For more information contact:
Lisa Lawless (206) 281-1044

AIRBORNE FREIGHT CORPORATION ANNOUNCES CONTRACT TO ACQUIRE BOEING 767-200'S

SEATTLE -- December 28, 1995 -- Airborne Freight Corporation, which operates under the trade name Airborne Express, announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire 12 used Boeing 767-200 aircraft. In addition, the company intends to pursue the acquisition of an additional 10 to 15 767-200 aircraft.

Selecting the Boeing 767-200 aircraft as the first wide body aircraft in the Airborne fleet follows a year long study by the company which looked at a variety of used wide body aircraft. Reliability, operating efficiency, manufacturer's support, availability, environmental issues and capital acquisition costs were all factors considered in making the final selection.

The addition of these aircraft is for meeting the ongoing demand for additional lift capacity and to obtain wide body aircraft to serve markets that are outgrowing the capacity of the company's DC-8 aircraft. There are no plans to retire any aircraft as a result of the acquisition, as the company has been adding 8 to 10 DC-9 and DC-8 aircraft to the fleet each year for some time and forecasts the continuing need for additional lift capacity, some of which will now be fulfilled with the acquisition of Boeing 767-200 aircraft. The fleet currently consists of 63 DC-9, 35 DC-8 and 11 YS-11 aircraft.

The scheduled delivery dates for the 12 aircraft include two planes in 1997, four planes in each year of 1998 and 1999 and two planes in 2000. The 12 aircraft are being acquired from Itochu Air Lease Corporation (nine aircraft) and Marubeni Corporation (three aircraft). Additional 767-200 aircraft will be pursued for acquisition in the years 2000 through 2004.

Airborne looks forward to introducing this newer generation aircraft which should decrease operating costs while keeping capital requirements relatively unchanged. The aircraft to be acquired were originally manufactured in 1983 and 1984.

The cost of introducing the first 12 aircraft will approximate $290 million, including acquisition, modification, spares and support items. The additional aircraft should approximate $310 million, for a projected total of $600 million over a seven year period.

###

Home | Track Your Shipment | About Airborne | Services | Using Airborne | What's New? | Comments | Contents

© 1996 Airborne Freight Corporation -- All Rights Reserved