Bombardier Pays Visit to Ethiopian Airlines
Bombardier Group CEO Pays Visit to Ethiopian Airlines Headquarters
During a visit to Ethiopian Airlines’ Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Pierre Beaudoin, Group President and Chief Executive Officer of Bombardier Inc., held extensive discussions with Ethiopian CEO Tewolde Gebremariam and other senior executive management members regarding Ethiopian successful Q400* NextGen* aircraft operations. The two companies are working to enhance their already strong and mutually beneficial relationship, in view of the expected high growth of regional intra-Africa travel in the coming years.
With its fleet of 13 Q400 NextGen aircraft, Ethiopian is the largest operator of the Bombardier-manufactured Q400 aircraft in Africa, deploying the aircraft in domestic and regional operations. The airline recently phased-in five new Q400 NextGen aircraft that were the first outfitted with a dual-class configuration on Bombardier’s production line. With seven fully dedicated business class seats, a second lavatory, and hot meal capability, Ethiopian is able to offer more services to its customers. Ethiopian plans to reconfigure its existing fleet of Q400 aircraft with a fully dedicated business class.
Ethiopian is investing heavily in the development of maintenance and training capabilities for the aircraft in the region, including for Bombardier’s Q100*, Q200*, Q300* and Q400 aircraft. It was recently granted approval from the Ethiopian Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for full airframe maintenance capability of the Q100, Q200, Q300 and Q400 aircraft. Ethiopian will also soon receive a Q400 aircraft simulator, the first one in Africa, which will be used for pilot training. Ethiopian is also working to get authorization from Bombardier to provide full airframe maintenance services on the Q400 aircraft.
“We are very happy with the performance of the Q400 NextGen aircraft in our domestic and regional operations,” said Mr. Tewolde. “The regional intra-Africa travel is set to boom in the coming years and we see a bright future for our relationship with Bombardier. In line with our Vision 2025 strategic roadmap, we will need more regional aircraft, not just to cater for our own fast-growing domestic and regional network, but also to realize our multi-hub strategy in Africa. Already, we have a strong regional partner in West Africa ASKY, which is also using the Q400 aircraft. We plan to build similar strong regional hubs in Southern and Central Africa.”
“Having the right fleet with commonality, optimal range, load and passenger comfort will be critical to be competitive in this market. We look forward to working with Bombardier to expand our mutually beneficial relationship in the coming years,” added Mr. Gebremariam.
“Africa has significant growth potential over the next 20 years and is an important part of Bombardier’s globalization strategy,” said Mr. Beaudoin. We are excited about the opportunities for expanding business and commercial aviation in the region and look forward to working with leading carriers like Ethiopian to develop the market fully.”
At the end of the meeting, Mr. Beaudoin toured Ethiopian’s aircraft maintenance facilities.