Since its launch in 1946, Ethiopian Airlines has been a pioneer in the African aviation industry. The airline claims the largest network of routes within Africa and has maintained an excellent reputation under the various governments that have ruled Ethiopia over the years.
Cargo operations are a vital part of business; Ethiopian also has a wide array of ancillary services such as Africa's leading maintenance and training operations. Ethiopian Airlines (ET/ETH) is based at Addis Ababa International Airport, the main city and capital of the country.
Ethiopian’s hub in Addis Ababa enables a significant route network within Africa, as well as flights to/from Asia, Europe, the Middle East, North America, and South America. The company slogan is 'The New Spirit of Africa.' Ethiopian's hub and headquarters are at Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa, from where it serves a network of 155 passenger destinations-22 of them domestic-and 68 freighter destinations. The airline has secondary hubs in Togo and Malawi.
Ethiopian Airlines is Africa's largest airline in terms of passengers carried, destinations served, fleet size, and revenue. Ethiopian is a Star Alliance member, having joined in December 2011. The airline has been a member of the International Air Transport Association since 1959 and of the African Airlines Association (AFRAA) since 1968.
The Early Years
On December 21st, 1945, almost 80 years ago, Ethiopian Air Lines (EAL) was founded, beginning operations on April 8th, 1946, with its first flight Addis Ababa - Asmara (Eritrea) - Cairo (Egypt) and vice versa provided by Douglas C-47 Skytrains.
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After the liberation of Ethiopia, Emperor Haile Selassie I asked the United States, the United Kingdom, and France to help him establish an airline as part of his modernization effort. According to the BBC News it is possible that the Emperor intended the creation of a quality national airline to help dispel impressions of Ethiopian poverty. In 1945, the Ethiopian government began negotiations with both Transcontinental Air Transport and Western Air Express (later merged into TWA). On 8 September 1945, TWA signed an agreement with the American historian and foreign affairs advisor to Ethiopia John H.
The carrier, originally called Ethiopian Air Lines (EAL), was founded on 21 December 1945, with an initial investment of ETB 2,5 million, divided in 25,000 shares that were entirely held by the government. The company was financed by the Ethiopian government but managed by TWA. At the beginning, it relied upon American pilots, technicians, administrators and accountants; even its General Managers were from TWA. Minister of Works and Communications Fitawrari Tafasse Habte Mikael became EAL's first president and chairman, whereas H. H. Holloway -who was American- was appointed by TWA as general manager.
The board held the first meeting on 26 December 1945, with a key point of the agenda being the deposit of E£75,000 in a bank in Cairo for the acquisition of aircraft and spare parts. The new airline's maiden flight to Nairobi carried a shipment of East African currency equivalent to US$3.7 million in February 1946, but the first revenue scheduled service was on 8 April 1946; it travelled the Addis Ababa-Asmara-Cairo route using one of five Douglas C-47 Skytrains acquired from the US Government. This route later operated on a weekly basis.
The Skytrains were initially intended for military use, although Ethiopian operated them in a mixed passenger-cargo configuration. Soon afterwards, the carrier launched services to Aden and Djibouti, as well as a domestic flight to Jimma. Henry Bruce Obermiller replaced Holloway as a general manager in June 1946. In July the same year, four more Skytrains joined the fleet. New scheduled services to Sheikh Othman and Nairobi were launched in July 1946 and June 1947, respectively. In 1947, Waldon Gene Golien became the general manager, and the company started operating charter flights to Jeddah during the Hajj season. That year in February, three more Douglas C-47s were acquired to operate new international routes.
Expansion and Modernization
EAL was allowed to fly to Aden using Sheik 'Othman Airport, located 16 kilometres (10 mi) away from the city, whereas BOAC used the Khormaksar Airport facilities, just 5 km (3 mi) from the city. Aden was under British rule at the time as was Sudan, and the British Empire denied EAL landing rights at Khartoum, forcing the airline to move the refuelling stop on the Aden route to Port Sudan. Services to Bombay were withdrawn in July 1950. Also this year, a US$1,000,000 (equivalent to $12,663,900 in 2023) loan granted from the Ex-Im Bank enabled the carrier to incorporate Convair CV-240s, aimed at operating international routes.
