Ethiopian Airlines is said to be in preliminary negotiations with Airbus for a new order of wide-body A350s and single-aisle A220s, according to U.S. news agency Bloomberg.

The carrier is considering the acquisition of around six A350s and twenty A220s as part of the expansion of its African and intercontinental network.

Ethiopian Airlines is already a major A350 Family operator, with 22 A350-900s and 4 A350-1000s in service on its long-haul network (and a further 17 A350-900s on firm order).

Ethiopian Airlines has been studying the acquisition of small-capacity single-aisle aircraft for several years, in particular to develop its domestic network and replace its latest Boeing 737-700s and DHC-8-Q400s, with its future hub at Bishoftu International Airport (BIA), operational from 2030. It also evaluated the A220-100, the Embraer E195-E2 and the Boeing 737 MAX 7.

The Ethiopian company had already expressed particular interest in Bombardier’s CSeries back in 2016, before Airbus took over the program in 2018, with some twenty potential aircraft in the pipeline. At the time, it was considering acquiring new-generation aircraft with a lower capacity than its 737-800 and 737 MAX 8, in particular to replace its entire 737-700 fleet.