Ethiopian Airlines Group said that it has upsized four of its A350-900 on order to the largest variant of the A350 Family, the A350-1000, becoming Africa’s first customer for the aircraft, according to a recent press release.
Ethiopian Airlines has already ordered 22 A350-900s, of which 16 aircraft have been delivered. With the A350-1000 upsizing, the carrier’s backlog consists of four A350-1000s and two A350-900s.
Ethiopian Airlines Group CEO Mesfin Tasew said, “We are delighted over the upsizing of the A350-900 on order to the largest variant, A350-1000, that helps us stay ahead of the curve in technology.”
“We are the technology leaders in the continent introducing the latest technology and fuel-efficient fleet into Africa,” he added, according to the press release.
“We will continue on keeping ourselves abreast of aviation technology advancements to enhance our service and fulfill customers’ demand,” he said.
President of Airbus Africa, and Middle East, Mikail Houari on his part commented: “we are proud of our strong partnership with Ethiopian Airlines – the first airline in Africa to order and operate the A350-900.”
“In another first, Ethiopian Airlines is once again leading the way in Africa’s aviation sector by introducing the A350-1000, the largest version of the world’s most efficient and technologically advanced passenger aircraft,” he further stated.
“The A350-900 has delivered extraordinary capability, fuel efficiency, and operational reliability of 99.5 percent together with unbeatable operational flexibility and efficiency, from short to ultra-long-range operations,” he added, according to the same source.
The A350-1000 will increase the East African carrier’s capacity and it will be an addition to its modern wide-body fleet.
The airline will also benefit from a flexible, high-value Family leveraging Airbus’ unprecedented level of commonality and same type rating, added the press release.
By the end of June 2022, the A350 Family had received 940 orders from 52 customers, making it the reference large widebody family for the next decades.