Just Planes - World Air Routes Ethiopian Airlines B787

Ethiopian Airlines

The moment we have all waited for has finally arrived. For the very first time we have an in-depth look at the operations of the 787 in an airline environment. Ethiopian Airlines has once more opened its doors to the public to have a look at their brand new aircraft and its operation through many of the airlines routes.

Highlights

The DVD starts off with a majestic clip of the 787 landing at Addis Airport. From there we join the flight crew who just completed their preflight preparations and are ready to depart to Frankfurt, Germany. During the first leg of our in-depth look at the 787, the crew highlights many features of the 787 that makes it a truly innovation piece of engineering.

I thoroughly enjoyed the Captain’s cockpit presentation which covers nearly every portion of the flight deck. The first officer’s presentation covers many of the differences between the 787 and 777 which share a type rating. Some of the differences that were quite remarkable are that the 787 does not use bleed air to start the engines.

Many of the systems of the 787 are all electrically powered. Also, the cabin pressurization page now displays the number of passenger in each zone. The overall presentations by each pilot were very educational and I am sure that everyone will find it very informative.

The landing at Frankfurt was uneventful but very insightful as the crew showcases the airport map displays that are featured in the 787. This feature makes it nearly impossible for any pilot to be lost at any airport since this moving map has all of the relevant information that is needed to navigate in and around any airport. The return flight to Addis took place during the night time and there wasn’t much discussion by the crew during this leg.

Prior to our next flight, there is another presentation by one of the captains who first flew the 787 for Ethiopian. In this discussion he talks not only about the 787 and its role in the fleet of Ethiopian Airlines, but he also talks about his own career. While on the topic of careers, it was quite interesting to see that many Ethiopian pilots who fly long haul aircrafts are quite young in comparison to other airlines. This is truly a testimony to superb training of these pilots and I applaud the effort of Ethiopian Airlines for investing their trust in young pilots and provided a progressive work environment.

Continuing on our in-depth look at the 787, we travel from Ethiopia to Kenya and then onward to Burundi with a return trip to Kenya. These flights didn’t feature any presentations but it was more so a visual presentation from the cockpit pilot’s view and the cabin of the 787. After these series of flights, we have a presentation from the Director of Corporate Communication & International Affairs who discusses the history of the airline and the innovations that the 787 has brought to the airline.

In addition to this, he also talks about Asky Airlines which is partly owned by Ethiopian Airlines. Asky acts as a feeder airline to Ethiopian Airlines and they operate a fleet of 737-700s and Dash 8 Q400s. After this insightful presentation we join the captain of our next flight on a walk around inspection of the 787 which was quite a treat.

The flight which follows takes us on a round trip from Ethiopia to Zimbabwe and then onward to Zambia. During these flights the segments that stood out the most was the cabin service presentation which nicely showcase the top notch services delivered to the passengers onboard Ethiopian. Another segment was the additional cockpit presentation that focused on the Electronic Flight Bag. The final flight features a 3 hour flight from Dubai to Ethiopian which featured many scenic views from the cockpit.

In summary, this is by far one of the best and most anticipated DVD/Blu-Ray offerings from Just Planes and it is sure to be a hit. My overall impression of this airline is one of awe and admiration. I am confident that this airline will continue to climb higher and higher in its standard to become a global leader in air travel.

As a private pilot who is familiar with the conventional types of navigation equipment, I am very intrigued with the innovations of the 787 and the overall standard of Ethiopian Airlines. If ever I had the opportunity to fly commercially, this is definitely the airline for me!

Additional Information

Summary / Closing Remarks

I am always impressed with the new formats of Just Planes DVDs and this one is no exception. This DVD also comes in Blu-Ray format and at a price of $30.00 it is well worth it. Ethiopian Airlines seems to be a rising star among airlines and I am certain we will see and hear many good things about this airline in the future. The presentation was superb and very entertaining.

What I Liked About the DVD

• Great scenery
• Creative editing and camera views
• Features very unique destinations and aircraft
• HD and widescreen format
• Fantastic Airline and Flight Crew

What I Disliked About the DVD

• Nothing...