Ethiopian Airlines: Dreamliner boosted profits

Ethiopian Airlines' chief executive officer said that the company has made a record profit he partly credited to Boeing's problematic 787 planes, AP reported. Tewolde Gebremariam said this week the company's operating profit between July 2012 and June 2013 is 2.7 billion birr ($143,137,098) from a billion birr ($53,013,740) the previous financial year. Citing unaudited company accounts Tewolde said that the company's net profits also surged during the period to 2.03 billion birr ($107,617,892) from 734 million birr ($39,230,167) of the previous year, a 178% increase. Tewolde said the performance is a result of "exceptionally dedicated employees" and Boeing 787 planes he described as super-efficient. He said the planes helped the company save on fuel costs. In January, Dreamliner's around the world were grounded because of overheating lithium batteries.