his developing nation. Upon welcoming the first Boeing 720B to his homeland, Selassie declared in an airport speech, “Let no one underestimate the impact which this revolution in transportation must have over Ethiopia and her people.” Today, Ethiopian Airlines is the bedrock of African aviation. It has more airplanes, passengers and activity than any of its competitors. It flies more routes throughout the continent than any other domestic airline. It continues to expand internationally. It has doubled its airplane fleet over the past decade. And it has set an ambitious goal to double its fleet once more by 2025. “For an airline to be successful, having the latest and technologically advanced fleet is one of the core pillars,” said Tewolde Gebremariam, Ethiopian Airlines chief executive officer. “We are very grateful to The Boeing Company for providing us the most comfortable and leading-edge airplanes for years.” Boeing continues to play an important role in the evolution 30 | BOEING FRONTIERS of Africa’s leading airline and efforts to transform Addis Ababa into an international travel hub, said Yonas Yohannes, Ethiopian Airlines manager of maintenance planning and records control. “Boeing not only manufactures airplanes for us, it gives us the technical skills, the technology, the process,” said Yohannes, a nine-year employee. “Sometimes Boeing is a consultant. It teaches us how to fly each airplane in the fleet. It provides field services both in maintenance and engineering. Boeing has an effect on all parts of our airline innovation system. We’re really happy.” Yohannes’ personal story mirrors the steady progression of Ethiopian Airlines. He saw his first aircraft up close at age 10, when a helicopter landed in his small, rural town, Assela—a moment that prompted most residents to come take a look at a flying machine they hadn’t seen before. This led Yohannes to consider a career in aerospace, ultimately aviation engineering. He didn’t travel on an airplane until he was 28. Now Yohannes is responsible for regularly crossing the ocean to the U.S. as a resident engineer inspecting 787 Dreamliners for his airline throughout the factory assembly process. Ethiopian was the first airline in Africa to operate the Dreamliner following the instrumental role that the former Ethiopian prime minister, Meles Zenawi, played in making the 787 a focal part of the airline. In 2005, the airline ordered 10 787s, with the option for five more. It ordered eight more in 2015. According to the airline, the capabilities of this twin-aisle jet enable Ethiopian to fly to 51 cities in Africa and a similar number of worldwide destinations, among them Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, Paris, São Paulo, Tokyo and Washington, D.C. The airline says it has plans for further route expansion. The 787 is unique as the country’s flagship airplane, said Surafel Teshome Abebe, an Ethiopian Airlines aircraft inspector. “It gives a nice picture for the airline— we do most of our advances with the
Frontiers October 2016 Issue
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