Amazon Air has strengthened its collaboration with Minneapolis-based Sun Country Airlines by adding eight more Boeing 737-800 freighters to its fleet. This update brings the total number of 737-800 freighters operated by Sun Country on behalf of Amazon to 20.
The revised air transport service agreement extends the CMI (Crew, Maintenance, and Insurance) contract by five years, now set to last until 2030, with options to extend through 2037. The first of these additional aircraft is expected to commence service in the first quarter of 2025, with all eight operational by the third quarter of that year.
Jude Bricker, CEO of Sun Country, emphasized the importance of this partnership, stating, “Amazon is an extremely important customer to Sun Country, and strong execution on our current cargo services positioned us well to grow our business. We look forward to continuing to provide services to Amazon into the 2030s.”
This development follows Atlas Air’s decision earlier this year to cease operating 737 freighter aircraft for Amazon, shifting its focus to widebody freighters for long-haul routes. As part of its strategy, Amazon has been optimizing its domestic network, favoring larger aircraft and consolidating operations at fewer hubs. This shift is reflected in the reduction of smaller aircraft, such as the 737, from 38% to 33% of its fleet over the past year, and the discontinuation of ATR-72 turboprops.
A report by the Chaddick Institute highlighted Amazon Air’s transition towards a hub-and-spoke model, akin to that of express delivery giants UPS and FedEx. The report noted, “Amazon Air’s network has gradually grown to be more like that of FedEx and UPS…with nearly identical schedules day after day. Their networks have been gradually fine-tuned to maximize their versatility for guaranteed delivery the next morning or afternoon. Amazon is pursuing a similar strategy in North America, with over 80% of Amazon Air flights within the US mainland operating to or from its five largest hubs, up from 65.6% in early 2021.”
Sun Country began its operations for Amazon in May 2020 with a 10-aircraft sublease agreement, which was later expanded to include two additional aircraft. Revenue from this agreement increased by approximately 2.5% in the first quarter year-on-year, reaching $24 million.