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Ethiopian Airlines

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Ethiopian Airlines
የኢትዮጵያ አየር መንገድ
IATA ICAO Callsign
ET ETH ETHIOPIAN
FoundedDecember 21, 1945; 78 years ago (1945-12-21) (as Ethiopian Air Lines)
Commenced operationsApril 8, 1946 (1946-04-08)
Operating bases
Hubs
Frequent-flyer programShebaMiles
AllianceStar Alliance (future)
SubsidiariesASKY Airlines (40%)
Fleet size
  • 41 passenger
  • 6 freighter
Destinations78 (61 international and 17 domestic)
Parent companyEthiopian Government (100%)
HeadquartersBole International Airport
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Key people
Key People List
Websitewww.ethiopianairlines.com

Ethiopian Airlines (Amharic: የኢትዮጵያ አየር መንገድ; የኢትዮጵያ in short), formerly Ethiopian Air Lines, often referred to as simply Ethiopian, is an airline headquartered on the grounds of Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.[3] It serves as the country's flag carrier.[3] The company is wholly owned by the Government of Ethiopia.[3][5] Its hub is Bole International Airport, from which the airline serves 61 international destinations and 17 domestic.[3] The company flies to more destinations in Africa than any other airline.[5][6] Likewise, it is one of the few Sub-Saharan profitable airlines,[5] as well as one the fastest growing airlines in the industry.[7][8] The airline's cargo division has been awarded The African Cargo Airline of the Year in early 2011.[7][8][9]

Under Skytrax's five-star ranking system, Ethiopian's service merits three stars.[10] Ethiopian is a member of the African Airlines Association since 1968.[11] The airline does not currently participate in any airline alliance, although it was accepted as a future Star Alliance member in late September 2010.[12]

History

An Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 757-200 lands at London Heathrow Airport, London. (1998)
An Ethiopian Airlines Fokker 50 at Egal International Airport, Hargeisa. (2005)
A Fokker 50 at Lalibela Airport, Lalibela. (2006)

After the liberation of Ethiopia from the Italian occupation, Ethiopia's Emperor Haile Selassie I asked the Americans, British and French to assist him in establishing a new airline, in an attempt to modernise the country. According to the BBC News, some say the Emperor envisioned the creation of a quality national airline to shake off the poverty-stricken image Ethiopia had at that time.[13] Americans believed the country could become an important hub for air traffic into the Red Sea region and its surroundings,[14] and agreed to help the Emperor.

The carrier was eventually founded as Ethiopian Air Lines on 21 December 1945,[3] with aid from both Transcontinental Air Transport and Western Air Express, which later merged into TWA.[14] The carrier relied upon American pilots, technicians, administrators and accountants;[14] it even had TWA General Managers.[15] On its 25th anniversary, in 1971, the company was ready to continue without foreign assistance. Since then, Ethiopian Airlines was managed and staffed by Ethiopian personnel. The first Ethiopian General Manager was Col. Semret Medhane,[16] who served in this position for the period 1971-1975.[14]

The newly airline commenced operations on 8 April 1946.[3] Its maiden flight operated the Addis Ababa–Asmara–Cairo route using one of the five Douglas C-47 Skytrains acquired from the US Government.[16] This route was later operated on a weekly basis.[16] The Skytrains were initially intended for military use. Ethiopian operated them in a mixed passenger-cargo configuration. It was therefore a common practice for the company to accommodate both passengers and cargo in the same cabin during the early years.[17][18]

Soon afterwards, the carrier launched services to Aden and Djibouti, as well as a domestic flight to Jimma.[16] By the end of 1946, four Skytrains were incorporated into the fleet, and three more in 1947 to operate new international routes.[16] Bombay, Nairobi and Port Sudan were added to the route network as international scheduled services in the late forties.[16] Likewise, the company started operating charter flights to Jeddah during the Hajj season.[16] The carrier incoporated three Convair CV-240s in 1950, aimed at operating international routes.[16] A long-haul service to Frankfurt was launched in 1957.[16] In the same year, Ethiopian inaugurated a self-owned maintenance facility.[16] The DC-6 was incorporated into the fleet in 1958 to operate long-haul routes.[16]

