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companies, I believe IAI will continue leading
the field and adjusting to market demand to
provide customers with the best solutions.

Bellyhold space in passenger aircraft
is going to come back eventually. Do
you think that will have a negative
impact on the surging demand for
P2F conversions?

I believe that the passenger market will recover
shortly, and we will see a return to normal air
traffic by 2023. While we will need to find a
new balance between passenger belly holding
space and the passenger-to-freighter conver-
sions, the new market demand for converted
aircraft will only keep growing and will be larger
than prior to the Covid-19 pandemic. As people
around the world adjusted to the pandemic,
they became accustomed to making online
purchases and the trend for online deliveries
and responding to market demand. As market demand for cargo will continue once air travel returns, thus fueling
conversions rises, so does demand for IAI’s remote cargo con- the continued rise in e-commerce and providing
version sites, and IAI is ready to adjust our capacity based on the a continued necessity for the converted cargo
market’s needs. aircraft.

Currently, IAI does not have stiff competition in the What is your opinion about P2F as
P2F field. With air cargo demand being high, do you a sustainable business strategy for
see that changing? How do you plan on staying carriers?
ahead of the competition?
During the Covid-19 pandemic, we faced a large
I am proud of our leading position in the air cargo conversion indus- demand for cargo conversions from purely pas-
try. IAI is a unique company that has developed and converted in all senger airlines. These airlines understood that
three aircraft categories – narrow body, mid-size, and wide body. as the unexpected global situation grounded
From its first B747 cargo conversion and STC development and most of their passenger fleet, freighters con-
later on with its B767 conversion program, we have been a leader in tinued flying. In order to reduce the huge risk
providing the best solution to the cargo conversion market for over and loss of revenue, these airlines chose to
40 years, and while we have had competition with OEM and private mix their fleet and have revenue (instead of
finding themselves at zero or lost revenue), and
therefore turned to the passenger-to-freighter
conversions as the best solution for their busi-
ness.

What has been the effect of the pan-
demic on IAI aviation group? Are you
back to being as busy as you were
during the pre-pandemic period?

While the Covid-19 pandemic has impacted
the airline industry more than other indus-
tries, IAI’s Aviation Group has accepted the
challenges posed by the global situation and
has responded to the global market demands
– namely, by increasing its P2F conversion
lines and leading the air cargo industry to new
heights.

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