US cargo airline ABX Air said it has agreed to purchase a B767-200 extended-range (ER) aircraft from Air China for conversion to freighter confi guration.

“This investment in additional 767 lift capacity refl ects our confi dence in the growth and vitality of the air cargo market, particularly outside the United States,” ABX Air president and CEO, Joe Hete, said in a statement.

The projected total cost to purchase, modify and put the aircraft into revenue service is estimated at approximately $23 million. The aircraft will be delivered to ABX Air in the fourth quarter of 2007 and then sent to VEM Maintenance & Engineering Inc. in Porto Alegre, Brazil, for cargo conversion. It is expected to enter service in the second quarter of 2008.