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Two CV-240s, named "Eagle of Ethiopia" and "Haile Selassie I", entered the fleet in December 1950; starting January 1951, these aircraft were subsequently deployed on the Addis Ababa-Cairo, Addis Ababa-Nairobi, and Addis Ababa-Jeddah-Dhahran-Karachi routes, with Dhahran and Sharjah being incorporated to the route network on 20 February. In April 1952, the airline was appointed general sales agent for TWA in Kenya, Tanganyka, Uganda and Zanzibar, and by May the same year the fleet consisted of two Convair-Liner 240s and nine Douglas DC-3s or their subtypes, operating a route network that was 11,000 km (7,000 mi) long. Services to India and Sharjah were discontinued in 1953. On 14 July, a new agreement with TWA that succeeded the original one was signed.
A new service to Athens via Khartoum and Wadi Halfa was launched on 3 April 1954. A third Convair CV-240 ("The Spiritual Power") was purchased from Sabena in 1955 for US$560,000 (equivalent to $6,369,391 in 2023). These aircraft were equipped with rocket-assisted take-off devices. This was a common practice for a small number of airlines in the World that EAL had abandoned by April 1956. Also in 1955, Ethiopian inaugurated a self-owned maintenance facility. That year, Vic Harrell succeeded Swede Golien as general manager of the company.
The carrier was in need of newer and larger aircraft, and three different aircraft types -two from the Lockheed Corporation, the Constellation and the Electra, and the Douglas DC-6- were considered for the fleet renewal programme. Two Douglas DC-6Bs were eventually ordered in 1956 for US$4 million, including spares; an option for a third machine was also taken. Benghazi was briefly served between 7 November 1956 and 15 January 1957. In 1957, a third DC-6B was purchased. Likewise, that year the airline had been asked to take a Lockheed L-749 that had been given as a gift to the Emperor, who declined it. Ethiopian paid US$1.6 million for this airframe, and it was incorporated into the fleet on 4 June; the aircraft was destroyed by fire on 10 Jul in an accident in Sudan. Two Yemeni cities, Hodeida and Taiz were first served on 1 September 1957.
On 23 May 1958, flights to Wadi Halfa were terminated. The incorporation of three Douglas DC-6Bs took place between May and July, and EAL started a new link between Addis Ababa and Athens, via Cairo, using these recently delivered aircraft. On 21 Jun, the route was extended both to the north and to the south so that Frankfurt and Nairobi became linked by the same corridor, operated with DC-6Bs. By this time, the Convairs were redeployed to serve domestic and regional routes. Given that radio operators were no longer required as part of flight crews, they were assigned other tasks with the airline. Swissair handled the pilot training for the DC-6B aircraft at Zürich.
The suspension of fifth freedom rights between Djibouti and Aden prompted the discontinuance of the route that linked them. EAL joined the International Air Transport Association (IATA) on 1 January 1959. Port Sudan was removed from the list of destinations on 1 March 1960. The airline had its first fatal accident on 15 July when a DC-3 crashed en route from Bulchi to Jimma, killing the pilot. A Convair 240 was sold to Allied Stores of Israel on 18 July. On 12 August, an order with Boeing for two Boeing 720B aircraft was placed. EAL's general manager had already brought the idea of acquiring two jet aircraft for long-haul operations up already in February, suggesting the Boeing 720B.
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The Sud SE-210 Caravelle, the de Havilland D.H.106 Comet 4 and the Boeing 720B were all taken into account. Hot and high condition of some EAL operations made the Caravelle inappropriate, whereas the Comet was considered obsolete. The second fatal accident took place on 5 September 1961 when another DC-3 crashed shortly after takeoff from Sendafar; a flight attendant and four passengers lost their lives in the accident. The event urged the Civil Aviation Department to investigate the accidents. It was found that the lack of infrastructure at many airfields, marginal even for DC-3 operations, was a major contribution. Landing sites at Gore, Mizan Teferi and Tippi were included in the list of airfields that would require closure.