In the early sixties the airline added Accra, Khartoum and Monrovia to its destination network. It was also decided to build a new airport to replace the Lidetta airfield, unable to accommodate the Boeing 720 jetliner the company intended to acquire. This was the birth of Bole International Airport, where the company set its headquarters.[16] The first jet service was inaugurated in 1963 operating the Addis Ababa–Nairobi route.[16] Athens and Madrid were also incorporated as international scheduled services. The firm changed from a corporation to a share company in 1965, and it also changed its name from Ethiopian Air Lines to Ethiopian Airlines. In the early sixties the carrier provided some initial aviation support to the Ethiopia-United States Mapping Mission in its operation to acquire topographic maps of Ethiopia.[19]

The late seventies saw the arrival of the Boeing 727s as a replacement for the Boeing 720s.[16] The DHC-5 Buffalo entered Ethiopian's fleet in the early eighties.[16] In 1984 the Boeing 767 also came to replace the Boeing 720, and Ethiopian became the launch customer of this new model.[16] ATR-42s and Twin Otters were incorporated into the fleet in the mid-eighties.[16]

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.[16] In the late nineties the carrier saw the incorporation of Copenhagen and Maputo to its international network, as well as New York and Washington as transatlantic destinations; the frequent flyer program, named "Sheba Miles" after the legendary Queen of Sheba, was launched too.[16] The airline disrupted its flights to the Eritrean capital Asmara after a war erupted between the two countries in 1998.

A fleet renewal started in the early 2000s, with the incorporation of the Boeing 737NG and the Boeing 767-300ER; in the late 2000s the airline announced it would be the launch customer of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, and placed orders to acquire brand new Airbus A350-900s, Boeing 777-200LRs and Bombardier equipment.[16]

On 29 September 2010 Ethiopian Airlines was officially invited to join Star Alliance. The airline will be the 30th overall member airline and the third airline in Africa. The integration process is expected to take 12 months.[20]

Financial performance

The airline was featured by The Economist as an example of excellence in late 1987,[21] and economist Paul B. Henze recognized it in 2000 as being "one of the most reliable and profitable airlines in the Third World".[22] In 2007, Ethiopian Airlines provided basic pilot and aviation maintenance training to trainees from African countries including Chad, Djibouti, Madagascar, Rwanda, Sudan and Tanzania. Other training was given to employees of Kenya Airways, Air Zimbabwe, Bellview Airlines, Cape Verde Airlines and Air Madagascar.[23]

Ethiopian Airlines started "Vision 2010" in 2005 which aimed to increase passenger traffic to 3 million, revenue to US$1 billion and employees to 6,000 by the year 2010. In its fiscal year 2007/2008, the airline transported 2.5 million passengers and generated 9.2 billion birr revenue (US$900 million) with a net profit of 507 million birr (US$56 million).[24]

For the fiscal year 2008/2009, ET transported 2.8 million passengers (a 12.3% increase y/y) generated 12.2 billion birr in revenue (US$980 million - a 32.8% increase y/y) with a net profit of 1.345 billion birr (US$108 million - a 165% increase over the previous year). In the same period, Ethiopian hauled 101 thousand tons of cargo, a 38.4% increase over the previous year. For the fiscal year 2009/2010 Ethiopian generated 1.3 billion dollars revenue and a net profit of USD 118 million. By the year 2010 Ethiopian exceeded all goals set in vision 2010.[25] These results are the best yet for the 64 year old airline, and were attributed to an aggressive marketing campaign and major cost cutting measures.[26] It is currently 100%-owned by the Government of Ethiopia.[3] As of 31 December 2010, it has 5,635 employees.[3]

Destinations

Main article: Ethiopian Airlines destinations

The passenger network currently comprises 39 cities in Africa, 7 in Europe and the Americas, 14 in Middle East and Asia, and 17 within Ethiopia. Likewise, the cargo network serves 18 destinations in Africa, 5 in the Middle East and Asia, and 2 in Europe.[3]

Codeshare and alliances

Ethiopian was officially invited to join Star Alliance on 29 September 2010.[12] It is expected the airline will become the 30th alliance member in September 2011. The carrier currently has codeshare agreements with the following airlines (Star Alliance carriers are indicated by *):[3]

Ethiopian Airlines and Lufthansa have closely linked their frequent flyer programmes Shebamiles and Miles & More,[37] allowing members to earn and spend miles on the airlines' entire network.

