Ethiopian Airlines and Boeing partner to help those in need

The airline took delivery of a new 787 Dreamliner from North Charleston, South Carolina in December and loaded the jet with 34,000 pounds of books and 5,800 pounds of school supplies, clothing and medical supplies for the flight home to Addis Ababa. 

“We are happy to partner with Boeing to carry humanitarian goods on our delivery flights from the U.S.,” said Ethiopian Airlines Group CEO Tewolde GebreMariam. “As a responsible corporate citizen, we take our responsibility to society seriously and always endeavor to contribute our share to the socioeconomic development of countries around the globe.”

The organisation Ethiopia Reads will send the books and school supplies to its libraries across Ethiopia which serve 100,000 children each year. Medical supplies, clothing and hygiene products will be delivered to the Mary Joy Development association, which helps women and youth gain the skills they need to rise out of poverty.

The December flight follows another flight in November when an Ethiopian Airlines 787 Dreamliner carried more than 11,000 pounds of clothing, personal hygiene items and medical supplies from South Carolina bound for the Mekedonia Home for the Elderly and Mentally Disabled and St. Paul’s Hospital.

The flights are part of Boeing’s Humanitarian Delivery Flight Program, a collaboration between Boeing, its customers and nongovernmental organizations, which delivers humanitarian aid around the world. The programme has delivered more than 1.6 million pounds of humanitarian supplies on more than 200 flights worldwide since the inaugural flight in 1992. To date, Boeing has partnered with Ethiopian Airlines on 39 humanitarian delivery flights, delivering more than 266,000 pounds of supplies to organisations in Ethiopia.

“Through Boeing’s Humanitarian Delivery Flight Programme, and in close collaboration with customers like Ethiopian Airlines and charitable organisations around the world, we are providing important and oftentimes lifesaving resources to those in need,” said Cheri Carter, vice president of Boeing Global Engagement. “We can do so much more when we work together, and Boeing is committed to continuing partnerships like this.”