Amazon to Lease 20 Boeing 767 Freighters for Deliveries
Amazon.com Inc. will lease 20 Boeing 767 freighter aircraft, lessor Air Transport Services Group Inc. said March 9 as the online retailer moves closer to setting up its own air delivery network.
The deal is announced at a time when Amazon, which offers fast and increasingly free deliveries for millions of online orders, has been trying to make shipments even faster as well as assume more control over its business and costs.
The e-commerce giant has been testing deliveries by drones but has not said when it expects to have them in service.
The duration of the leases will be five to seven years, ATSG said.
Amazon also has the right to buy up to 19.9% of ATSG's stock over five years at $9.73 per share. The price is at a 17.3% discount to ATSG's March 8 closing price of $11.77.
ATSG's shares jumped 21% to $14.25 in premarket trading.
