been leased from Vaayu Group/Astral Aviation. Interestingly, Pradhaan Air Express will be India’s first airline to operate an Airbus narrow-body freighter. The aircraft offers a payload of 21 tonnes with a fully palletized main deck. “We aim to make a small contribution to the big dreams of the Indian cargo industry by offering tailor-made solutions with on-demand charters’ ‘ said Vipul Bhalla, CBO, Pradhaan Air Express.