In July 2008 Ethiopian Airlines entered a strategic partnership with Lomé–based start–up airline ASKY Airlines in which Ethiopian holds a 40% stake.[2][38] Ethiopian Airlines is responsible for aircraft maintenance and operational management. The plan is to turn Lomé into Ethiopian Airline's regional hub for the West African market. ASKY started operations in January 2010 and became profitable after a few months.[39][40] The CEO of ASKY came from Ethiopian Airlines.[35]

Fleet

An Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 777-200LR at Dubai International Airport, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
An Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737-800 at Dubai International Airport. (2009)
An Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 767-300ER landing at London Heathrow Airport, England. (2006)

As of May 2011, the Ethiopian Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft with an average age of 9.8 years.[41] Aside from the equipment shown below, the airline has 6 DA40NG on order for training purposes.[42]

Ethiopian Airlines Fleet[42]
Passenger Fleet
Aircraft In Service Orders Options Passengers Notes
P Y Total
Airbus A350-900 — 12 — 30 318 348 Expected EIS: 2017[43]
Boeing 737-700 5 — — 16 102 118
Boeing 737-800 5 10 — 16 138 154
Boeing 757-200 3 — — 16 144 160
1 154 170
2 155 171
2 159 175
Boeing 767-300ER 1 — — 24 208 232
1 210 234
2 211 235
2 213 237
3 221 245
1 30 190 220
1 195 225
Boeing 777-200LR 4 1 — 34 287 321
Boeing 787-8 — 10 2 24 246 270 Expected EIS: January 2012
Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 8 — 4 0 78 78
7 64 71
Cargo Fleet
Boeing 747-200F 2 — — N/A
Boeing 757-200PCF 2 — —
Boeing 777F — 2 — Expected EIS: September/October 2012[44]
McDonnell Douglas MD-11F 2 — —
Total 47 35 6

In February 2005 Ethiopian Airlines signed a preliminary agreement to buy up to 10 Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft (5 firm orders plus 5 options), becoming the first African carrier in ordering this kind of equipment.[5] On 31 May 2005 Boeing announced that Ethiopian had exercised its purchase rights and confirmed a firm order for 10 aircraft. The new planes are expected to be delivered in 2011. The carrier also became the first African airline in ordering the Boeing 777-200LR.[5][45][46][47] The first 777 Ethiopian took possession of was the 900th model of this aircraft delivered by Boeing.[47][48][49][50][51] The Boeing customer code for Ethiopian Airlines is 60 (e.g. Boeing 777-260LR).

Historic fleet

An Ethiopian Airlines Fokker 50 in old livery.

Following is a list of equipment previously operated by Ethiopian. Helicopters and light aircraft were available for leasing to Government agencies as well as to be used on natural resources projects.[52]: 570 

Accidents and incidents

Main article: Ethiopian Airlines accidents and incidents

As of June 2011, Aviation Safety Network records 60 accidents/incidents for Ethiopian Airlines since 1965,[56] plus 6 accidents for Ethiopian Air Lines,[57] the former airline's name. The company suffered several hijacking episodes throughout its history. One of them ended up with the carrier's deadliest accident when the plane plunged into the Indian Ocean due to fuel starvation. Despite this, Ethiopian Airlines has a good safety record,[58][59] by contrast to other African airlines.

