Credit Brian Griffin

The first Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 was delivered Boeing Field direct to Dublin on Sunday 1 July. The aircraft registered ET-AVM using callsign ETH9201 touched down on Dublin’s runway 28 at exactly 1900 hours local parking on the West Apron on a fuel route en-route to Addis Ababa.

A large number of aviation enthusiasts where present whom had been anticipating it’s arrival  on Flightradar24 from early morning.

Ethiopian Airline announced an order for 20 737 MAX 8s on 21 September 2014. The order, previously unidentified on the Boeing Orders & Deliveries website, is worth more than $2.1 billion at list prices and also includes options and purchase rights for a further 15 737 MAX 8s.

On June 21 2017 at the Paris Air Show , the airline announced an order for 10 additional Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft, exercising purchase rights from 2014 order, completing the largest ever order for the 737 MAX in Africa. Ethiopian now has firm orders for 30 737 MAX 8s.

Tewolde Gebremariam, CEO of Ethiopian Airlines said “The 737 MAX will form a key component of our strategic roadmap, vision 2025, enhancing our single-aisle fleet and keeping us at the forefront of African aviation. This is a continuation of the longstanding and commendable business partnership we had established with Boeing.”

Van Rex Gallard, vice president of Sales for Latin America, Africa and the Caribbean, Boeing Commercial Airplanes said “This is a historic order for Boeing and our partner Ethiopian, once again positioning the carrier at the heart of African aerospace innovation with the acquisition of the 737 MAX. Throughout the years, Ethiopian has consistently led the way in introducing new airplane types to passengers across Africa and today’s record order signals its commitment to continue that tradition.

Irish Aviation Research Institute © 2 July 2018 All Rights Reserved