On 13 January 1962, the crew and four passengers lost their lives in another accident involving a DC-3-registration ET-T-1, EAL's first aircraft of the type-this time the crash taking place at Tippi while the aircraft was taking off. The event prompted the government to decide to close the airfields at both Mizan Teferi and Tippi. In March 1962, two more DC-3s were acquired, and registered ET-ABE and ET-ABF. During the year, the "ET-T-" registration would change to simply "ET-". Jack B. It was also decided to build a new airport to replace the Lideta Airfield, which was unable to accommodate the Boeing 720 jetliner the company intended to acquire.
Entering the Jet Age
In December 1962, the arrival of two Boeing 720s ordered directly from Boeing marked the carrier's entrance into the jet age. These two aircraft were registered ET-AAG and ET-AAH and were named the "Blue Nile" and "White Nile", respectively. The first jet service took place on 15 January 1963 when one of these aircraft was deployed on the route to Nairobi. The following day, a new service to Madrid was flown using the new jet equipment, with Frankfurt joining the jet network soon afterward. On 1 April, the Boeing 720 replaced the DC-6B on the Addis Ababa-Athens route; during that month, the West African corridor also benefited from jet operations. The airline entered into a pool agreement with Aden Airways and Sudan Airways on the Khartoum-Asmara-Aden service. A new flight to Conakry was launched on 8 May 1963.
Kano, which had been served since 18 March 1962, was removed from the list of destinations that day. On 30 November 1963, the airline lost another DC-3 (ET-AAT) in a test flight at Addis Ababa; the crew of three suffered minor injuries. Also in the early 1960s, the carrier provided some initial aviation support to the Ethiopia-United States Mapping Mission in its operation to acquire topographic maps of Ethiopia. By 1966, the contractual relationship with TWA was adjusted to reflect the transfer of management with the appointment of an Ethiopian deputy general manager, and Col. Semret Medhane was appointed to the post. In 1970, the fifth renewal of the original 1945 contract changed TWA's role from manager to adviser. On its 25th anniversary in 1971, the company was ready to continue without foreign assistance. Since then, Ethiopian Airlines has been managed and staffed by Ethiopian personnel. The first Ethiopian General Manager was Col. Semret Medhane, appointed in 1971.
Challenges and Continued Growth
Two Boeing 720Bs were acquired from Continental Airlines in 1973. In 1975, the carrier ordered five Dash 7s. By then, Ethiopian Airlines had ended its 30-year relationship with TWA. The airline became a new customer for the Boeing 727 in 1978, ordering two. The DHC-5 Buffalo entered Ethiopian's fleet in the early 1980s. In 1982, Ethiopian became the first African carrier in ordering the Boeing 767, as well as the first airline to order the Boeing 767-200ER. On 1984-6-1, the first of these aircraft set a new distance record for a twinjet, flying 12,100 km (7,500 mi) non-stop from Washington, D.C. to Addis Ababa, on delivery to the company.
The Boeing 767-200ERs came to replace the remaining Boeing 720s. ATR 42s and Twin Otters were incorporated into the fleet in the mid-1980s, with the first of six Twin Otters entering the fleet in early 1985. In 1990, Ethiopian became the first passenger airline in taking delivery of the Boeing 757 Freighter, receiving the first of five Boeing 757-200s a year later. By 1996 the airline was flying to Bangkok, Beijing, Durban and Johannesburg; routes to Ivory Coast and Senegal were also being operated. Furthermore, the Fokker 50 entered the fleet to operate domestic routes; actually, Ethiopian became the last company in taking delivery of this aircraft in 1997, just after the collapse of Fokker due to financial problems.
In the late 1990s the carrier saw the incorporation of Copenhagen and Maputo to its international network, as well as New York City and Washington, D.C. as transatlantic destinations; the frequent-flyer program, named "Sheba Miles" after the legendary Queen of Sheba, was launched too. A fleet renewal started in the early 2000s, with the incorporation of the Boeing 737-700 and the Boeing 767-300ER; The airline discontinued its service to Newark in favour of serving Washington, D.C. in 2004.
