By YANGE IKYAA
Ethiopian Airlines Group, the leading aviation group in Africa, has established a global standard cargo conversion program to convert the B-767-300 ER for dedicated freighter services in partnership agreement with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI).
The cargo conversion center in Addis Ababa airport will commence its first business with three Ethiopian Airlines owned B-767-300 aircraft and expand its services to all airlines in Africa and the wider region.
“In line with our diversified aviation business model of vision 2025, we have been increasing our cargo capacity in fleet, ground service infrastructure and cargo connectivity network. Accordingly, we are partnering with IAI, one of the global technology leaders in the aerospace industry, in building a cargo conversion center in our MRO facilities in Addis Ababa Airport,” said the airlines group chief executive officer, Mr. Tewolde GebreMariam.
“We are very happy that we are able to collaborate with IAI to enable us to expand our cargo and logistics services which is already the largest and leading cargo network in Africa. The capacity building will also help us expand our MRO services with cutting edge technology and knowledge transfer,” he further expressed.
Yossi Melamed, IAI’s executive vice president and general manager of aviation group on his part said “we are witnessing a sharp rise in the demand for cargo aircraft as a result of the rise in e-commerce, which has peaked to record levels during the COVID-19 pandemic. IAI has an excellent reputation as a conversion center of passenger-to-freighters aircraft, and we are constantly receiving requests to open such conversion centers in more and more locations around the world.
“I am excited by the opening of the current center in Ethiopia and thank my colleagues in Ethiopian Airlines for the trust they have put in IAI’s Aviation Group, as the world’s leader in conversions.”
The new passenger-to-freighter conversion centre, which will operate from the Ethiopian MRO centre in Addis Ababa, will provide solutions for the rising demand for cargo aircraft of B767 models. It will also join existing conversion sites IAI operates at its campus in Ben Gurion International Airport, Israel and in Mexico.
Ethiopian Airline’s MRO, with its internal capacity, temporarily converted 25 of its passenger aircraft to freighter to boost its cargo capacity, following soaring demand to transport emergency medical supplies.
