TODAY IN THE SKY

Royal Air Maroc shows off Boeing 787 Dreamliner at Washington Dulles

Ben Mutzabaugh

USA TODAY

DULLES, Va. – Royal Air Maroc showed off its Boeing 787 “Dreamliner” on Thursday (Sept. 8) at Washington Dulles International Airport.

The tour of the airline’s newest aircraft type came as the Moroccan carrier completed its inaugural round trip between Casablanca and Washington Dulles, which becomes just the second U.S. gateway for Royal Air Maroc.

“Royal Air Maroc is thrilled to launch the only nonstop service between Washington, D.C., and Casablanca,” CEO Abdelhamid Addou said in a statement accompanying the carrier’s first day of service to Washington Dulles.

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“We are equally excited about deploying the state-of-the-art Boeing 787 on this important route,” he added.

Indeed, Royal Air Maroc opened its Dreamliner to the media for a brief show-and-tell after the aircraft made its inaugural arrival to Washington Dulles from Casablanca. The aircraft took off a short while later for the return trip to Morocco.

Royal Air Maroc’s Dreamliners seat 274 passengers in a layout that includes 18 lie-flat business-class seats in a 2-2-2 configuration. The economy cabin is arranged in a 3-3-3 layout.

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The business-class cabin on Royal Air Maroc’s Boeing 787 Dreamliner is seen prior to the carrier’s inaugural departure from Washington Dulles on Sept. 9, 2016.

Royal Air Maroc offers three weekly flights between Washington Dulles and Casablanca, which is its primary hub. Connections via Casablanca are available to dozens of destinations throughout Morocco, West Africa, the Middle East and Europe.

Royal Air Maroc is now the third African carrier to fly from Washington Dulles. South African Airways offers one-stop service to Johannesburg. Those flights stop in Dakar, Senegal, or Accra, Ghana, depending on the day of the week. Ethiopian Airlines flies nonstop from Dulles to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's capital. The return flight makes a stop in Dublin, Ireland, on its way from Addis Ababa to Washington.

Royal Air Maroc took delivery of its first Dreamliner on Dec. 31, 2014. The airline now has four Dreamliners in its fleet with one more on order.

Washington will become Royal Air Maroc's third destination in North America. It also flies to New York JFK and Montreal.

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The signature tower and mobile lounges of Washington Dulles are seen in the background as Royal Air Maroc's inaugural arrival from Casablanca pulls to the gate on Sept. 9, 2016.