Ethiopian Airlines is First in Africa to Operate B787 Dreamliner Simulator
Ethiopian Airlines (Ethiopian), the largest and most profitable airline in Africa, continued its pursuit of aviation technology leadership with the acquisition of the first-ever B787 Dreamliner full flight simulator in Africa. The installation and build-up of the full flight simulator is in progress at Ethiopian’s main hub in Addis Ababa and the first pilot training in the B787 flight simulator will start in March 2015.
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (January 20, 2015) - Ethiopian Airlines (Ethiopian), the largest and most profitable airline in Africa, continued its pursuit of aviation technology leadership with the acquisition of the first-ever B787 Dreamliner full flight simulator in Africa. The installation and build-up of the full flight simulator is in progress at Ethiopian's main hub in Addis Ababa and the first pilot training in the B787 flight simulator will start in March 2015.
In August 2012, Ethiopian became the first airline in the world outside Japan to receive and operate the B787 Dreamliner. Currently, the airline is the largest operator of the B787 in Africa. With the installation of the B787 Flight Simulator, Ethiopian will be the first in Africa to give full flight simulator training for pilots on the B787 aircraft.
CEO of Ethiopian Airlines Group, Mr. Tewolde Gebremariam, said "We are continually investing in developing our training capability. With installation of the B787 Flight Simulator, we will be fully self-sufficient in providing in-house training for our pilots on the B787 aircraft, which has become our core fleet on our mid- and long-range routes.
Over the last four years, we have invested $80 million in expanding both the scope and scale of our Ethiopian Aviation Academy. In line with our 15-year strategic roadmap, called "Vision 2025," we will continue to invest heavily in our Academy with the objective of increasing its annual in-take capacity from the current 1,000 trainees to approximately 4,000 by 2025."
Ethiopian already provides full flight simulator training for pilots on the Q400, the B737, the B757 and the B767.
Ethiopian Aviation Academy is certified by the Ethiopian Civil Aviation Authority, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, the European Aviation Safety Agency, and IATA Operational Safety Audit. The Academy has been providing training for pilots, maintenance technicians, cabin crew, marketing and leadership for the airline and other sisterly carriers in Africa for more than six decades.
