Ethiopian Airlines has announced that it will take delivery of its 100th aircraft in the first week of June. It will be the first time an African national carrier is reaching that feat.
In a statement released Ethiopian Airlines said it was: “pleased to announce that it will take delivery on 5 June 2018 of its 100th aircraft, a Boeing 787-900, the first for an African airline to operate 100 aircraft fleet in the history of the continent.
It stressed that with that feat, the airline will maintain: “… its pioneering aviation technology leadership role and ascertaining its leadership position in all aspects of Aviation Services in the continent.”
Ethiopian, the largest aviation group on the continent operates a mix of state-of-the-art aircraft with an average fleet age of five years. It currently has 5 more Boeing 787-900 and 16 Airbus A350 airplanes on order, among others.
They became the first African Airline and second only to Japan to operate the B787 Dreamliner in 2012 and the first carrier in Africa to usher with the Airbus A350 XWB in 2016.
They currently hold stakes in a number of national carriers across Africa and have repeatedly posted profits unlike other carriers that have been mired in losses and in need of state reboot.
Their routes span across the world and they continue to stretch their tentacles across the globe. With over seven decades of operation under their belt, Ethiopian commands the biggest share of pan-African passenger and cargo network.
Ethiopian Group CEO, Mr. Tewolde GebreMariam on the latest feat noted: “It is an immense honor for all of us at Ethiopian to reach the milestone of 100 aircraft. This milestone is a continuation of our historical aviation leadership role in Africa and a testimony of the successful implementation of our fast, profitable and sustainable growth plan, Vision 2025.
“Ethiopian was the first to avail jet service in the continent back in 1962, and operated the first African B767 in 1984, the first African B777-200LR in 2010, the first African B787-800 Dreamliner and B777-200 freighter in 2012 and the first African A350 in 2016 and the first African B787-9 aircraft in 2017.
“Ethiopian now operates one of the youngest and most modern 100 aircraft, with an average age of less than 5 years. Fleet modernization and expansion is one of the four critical pillars of our Vision 2025 strategic roadmap, in support of our fast expanding network, which has now reached over 110 international destinations covering 5 continents.
“Our new and cutting-edge fleet composed of B787s and A350s offer unparalleled on-board comfort to our customers and offer the best possible connections when traveling within Africa and between the continent and the rest of the world.
“This 100 fleet milestone, which we have achieved ahead of our Vision 2025 targets, compels us to revise our plans with a view to phase in more aircraft and further expand our network so as to meet the growing travel needs of our continent and support its economic development and integration by facilitating the flow of investment, trade and tourism.
“We will continue to connect more and more Africans with their fellow citizens of the continent and with their brothers and sisters in the rest of the world to make life better every single day”
Source: AfricaBusinessNews.com
