Lufthansa is set to welcome its second converted Airbus A321 freighter in October to boost its medium-haul network, as the airline continues to see high demand for e-commerce and same-day delivery solutions.

The second A321F with registration D-AEUA is currently undergoing conversion in Singapore. It is identical in design to the first A321 freighter (D-AEUC, ‘Hello Europe’): 28 tonnes of payload available on 14 pallet and container positions on the main deck and ten on the lower deck.

The second aircraft will also be based at the Frankfurt hub and operated by Lufthansa CityLine under wet lease agreement. Both A321Fs will operate under Lufthansa Cargo flight numbers.

The new destinations in the intra-European network include Birmingham (BHX), London (LHR) and Madrid (MAD). The existing destinations Istanbul (IST), Tel Aviv (TLV), Malta (MLA), Tunis (TUN), Dublin (DUB), Manchester (MAN) and Cairo (CAI) will continue to be served, whilst Istanbul and Tel Aviv will see additional frequencies.

Ashwin Bhat, Lufthansa Cargo’s commercial chief, said the expansion of the airline’s A321 freighter network and capacity will complement its B777F and belly capacity to offer even shorter transport times within European and to selected medium-haul destinations.

“It is our goal to build a European Same-Day and eCommerce network and thereby establish Lufthansa Cargo as the leading European cargo airline and service partner in the market,” noted Bhat.

Lufthansa’s first cargo flight with the converted A321F took off from Frankfurt to Dublin in March 2022. Two additional A321 freighters are expected in the first half of next year.