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.jpg) An Atlas Air747-87UF | |||||||
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| Founded | 1992; 34 years ago (1992) | ||||||
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| AOC # | UIEA784U[1] | ||||||
| Hubs | |||||||
| Fleet size | 107 | ||||||
| Parent company | Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings | ||||||
| Headquarters | White Plains, New York, U.S. | ||||||
| Key people |
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| Website | atlasair.com | ||||||
Atlas Air, Inc. is a major Americancargo airline,passenger charter airline, andaircraft lessor based inWhite Plains, New York. It is a wholly owned subsidiary ofAtlas Air Worldwide Holdings. Atlas Air is the world's largest operator of theBoeing 747, with 61 of the type. In 2021, the airline had 4,056 employees and operated to more than 300 global destinations.[2]
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In 1992, Atlas Air began operations when the airline's founder,Michael Chowdry, started leasing aircraft to airlines.[3]
In 1993,China Airlines, the first customer, initiated operations with Atlas Air with one airplane on anaircraft, crew, maintenance, and insurance (ACMI) agreement.[4] By 1995, Atlas Air began trading publicly.[4] In 1997, Atlas placed an order for 10 newBoeing 747-400F aircraft with another two orders for 747-400Fs placed in 1998.[4]
On January 30, 2004, Atlas Air Worldwide enteredChapter 11 bankruptcy. In July 2004, the parent company completed its restructuring plan and emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.[5]
In 2006,Amnesty International released a report onextraordinary rendition, stating that Atlas Air was one of the airlines used by the US government for rendering detainees. This was the basis for the song "Atlas Air" recorded byMassive Attack for the albumHeligoland.[6] In 2007, Atlas Air began a multiyear training contract with the United States Air Force to provide training for the pilots of Air Force One. The contract also provided training for the Presidential Airlift Group. This program has been renewed several times and remains in place as of 2022.[7]
In March 2010, Atlas Air was awarded the contract to operate theBoeing Dreamlifter (officially the Boeing 747 Large Cargo Freighter), transporting aircraft parts to Boeing from suppliers around the world. It commenced operation in September 2010 under a CMI contract.[8] In 2011, Atlas Air took the first North American delivery of the Boeing 747-8 Freighter (Boeing 747-8F).[9]
On April 7, 2016, Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings purchasedSouthern Air forUS$110 million in an all-cash deal. The transaction included Worldwide Air Logistics Group, Inc. and its two operating subsidiaries,Southern Air, Inc. andFlorida West International Airways, Inc.[10] On May 5, 2016,Amazon.com and Atlas Air announced a deal for Amazon.com to lease 20Boeing 767s to fuel growth of its new Amazon air-freight service, branded asAmazon Air. The deal also warranted Amazon the ability to buy up to 30% stake in the company over the next seven years. Under the agreement, Atlas Air Inc. would provide aircraft and CMI for seven years. This move came after Amazon's similar deal withAir Transport Services Group for 20 aircraft, also to be branded under Amazon Air.[11] In March 2017, Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings shut down Florida West International Airways and cancelled the operating certificate.[12]
In January 2021, Atlas Air announced the purchase of an additional four 747-8 freighters from Boeing. They were the final four 747s to be built. These were to be delivered in 2022, when Boeing planned to shut the 747 production program.[citation needed] On November 17, 2021, Atlas Air and Southern Air completed their merger with the transition to a single operating certificate.[13] On August 4, 2022, Atlas agreed to be bought by an investor group for $3.2 billion.[14]
On January 31, 2023, the airline received the 1,574th and final 747 ever made - a 747-8F registered N863GT. As the last 747 to be made by Boeing, the aircraft features a decal ofJoe Sutter, the designer of the 747, on the front, right side and the words "forever incredible". Many Boeing employees and executives, including those who were part of the "Incredibles," the people who worked on the first 747 prototype, gathered at Boeing'sEverett Plant to bid farewell to the final aircraft.[15]
Atlas Air's headquarters are in White Plains, New York with a flight operations center located in Erlanger, Kentucky. Atlas Air operates flights on an aircraft & CMI andair charter basis for airlines, express operators,freight forwarders, charter brokers, global shippers, and the U.S. military, along withdry-leasing freighter aircraft. Atlas Air has global operations established in Africa, Asia, the Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, North America, and South America.[2] Crew bases are located atAnchorage–Ted Stevens;Chicago–O'Hare;Cincinnati;Los Angeles;Memphis;Miami;New York–JFK;Ontario, CA; andTampa.[16]
As of late 2023, Atlas Air operates MSC Air Cargo flights on behalf of theMediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), although MSC owns the aircraft and they are painted in MSClivery.[17]
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Atlas Air began operating a premium passenger private-charter service for the U.S.-Africa Energy Association in conjunction withSonAir in 2010. The charter service consisted of two customized Boeing 747-400 aircraft provided by SonAir. The aircraft were configured to serve 189 passengers in a three-class configuration. The charter service, which became known as the "Houston Express", included three dedicated weekly nonstop flights betweenHouston andLuanda, Angola.[18] As of 2017, Atlas Air was the charter service for theJacksonville Jaguars.[19] As of 2021, Atlas Air owned a fleet of 10 B747 and B767 passenger aircraft available for lease in the passenger charter market.[2]
As of April 2024[update], Atlas Air operates these aircraft:[2]
| Aircraft | In service | Orders | Passengers | Notes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F | C | Y+ | Y | Total | ||||
| Passenger fleet | ||||||||
| Boeing 747-400 | 5 | — | 10 | 143 | — | 36 | 189 | Used for VIP service |
| 12 | 52 | 70 | 240 | 374 | Used for VIP service | |||
| — | 23 | — | 505 | 528 | ||||
| Boeing 767-300ER | 5 | — | — | 30 | — | 218 | 248 | |
| Cargo fleet | ||||||||
| Boeing 737-800BCF | 8 | — | Cargo | Operated forAmazon Air | ||||
| Boeing 747-400BCF | 2 | — | Cargo | |||||
| Boeing 747-400F | 28 | — | Cargo | |||||
| 5 | Operated forNippon Cargo Airlines[20] | |||||||
| Boeing 747-400LCF | 4 | — | Cargo | Operated forBoeing | ||||
| Boeing 747-8F | 6 | 1 | Cargo | Additional 747-8F from AirBridge Cargo to be delivered TBD[21] | ||||
| 1 | Operated forKuehne + Nagel[22] | |||||||
| 1 | Operated for Apex Logistics The final747 built, N863GT, delivered in February 2023[23] | |||||||
| Boeing 767-300ERF | 3 | — | Cargo | |||||
| 21 | Leased out by Titan Aircraft Investments, 17 (as of y.e. 2021) operated by Atlas | |||||||
| 2 | Operated forDHL | |||||||
| Boeing 777F | 4 | 1 | Cargo | Operated forMediterranean Shipping Company Air Cargo[24] | ||||
| 7 | — | Owned by Titan Aircraft Investments, operated by Atlas | ||||||
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