Joining Star Alliance and Beyond
In late September 2010, Ethiopian Airlines was officially invited to join Star Alliance under the mentoring of Lufthansa. Ethiopian Air Lines, managed by the Ethiopian government and Trans World Airlines (TWA), expanded its operations in Northeast Africa and Central Africa, launching its first long-haul routes in the 1950s. The airline, now renamed Ethiopian Airlines, commenced flights between Addis Ababa and Washington DC on June 23rd, 1998, becoming the first African airline to operate in the Africa-United States market. Ethiopian Airlines currently operates this route with modern Airbus A350-900s and Airbus A350-1000s.
In accordance with our database, the airline has around 145 aircraft in its fleet, most of them based in Addis Ababa. Addis Ababa Airport reached 12 million passengers in 2024, with 10 million international and the remaining two million domestic. Most flights between Ethiopia and North America have a technical stopover in Rome (FCO).
The current CEO is Mesfin Tasew, who was appointed by the airline's board of directors on 24 March 2022. Mesfin has been working at Ethiopian Airlines since 1984. He also was the CEO of Asky Airlines, a strategic partner of Ethiopian Airlines. Before that, Tewolde GebreMariam served as the airline's Group CEO from 2011 until his resignation in March 2022.
Navigating Political and Economic Turmoil
The airline, which is wholly owned by the Government of Ethiopia, has traditionally been unfettered by government intervention, even during times of significant turmoil and domestic hardship. The Derg, after expanding the airline's workforce, which had resulted in a decline in service quality and revenues, allowed the airline to be run on a "strictly commercial basis". Captain Mohammed Ahmed was appointed CEO in 1980 and slashed the workforce by 10%. The airline continued the acquisition of Western, rather than Soviet aircraft, despite the links between the communist government and the Soviet Union, purchasing the Boeing 727 in 1979 and the Boeing 767 in 1984.
Despite famine, unfavorable exchange rates, and general economic disarray, the airline managed to retain its reputation, particularly in the provision of maintenance and training. Despite the violent overthrow of the communist government by the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front in 1991, the airline managed to post a profit for the fiscal year. In 1994, 40 top executives including the general manager Capt. Zelleke Demissie were fired after they signed a letter rebuking a government ... Ethiopian Airlines (ET/ETH) is based at Addis Ababa International Airport, the main city and capital of the country.
Key Milestones
Here is a table summarizing the key dates in the history of Ethiopian Airlines:
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1946 | Ethiopian Airlines begins operations with flights to Cairo. |
| 1957 | Network stretches north to Hamburg, Germany. |
| 1960 | Ethiopian develops Africa's first scheduled services connecting east and west. |
| 1961 | Revenues surpass $10 million. |
| 1963 | First jets arrive. |
| 1974 | Country undergoes Socialist revolution, which affects the company. |
| 1975 | TWA management contract ends; EAL introduces first direct flights between Africa and China. |
| 1991 | Marxist dictatorship is overthrown in a coup. |
| 1998 | First services to the United States are launched. |
| 2003 | Construction begins on new cargo terminal and maintenance hangar. |
Incidents and Accidents
Following is a list of accidents and incidents involving Ethiopian Airlines aircraft.
