After discovering a crack in their fuselages, Lufthansa Cargo recently grounded two Airbus A321 Freighters (A321Fs). This issue is a first for the aircraft type and has brought concerns related to the A321Fs' passenger-to-cargo conversion design.

Cracked Cargo

Lufthansa Cargo took delivery of its first A321F aircraft in January 2022. At the moment, it has four of the type in service, all of which were converted to cargo use from passenger aircraft. In early January of this year, cracks were discovered in the aft fuselages of two planes, prompting the grounding of all four A321Fs as a precautionary measure.

As of January 17, two aircraft have returned to service, D-AEUA and D-AEUJ. The other two, D-AEUC and D-AEUI, remain grounded amid Lufthansa Cargo finding cracks in them.

Is There a Design Fault?

The cracks discovered in these A321P2Fs (passenger-to-freighter conversions) raise concerns about the conversion design. Lufthansa Cargo undertook the conversions of its A321P2Fs with the help of company Elbe Flugzeugweke GmbH (EBW), a key player in the cargo conversion market. The company assisted with bringing the first Airbus A320P2F to fruition. The company also works with passenger-to-cargo conversions involving the A330-200 and A330-300.

While EFW has yet to release an official statement regarding the cracks, an unnamed source familiar with the A321's passenger-to-cargo conversion said:

"I doubt very seriously it's 'nothing'. Usually, when you find the same cracks on an 11-year-old aircraft and an unrelated 15-year-old aircraft something is up."

The source later stated that the area of the EFW-converted A321s that have suffered cracks is where a permanent ballast fixture is located. According to the source, this fixture is extremely heavy and has probably concentrated a large load on the aircraft structure, contributing to the cracks. It is unclear how the fixtures in D-AEUC and D-AEUI could have differed significantly enough to have caused cracks in their fuselages, while the A321P2Fs remain unscathed for now.

American charter carrier Global Crossing Airlines, or GlobalX, also operates an EFW-converted A321P2F. However, this carrier has not reported any issues with its aircraft. As of now, EFW's freighter conversions have a perfect safety record. It can be inferred that action is being taken to address the cracks the two Lufthansa Cargo A321s have faced.

Lufthansa Cargo's D-AEUC has remained grounded in Belgrade, Serbia, since December 26. However, Lufthansa Cargo added that the aircraft is undergoing a regular "C-Check" in Serbia. The other plane, D-AEUI, has been grounded in Frankfurt since January 9.