Ethiopian Airlines will be debuting its A350 aircraft in China this week when it changes equipment on its Addis Ababa-Beijing route starting May 9.
According to the airline’s schedule, the daily flight ET604/ET605 will see the B777-200LR currently operating the route replaced with the newer Airbus. Flight ET604 departing Addis Ababa at 0230 on Tuesday, May 9 will be the first flight on the route to see the aircraft, with the first A350 return flight ET605 departing Beijing just after midnight at 0010 on Wednesday, May 10.
The A350, along with the B787 Dreamliner, is part of Ethiopian’s overall route network expansion and fleet modernisation plan, according to CEO Tewolde GebreMariam. Starting June 5, Ethiopian is set to begin a new direct service between Addis Ababa and Chengdu using a B787.
Ethiopian received its third A350 in February, which it named after Erta Ale, a large volcano located in the country’s northeastern Afar region.
Last year, it began operating its A350 service between the Ethiopian capital and London Heathrow, which was reviewed by Business Traveller.
