Atlas Air, Inc., a subsidiary of Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings, Inc., announced it had taken delivery of a Boeing 777-200 Freighter, which it will operate on behalf of its customer MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company SA.

This is part of a previously announced long-term ACMI (aircraft, crew, maintenance, insurance) agreement.

In a joint statement between MSC Air Cargo and Atlas Air, the firms said this is the second of four Boeing 777-200 Freighters that Atlas Air will operate for MSC — and will complement the existing weekly service for the world's largest shipping company.

Currently, MSC is offering around-the-world service to airports such as Mexico City (NLU), Indianapolis (IND), Liege (LGG), Seoul (ICN) and Xiamen (XMN).

 [Source: MSC Air Cargo]

"Building on the successful launch of MSC's Air Cargo Solution, we are very pleased to welcome this second 777 delivery as part of our long-term strategic partnership. We expect our remaining two 777 aircraft to be delivered in the fourth quarter," said Michael Steen, chief executive officer of Atlas Air Worldwide.

"We value the trust that MSC has in Atlas Air to support the expanding requirements of their global network and are excited to leverage our expertise and industry-leading solutions," he added.

Jannie Davel, senior vice president of Air Cargo at MSC, noted that the delivery of the second freighter signals further expansion for the air cargo brand. 

"The delivery of our second MSC branded aircraft represents another strategic component towards our offering that further connects trade lanes for our customers," Davel said.

"In partnership with Atlas Air, we have built a solid foundation on which to expand our air cargo solution," the MSC Air Cargo chief added.