Ethiopian Airlines Marks One Year of Operating Preighter Flights

Ethiopian Airlines is marking the first anniversary of the operation of its first cargo-only service on a passenger aircraft with its Boeing 787-9 aircraft.

The flight departed on the 25th of March 2020 from Addis Ababa to Kinshasa carrying more than 16 tons of much-needed PPE and other shipments inside the cabin and the belly of the aircraft.

Following the sharp decline in passenger number due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Ethiopian Airline’s MRO swiftly reconfigured 25 passenger aircraft into freighters to distribute the urgently needed medical supplies across the globe.

A year since its first Preighter operation, Ethiopian has operated 5,645 Cargo flights on the cabin of passenger aircraft and transported more than 121,750 tons of cargo across its vast global network.

The preighter flights added an immense value to the total of 33,182 flights and 735,869 tons of cargo transported during the period from March 25, 2020 to March 25,2021.

Since the start of cargo flights with passenger aircraft, Ethiopian has been increasing its capacity to become an ideal shipment partner of many humanitarian organizations including the WFP.

Besides, Ethiopian Airlines has been hailed for its efficient delivery of essential medical supplies donated by Alibaba Foundation, WHO, and donor governments to all African countries.

The airline is currently working in collaboration with UNICEF and Cainiao for the global vaccine distribution.