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| Unknown date | The aircraft belly landed just after it departed from Khartoum Airport, 49 kilometres (30 mi) away from the city. |
| Unknown date | Crashed into mountainous terrain 27.5 kilometres (17.1 mi) south of Jimma. |
| Unknown date | Swerved off the runway on the take-off run at Tippi Airport, and ran into a mill. Five people on board lost their lives in the accident, plus one more on the ground. |
| Unknown date | An Eritrean hijacker was shot on board by an Ethiopian security official. |
| Unknown date | The aircraft was en route a scheduled flight from Addis Ababa-Haile Selassie I Airport to Djibouti-Ambouli Airport, when three Eritrean hijackers belonging to the Eritrean Liberation Front hijacked the plane and forced the crew to fly to Aden International Airport. The hijackers were arrested after landing in Aden. |
| Unknown date | A Yemeni hijacker entered the cockpit shortly after departing from Madrid to Rome, and demanded the pilots to head to Aden. The hijacker was shot dead by an official security, and later another hijacker was also shot dead at the rear of the aircraft. |
| Unknown date | Crashed near Gondar when one wing separated from the fuselage. |
| Unknown date | Seven Eritrean hijackers belonging to the Eritrean Liberation Front attempted to hijack Flight 708 on its first leg, en route a scheduled Addis Ababa-Asmara-Athens-Rome-Paris flight. After a grenade was activated while security officials opened fire at the hijackers, it exploded and damaged the rudder controls. The pilots managed to land the aircraft safely at Addis Ababa. Neither the passengers nor the crew were harmed, but the aircraft sustained substantial damage. Six of the hijackers were shot dead on board, while the remaining one died in a hospital. |
| Unknown date | Crashed on take-off from Sodo airport. Both the pilot and the copilot were killed, while 10 of the 21 passengers were injured. |
| Unknown date | Engines were cut off upon touchdown at Sodo Airport, following a loss of hydraulic pressure. |
| Unknown date | Crashed on approach to Bole International Airport after hitting the roof of a house when descending too fast due to a feathered propeller. |
| Unknown date | Experienced the collapse of its port main undercarriage on landing at Bahir Dar Airport. |
| Unknown date | The main landing gear resulted damaged during landing at Combolcha Airport. |
| Unknown date | Both engines ingested pigeons during take-off. The aircraft made a belly landing at the departing airport, and caught fire. |
| Unknown date | Following take-off from Gondar Airport, the main gear did not retract. An attempt to land ended up with the aircraft touching down 400 m (1,300 ft) ahead of the end of the runway. The aircraft came to rest after rolling almost 1,000 m (3,300 ft). |
| Unknown date | Aborted take-off after birdstrike during the take-off run. |
| Unknown date | A problem with the nosegear prompted the crew to return to Djibouti. |
| Unknown date | The aircraft was hijacked by four people while en route a domestic scheduled Gambela Airport-Bole International Airport service, demanding to be flown to Djibouti. The plane landed at Dire Dawa for refueling. During a six-day-long period of negotiations, one hijacker attempted to escape and was shot wounded. |
| Unknown date | Experienced a bird strike on approach to Bole International Airport, inbound from Dessie as Flight 173. The windshields resulted damaged. |
| Unknown date | Flight 961 was hijacked by three hijackers while en route the second leg of a Bombay-Addis Ababa-Nairobi-Brazzaville-Lagos-Abidjan route. The hijackers instructed the pilot to fly to Australia. Instead, the pilots headed the aircraft southwards and flew it along the shore. Fuel eventually ran out and one of the engines stopped. A landing into shallow waters 500 yd (460 m) away from the shore, close to the Galawa Beach, near Moroni, was attempted. The water landing failed when the aircraft hit an unseen coral reef. Many passengers died because they inflated their life vests before leaving the flooded cabin. Among the dead was the Kenyan photojournalist Mohamed Amin, besides all of the hijackers. |
| Unknown date | While attempting to hijack Flight 113, en route from Bahir Dar to Addis Ababa, two hijackers were shot dead by the security personnel on board, and a crew member was injured. |
| Unknown date | Flight 409 was an international scheduled Beirut-Addis Ababa passenger service that plunged into the Mediterranean Sea 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) southwest of Rafic Hariri International Airport shortly after it took off from the airport in stormy weather. |
| 17 February 2014 | Ethiopian Airlines Flight 702 flying from Addis Ababa to Rome and onwards to Milan was forced to land at Geneva airport after being hijacked by the co-pilot while flying north over Sudan. The aircraft circled Geneva airport several times while the co-pilot communicated with air traffic control to inquire about possibility of hijackers receiving asylum in Switzerland. Flight 702 landed with one engine and less than 10 minutes of fuel remaining. |
| 10 January 2015 | A Boeing 737-400 cargo plane operated by Ethiopian Airlines Flight KP4030, sustained substantial damage in a runway excursion on landing at Accra-Kotoka Airport (ACC), Ghana. |
| Unknown date | Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, a four-month-old Boeing 737 MAX 8, crashed near Bishoftu six minutes after takeoff from Bole International Airport, killing all 157 passengers and crew on board. |
This detailed history of Ethiopian Airlines showcases its resilience, adaptability, and pioneering spirit in the African aviation industry. From its humble beginnings with Douglas C-47 Skytrains to its current status as a leading global airline, Ethiopian Airlines continues to connect Africa to the world.
