Ethiopian Airlines has placed a large narrowbody and widebody order at the Dubai Air Show. The order split between Airbus and Boeing consists of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for 11 Airbus A350-900, 11 Boeing 787 Dreamliners, 20 Boeing 737 Max and options for 36 additional Boeing Aircraft.
A Historic Order On Many Fronts
The orders announced at the Dubai Air Show are historic on many fronts. The Boeing order signed by Ethiopian Airlines represents the largest-ever purchase of Boeing airplanes in African history. Following the order, Ethiopian Airlines will be the largest Boeing 787 operator in Africa. Boeing has also set forth an agreement to provide cabin modifications to the current Ethiopian Airlines 787 fleet retrofitting the cabins with new in-flight entertainment as well as new seats in all cabins, including lie-flat business-class seats from Boeing joint venture Adient Aerospace. On the Airbus front, this particular order will make Ethiopian Airlines the largest Airbus A350 customer in Africa with a current fleet of 20 A350-900s.
