Ethiopian Airlines names its 8th B787 Dreamliner Taj Mahal By TBM Staff | Mumbai

In what is being seen as a recognition of the heavy traffic generated on its routes to the Indian subcontinent, the flagship carrier of Ethiopia has named its newest Boeing 787 Dreamliner after India's most famous monument, the Taj Mahal. Ethiopian Airlines has named its eighth 787 Dreamliner after the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan's monument of love to his wife. This is the first time that the airline has named an aircraft of its Dreamliner fleet after a historical or heritage site outside of Africa, IANS reported. To meet the demand from the Indian market, Ethiopian Airlines has decided to operate large-bodied aircraft. Officials said the airline has already deployed the 787 Dreamliner and is exploring new direct destinations in India. With its large African network, the airline hopes that it will be in a position to benefit from the heavy tourism business from India and the large number of those travelling across the region. Ethiopian, which currently flies daily to New Delhi and twice daily to Mumbai, is also looking at other Indian destinations like Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram. It also has a code-sharing agreement with Air India Ltd. and is set to start services to Chennai, which it considers to be a gateway to a larger market. Ethiopian Airlines has named its previous Boeing 787s as Africa First, Lucy, Queen of Sheba, Lake Tana, Walia Ibex and Serengeti—all Ethiopian and African sites. "In doing so we are heralding the renaissance of Africa globally and we will continue promoting iconic international figures found in the destinations we serve. This will also strengthen our already established relations with India as we have an increasing number of Indian travellers," an airline official said. Ethiopian Airlines is the first African carrier to put Boeing's new state-of-the-art airplane into regular service in the continent. The first arrived last December and Ethiopian has nine more on order. This comes as Ethiopian becomes the 26th member of Star Alliance. http://www.travelbizmonitor.com/ethiopian-airlines-names-its-8th-b787-dreamliner-taj-mahal-24677