Astral Aviation has signed up to lease three more B-757 freighter aircraft from Aquila Air Capital, a specialty finance platform focused on commercial aerospace.

In a statement, it said the aircraft are expected to be delivered to Astral in Nairobi starting in November 2021, upon completion of their scheduled maintenance.

"The aircraft will take over the Nairobi-Johannesburg and Nairobi-Dubai scheduled service with increased frequency for our clients in addition to new scheduled routes to and within Africa and Middle East in 2022," said Astral chief executive Sanjeev Gadhia.

"It will also offer point-to-point solutions for Covid-19 vaccines (from India/UAE to Africa) in addition to e-commerce shipments to new markets."

With the new lease deal, Astral Aviation will become the largest B-757F operator in Africa and Middle East, in addition to being the only B-767F operator in the region.

The Nairobi-based carrier operates 14 freighter aircraft, including including Fokker 27Fs, CRJ 200Fs, B-747Fs, B-767Fs, DC9s and B-727Fs.

"The B757-200F will complement the Astral fleet with new and efficient options to and within its existing scheduled and charter freighter network, which comprises of over 50 destinations in Africa, Middle East and Southeast Asia," said Astral's Commercial Director in UAE, Satvir Kalsi.

Astral COO, Michael Mutahi noted that the B-757F is a fuel-efficient, mid-range and narrow-body freighter, with a payload of up to 30 tons and a range of five hours, which makes it a "perfect freighter for the African, Middle East & South East Asia region."