Airline business is better suited to seasonal needs, but this time, let's say for the first time in the aviation history, Covid-19 Pandemic turned all the seasons alike !
Pandemic also offered a level ground for the play to happen, many aviation players stayed at home, many kept mum , some increased their cargo operations and fleets , but the real players turned out to be the ones , who started playing with 'Preighters' - Yes , passenger aircrafts carrying cargo (freight) in the cabin.
Ethiopian was among the firsts to realize, Cargo can seat in the place of passengers to boost it's operations, after all aircraft needs to carry a payload !
So, March 2020 was the month, when Ethiopian started to operate its first cargo-only service on a passenger aircraft .
The Addis Ababa-based carrier made the crucial decision to temporarily convert part of its fleet to carry cargo rather than passengers. Since then, the company has boosted its capacity on cargo operations.
This remarkable agility at all levels of the company enabled Ethiopian to meet the cargo demand which was increasing at that time. Its “preighters” – passenger aircraft carrying cargo in the cabin - transported tonnes of masks and medical products, as well as industrial products and goods such as mobile phones, IT equipment, and clothing.
In a recent communication, the company indicated it had “operated 5,645 cargo flights on the cabin of passenger aircraft and transported more than 121,750 tonnes of cargo across its vast global network.The flights added an immense value to the total of 33,182 flights and 735,869 tonnes of cargo transported during the period from March 25, 2020 to March 25,2021”.
Ethiopian used its entire A350-900 fleet for cargo operations. Seven out of its 16 extra-wide body aircrafts have been converted to freighters by removing all economy seats.
The other nine are used either for passengers or for cargo loaded on the economy seats. As a result, all Ethiopian A350-900 have kept flying during the period.
About Airbus A350-900 aircrafts :
The East African carrier has fully benefited from the extraordinary capability of the Airbus A350-900 aircraft ( fitted with RR Trent XWB engines ) to fly with an operational reliability of 99.5 percent. Incorporating advances in flight controls, systems, and wing design, the A350-900 is a truly state-of-the-art aircraft. These developments have a genuine impact in terms of operations, maintenance and efficiency, meaning that the aircraft reduces its fuel burn significantly – generating savings and reducing its environmental impact.
