The Ethiopian national airline has just taken delivery of the first of several ordered Q400 aircraft, manufactured by Canadian company Bombardier. The Q400 is a fuel-efficient and relatively fast turbo-prop aircraft, well suited to fly on domestic and shorter regional routes where the traffic volume and the condition of a destination’s airfield or aerodrome may not permit the use of a small jet aircraft like the B737.
It is understood from a source in Addis Ababa that Ethiopian Airlines will take delivery of as many as 8 such new airliners in the future. The configuration of these aircraft will be an all-economy cabin with 78 seats in total. It could not be ascertained if the airline is considering adding more Bombardiers to their fleet beyond this single order.
