In Toulouse, France, Ethiopian Airlines and Thales celebrated the delivery of the airline’s first A350-1000 aircraft, which is also the first in Africa to be equipped with Thales’s state-of-the-art AVANT Up inflight entertainment (IFE) system. This ushers a new era of inflight entertainment for Ethiopian Airlines’ valued passengers.
Thales’ enduring partnership with Ethiopian Airlines spans over a decade. With Thales’ AVANT Up, Ethiopian is bringing the latest consumer technologies and capabilities to its A350-1000 aircraft that will elevate and transform the airline’s passenger journey.
AVANT UP features Optiq 4K QLED HDR displays designed to provide an immersive viewing experience in the air, with an unrivalled picture quality and more than one billion vibrant colors. Passengers will navigate across the rich catalog of entertainment using Thales’s intuitive User Interface.
The only display with two Bluetooth connections and built-in Wi-Fi, Optiq will allow passengers to pair their devices to the display while also charging their phones and laptops with Thales’s award-winning Pulse power management solution, guaranteeing passengers arrive at their destination entertained, fully charged and relaxed.
The system provides a wide range of digital services and applications that enable Ethiopian to uniquely configure and continually take its passengers’ onboard experience to new heights.
“Keeping our legacy as a pioneer in aviation technology in Africa, we are more than pleased to have our A350-1000, the first of its kind in Africa equipped with Thales’s AVANT Up Inflight Entertainment (IFE) system, which also marks a first in the global aviation industry. Achieving these two milestones at once doubled our pleasure and we look forward to more collaborations with Thales InFlyt Experience,” said Mesfin Tasew, Chief Executive Officer, Ethiopian Airlines Group.
“At Thales, we are proud of our long-term partnership with Ethiopian and are delighted to have our AVANT Up system flying on the first A350-1000 in Africa. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with the airline and create new opportunities to bring exceptional experiences to Ethiopian and its passengers,” said Niels Steenstrup, Chief Executive Officer, Thales InFlyt Experience.
About Thales
Thales (Euronext Paris: HO) is a global leader in advanced technologies specialized in three business domains: Defence & Security, Aeronautics & Space, and Cybersecurity & Digital identity.
It develops products and solutions that help make the world safer, greener and more inclusive.
The Group invests close to €4 billion a year in Research & Development, particularly in key innovation areas such as AI, cybersecurity, quantum technologies, cloud technologies and 6G.
Thales has close to 81,000 employees in 68 countries. In 2023, the Group generated sales of €18.4 billion.
Featured image credited to Thales
