Ethiopian Airlines has just placed an aircraft order, which is the biggest single Boeing order ever from an African airline. On top of that, as I covered in a separate post, Ethiopian Airlines is introducing new Boeing 787 interiors, and is also ordering some Airbus jets.
In this post:
Ethiopian Airlines orders up to 67 Boeing jets
Ethiopian Airlines has placed a firm order for an additional 31 Boeing jets, with options for an additional 36 jets:
- Ethiopian Airlines has placed an order for 20 Boeing 737 MAX 8s, with options for an additional 21 jets; this complements Ethiopian’s previous order of 32 737 MAX 8s, 11 of which have been delivered, meaning the airline will eventually have 52-73 737 MAX 8s
- Ethiopian Airlines has placed an order for 11 Boeing 787-9s, with options for an additional 15 jets; this complements Ethiopian’s previous order for of 10 787-9s, all of which have been delivered, meaning the airline will eventually have 21-36 787-9s
The delivery timeline for these jets hasn’t yet been revealed, though I’ll be sure to update this post if it’s announced.
Here’s how Ethiopian Airlines CEO Mesfin Tasew describes this order:
“We are pleased to announce that Ethiopian Airlines has reached a deal with Boeing to place a firm order for 31 ultra-modern airplanes, with opportunity for 36 additional jets. This order will enable us to modernize and increase our fleet in support of Ethiopian Airlines’ growth plan and our Vision 2035 Strategy. Through this deal, we have solidified our decades-old exemplary business partnership with Boeing. The 787 Dreamliner and 737 MAX demonstrate Ethiopian Airlines’ environmentally conscious decisions and its commitment to serve passengers with the latest technologically advanced airplanes.”
This is a sensible fleet renewal strategy
Ethiopian Airlines is by far the best run major airline in Africa, in terms of route network, profitability, stable strategy, enabling economic growth in its home country, etc.
Historically, Ethiopian Airlines had a rather varied fleet, though that was also because the airline picked up a lot of secondhand jets. With that in mind, I think these aircraft orders from Ethiopian make a lot of sense:
- In the future, the 737 MAX 8 will be Ethiopian’s sole narrow body jets, and that offers great fuel economy and synergies; I imagine Ethiopian will eventually retire its nine 737-700s and 17 737-800s
- Ethiopian’s wide body strategy is a bit more varied, as the airline flies the 787-8, 787-9, A350-900, 777-200LR, 777-300ER, and eventually plans to take delivery of the A350-1000; the 787-9 seems like a logical plane for wide body fleet growth, and I imagine eventually Ethiopian’s long haul fleet will consist exclusively of A350s and 787s
- I wouldn’t necessarily expect Ethiopian to retire its 777s anytime soon, even though they’re previous generation jets; they’re an average of under 10 years old, so unless leases happen to end and it’s financially advantageous, those planes still have a lot of life in them
It’s interesting to see the continued strong relationship between Ethiopian Airlines and Boeing, given the 737 MAX fiasco, and how Boeing tried to shift the blame for the crash onto the airline.
Bottom line
Ethiopian Airlines has placed an order for up to 67 Boeing jets, comprised of 31 firm orders and 36 options. The airline will be acquiring more Boeing 787-9s and 737 MAX 8s. The 737 MAX will likely eventually become Ethiopian’s sole narrow body jet, while Ethiopian will continue to have a varied wide body fleet, as the airline has invested in both the A350 and 787 (in addition to continuing to fly existing 777s).
What do you make of Ethiopian Airlines’ Boeing aircraft order?
Ethiopian is doing an excellent job. I fly them all the time. I hope they had stayed Boeing only.
Shorter blog post for you
Ethiopian and Boeing: we killed some folks and hoped you’d forget!
I am kind of surprised on teh 737-MAX order. After the 737-MAX accident, I expected ET to veer towards the A320 - A321 series.
Same, though not so much based on the incident, but rather the way that Boeing tried (and failed) to completely throw ET under the bus... figured they were creating a new Airbus-for-life customer.
But it just goes to show: corporations aren't emotionally driven, and money/availability talk louder than anything.
The Max has superior performance from altitude at Addis Ababa. They will extract their pound of flesh from Boeing for sins past, but they aren't going to cut off their own nose.
That said, I would expect a top-up order on A350s sometime soon as well. Mesfin has been very clear that the A350 (-900 and -1000) will be a critical component of ET's long haul services in the future.
@Sean M. Thank you for your great insight (as always). Do you think that by November of 2024 some of the 787s would have the new business class seats?
They are supposed to go into refit starting this month. I think we can reliably expect this to start no later than January, assuming supply chain is solid.
great, thank you. I have been contemplating of booking a trip with them but I am concerned about the angle flat seats which they have on their US flights. Hopefully they will have the new seats by the time I travel
A few comments :
* ET also has a fleet of 30+ Dash 8-Q400s in service (their single largest type)
* ET doesn't have 9 737-700 and 17 737-800s as you have stated. There are currently just 3 737-700s and 7 737-800s in the passenger fleet - the remaining airframes are either with the subsidiaries (ASKY, Zambian, Malawi Airlines, etc..) or freighters.
* ET is supposed to take 3 more 737-8Max airframes by the end...
A few comments :
* ET also has a fleet of 30+ Dash 8-Q400s in service (their single largest type)
* ET doesn't have 9 737-700 and 17 737-800s as you have stated. There are currently just 3 737-700s and 7 737-800s in the passenger fleet - the remaining airframes are either with the subsidiaries (ASKY, Zambian, Malawi Airlines, etc..) or freighters.
* ET is supposed to take 3 more 737-8Max airframes by the end of 2023 (ET-BAI/BAL/BAN) taking that fleet up to 16.
* ET crews have full common type rating between the 777/787 so the same crew can fly the 777-200LR, 777-300ER, 787-8 and 787-9 interchangeably. This is partly why you tend to see a lot of last minute aircraft swaps between these types.
Finally, buried in the press release is the comment that Boeing will partner with Ethiopian for the refurbishment of their existing 787 fleet with new Business Class seats from Boeing JV partner Adient Aerospace (presumably their Ascent suite). This will begin with the older GE powered 787-8s that currently have the angled-flat Zodiac Aura Lite seats, and will be the 7th longhaul business class product that ET is operating. More interesting is that the Ascent seat is also certified for the 737 Max. ET has been pondering using the Max on some "third bank" routes into Europe and the major product dilution between wide and narrow bodies has been a reason they have been reluctant to do so. This is a possible way for them to get into this with a subfleet of Max.
Their business class offering is definitely in need of an upgrade and consistency too. They literally have like four different biz class seats.