Network Airline Management and Astral Aviation poised for growth in Africa with long-term lease of new 747-400F

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Network Airline Management (NAM)—a division of the Network Aviation Group—and Astral Aviation have signed a long-term wet lease with Air Atlanta Icelandic adding a factory-built, nose-loader B747-400F to their existing managed fleet of three MD11Fs. This will enable NAM to develop their presence in Africa, and especially the Kenyan perishables market, adding capacity for flowers and vegetables from Nairobi to the UK.

Andy Leslie, Group Chairman, says, “We are excited to enter into this agreement with Astral Aviation and Air Atlanta Icelandic and look forward to a long and successful partnership enabling us to further expand our network.”

Sanjeev Gadhia, Astral Aviation Founder and CEO, says, “The newly acquired B747-400F from Air Atlanta Icelandic will strengthen our position as a market-leader in perishable exports from Kenya to the UK market. Furthermore, the B747F will feed its intra-African network in Nairobi with cargo, which will be consolidated in its Liege hub originating from Europe and the US.