Amazon acts swiftly and purchases WestJet and Delta’s Boeing planes as aircraft prices plunged

Amazon buys several used jets from WestJet and Delta airlines. Jeff Bezos’s company is getting 11 Boeing 767-300 jets, and these will be added to Amazon’s fleet to make delivery faster and accommodate more in this time of the pandemic.

It was said that the delivery service has surged due to the influx of orders from online shops. CNBC News further reported that Amazon is slowly but steadily building its air cargo fleet, and the purchase from the said airlines marked the firm’s first outright aircraft purchase. This is because, in the past, it only depends on leasing agreements for its air freight deliveries.

Amazon’s booming business while airlines struggle

Delta and WestJet are two of the most negatively affected airlines by the COVID-19 pandemic. Because there are fewer people who are traveling these days, the opportunity to generate good revenue was lost. In fact, several airlines around the world have already closed down or laid off thousands of employees due to lack of profits.

As this happens, prices of aircraft have plummeted, and Amazon saw this as its chance to expand its fleet while not spending too much. Apparently, the cargo carrier business is booming amid the pandemic; thus, Amazon is expanding its air freight.

Amazon is acquiring some planes from Delta that declared a $5 billion loss in the 3rd Quarter of 2020. Pilots and crews were also asked to go on leave since the demand for travel is too low. Apparently, it also started selling some of its planes, and some of them will go to Amazon.

In any case, four WestJet planes are currently being converted to cargo jets to accommodate Amazon’s needs for its delivery service. It was not mentioned when the actual turn over of the planes is set to take place.

“Having a mix of both leased and owned aircraft in our growing fleet allows us to better manage our operations, which, in turn, helps us to keep pace with meeting our customer promises,” Amazon Global Air vice president Sarah Rhoads said in a statement.

About Amazon Air

Amazon will launch its air fleet, and the company is expected to have a total of 85 planes on its ground. This will be completed in 2022, and the planes will be both from leased agreements and owned.

Having its own fleet means that the company will no longer rely on FedEx or UPS for its deliveries. Meanwhile, as per MarketWatch, Amazon shares today are slightly lower, but it has gained around 70% in the last 12 months.