Africas First Ethiopian 787 Dreamliner Touches down in Bamako - 14 September, 2012

Ethiopian Airlines is pleased to announce that it's first Dreamliner, "Africa First", touched down in Bamako, Mali on September 14, 2012.

Ethiopian 1st Dreamliner flight to Bamako is part of its tour of stations in the Ethiopian network. Bamako is a main commercial centre of the country and part of Ethiopian's extensive network in Africa. Ethiopian currently has 5 flights a week from Bamako to Addis Ababa, with connecting services to stations in Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and the US.

Passengers to Bamako have enjoyed the ultimate travel experience on-board the Ethiopian 1st Dreamliner ahead of other major destinations in Europe, the Americas, the Middle East and Asia. The aircraft offers passengers unparalleled comfort with less noise, biggest windows in the sky, higher ceiling, higher humidity and unique lighting.

Towards the end of September 2012, Ethiopian will deploy the Dreamliner on its daily flight to Washington D.C.

About Ethiopian

Airlines Ethiopian Airlines, the fastest growing airline in Africa, made its maiden international flight to Cairo in 1946 and now the Airline provides dependable services to 69 international destinations spanning four continents.

Ethiopian is proud to be a Star Alliance Member. The Star Alliance network is the leading global airline network offering customers convenient worldwide reach and a smoother travel experience. The Star Alliance network offers more than 21,555 daily flights to 1,356 airports in 193 countries.

Ethiopian is a multi-award winner for its commitment and contributions towards the development and growth of the African aviation industry and in recognition of its distinguished long-haul operations enhanced by the introduction of new routes and products. Recently, Ethiopian won gold in the African Airline of the Year 2011/2012 Awards organized by the African Aviation News Portal. Ethiopian also received the 2011 AFRAA award for being consistently profitable over the years and has won the "AFRICAN CARGO AIRLINE OF THE YEAR 2011 Award” for its excellence in air cargo. Ethiopian also won the NEPAD Transport Infrastructure Excellence Awards 2009 and "the Airline of the Year 2009 Award" from the African Airlines Association (AFRAA).

With its acquisition of and firm orders for several new modern aircraft and its fast expanding network, the airline is well positioned to become the leading aviation group in Africa, per its Vision 2025 strategic roadmap.