OREANDA-NEWS. GE Capital Aviation Services Limited (GECAS), the commercial aircraft leasing and financing arm of GE, today announced delivery of a new leased Boeing 777-300ER aircraft to Ethiopian Airlines.

The new aircraft comes from GECAS’ existing order book with Boeing and is part of the airline’s ongoing ambitious fleet expansion plans.

On the occasion of the delivery today Ryan Barrett, GECAS senior vice president sales and marketing for Sub-Saharan Africa said, “Helping customers like Ethiopian build their business and expand the vital infrastructure of air travel in Africa is exactly what GECAS does best and why we are the industry leader globally, and in Africa. We congratulate Ethiopian Airlines on the newest addition to its fleet and are delighted to be part of our longstanding customer’s continued growth.”

“We have a longstanding and mutually beneficial partnership with GE,” said Ethiopian Airlines CEO, Tewolde GebreMariam. “Most of our fleet are powered by GE engines, and GECAS is our major partner in our fleet growth and modernization project. With the boom of travel between Africa and the rest of the world, and our vision 2025 strategic roadmap of fast, profitable and sustainable growth, we aim to more than double our current fleet size by 2025. Our partnership with GE is, therefore, set for a very bright future.”

A customer since 1993, Ethiopian Airlines currently leases two Boeing 777F freighters, two Boeing 737-700s and a Boeing 757-200 from GECAS.

GECAS forecasts that the aviation industry and demand for aircraft in Africa will continue to grow significantly faster than the global average driven by intra-African commerce and Africa’s increasing share of global trade. In Sub-Saharan Africa, GECAS currently leases 36 aircraft to 12 airlines in eight different countries and maintains offices in South Africa, Ghana, and Kenya.