Ethiopia to Launch Flight from West Africa to U.S.

October 7, 2021

BY ESSEYE MENGISTE

ADDIS ABABA- Ethiopian Airlines is going to launch its new route from West Africa to the U.S., according to the Star Alliance member’s CEO.

Speaking to Aviation Week Network in an exclusive interview in Vienna, Ethiopian Airlines Group CEO Tewolde Gebre Mariam said the carrier intends to add flights between Abidjan (ABJ) in the Ivory Coast and Washington Dulles (IAD).

The airline originally announced plans for a 3 times a week Addis Ababa Abidjan–Washington Dulles service to start in summer 2019, but data provided by OAG Schedules Analyzer shows that the route only operated on two occasions in June of that year.

Should Ethiopian launch Abidjan-Washington flights, the route would become the airline second to the US city alongside its existing Addis Ababa-Dublin-Washington Dulles-Addis Ababa route. Flights are currently daily using Boeing 777-200LR aircraft.

Tewolde also said that there are talks ongoing with relevant bodies in Canada to start Montreal flights via Dublin.

Ethiopian currently operates three North American routes from Addis Ababa via Dublin, flying to Chicago O’Hare (ORD), Toronto Pearson (YYZ) , and Washington Dulles. The outbound services require the stop because of the Ethiopian capital’s high altitude, although the carrier can operate nonstop flights on the inbound leg.

If Ethiopians get the green light to open a route to Montreal, Addis Ababa would become the fourth destination in Africa to be served from the Canadian city.

In addition, Tewolde name checked Houston, Amsterdam, and Amman as future destinations for Ethiopians. The carrier previously served Houston (IAH) from Addis Ababa, via Lome (LFW) in Togo, before the COVID-19 crisis.

The Ethiopian Herald October 7/2021