Accreditation

The United States Federal Aviation Administration accredited the maintenance division with license No. ETIY 102F.[60][61]

See also

Media related to Ethiopian Airlines at Wikimedia Commons

References

  1. ^ "Addisu Legesse replaces Seyoum Mesfin as Ethiopian board chairman". nazret.com. 2 January 2011. Retrieved 18 February 2011.
  2. ^ a b Kurt Hofmann (13 June 2011). "Ethiopian Airlines-affiliated ASKY eyeing long-haul routes". Air Transport World. Retrieved 24 June 2011.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Ethiopian Airlines: Company Profile". Ethiopian Airlines. Retrieved 24 June 2011.
  4. ^ a b c "COO–Ethiopian Airlines". Ethiopian Airlines. Retrieved 24 June 2011.
  5. ^ a b c d e "Profile: Ethiopian Airlines". BBC News. 25 January 2010. Retrieved 18 February 2011.
  6. ^ "Ambassador impressed by Ethiopian Airlines". Royal Norwegian Embassy in Addis Ababa. 22 September 2009. Retrieved 18 February 2011.
  7. ^ a b "Ethiopian Cargo Wins "AFRICAN CARGO AIRLINE OF THE YEAR" Award" (Press release). Ethiopian Airlines. 25 February 2011. Retrieved 4 March 2011.
  8. ^ a b "Ethiopian Airlines distinguished with African Cargo Airline Award". Sudan Tribune. 1 March 2011. Retrieved 4 March 2011.
  9. ^ "A ETHIOPIAN IL PREMIO LINEA AEREA CARGO DELL'ANNO" (in Italian). AGI News On. Agenzia Giornalistica Italia. 1 March 2011. Retrieved 4 March 2011. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
  10. ^ "Ethiopian Airlines Customer Reviews". Skytrax. 21 January 2011. Retrieved 19 February 2011.
  11. ^ "AFRAA Members". AFRAA. Retrieved 19 April 2011.
  12. ^ a b "ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES ACCEPTED AS FUTURE STAR ALLIANCE MEMBER CARRIER–Further Development of the Africa Strategy". Star Alliance. 29 September 2010. Retrieved 18 February 2011.
  13. ^ "Profile: Ethiopian Airlines". BBC News. 25 January 2010. Retrieved 3 March 2011. It was founded in 1945 by Emperor Haile Selassie. Some say the emperor hoped that having a good quality national airline would help Ethiopia shake off its poverty-stricken image.
  14. ^ a b c d "TWA's role". Ethiopian Airlines Former Employees Association. 2007. Retrieved 18 February 2010.
  15. ^ Jane Perlez (9 August 1988). "Addis Ababa Journal; Against the Odds, Airline Takes Off and Flies High". The New York Times. Retrieved 19 February 2011.
  16. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t "Ethiopian | Company | History". Ethiopian Airlines. Retrieved 3 March 2011.
  17. ^ "Ethiopian Airlines International Schedules (Effective 1 June 1952)". airline timetable images. Retrieved 22 February 2011.
  18. ^ "Ethiopian Airlines Domestic Schedules (Effective 1 June 1952)". airline timetable images. Retrieved 22 February 2011.
  19. ^ "Ethiopia-United States Mapping Mission". Retrieved 4 March 2011.
  20. ^ "Ethiopian Airlines to join Star Alliance; closer partnership with SAS". The Financial. 29 September 2010. Retrieved 7 March 2010.
  21. ^ "In Search of Excellence, the Hard Way", The Economist, 31 December 1987.
  22. ^ Paul B. Henze, Layers of Time: A History of Ethiopia, (New York: Palgrave, 2000), p. 246.
  23. ^ "Annual Report 2006/2007" (accessed 3 February 2009)
  24. ^ http://www.ethiopianairlines.com/news/report.aspx?nid=206
  25. ^ http://www.ethiopianairlines.com/en/news/pressreleases.aspx?hl=%20235
  26. ^ "Ethiopian Airlines 08/09 net profit leaps 165 pct". Reuters. 7 August 2009.
  27. ^ "Ethiopian, Air China move forward on codeshare". ATW Online. 2010-12-18. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
  28. ^ "Ethiopian and Brussels Set to Launch Codeshare Agreement - 12 June 2008
  29. ^ "Ethiopian and Gulf Air Enter Code Share Agreement - 18 July 2007
  30. ^ "Ethiopian Enhances Cooperation with Lufthansa" (Press release). Ethiopian Airlines. 18 November 2009. Retrieved 6 May 2011.
  31. ^ "Ethiopian Strengthens Codeshare with Lufthansa" (Press release). Ethiopian Airlines. 1 December 2008. Retrieved 6 May 2011.
  32. ^ "Ethiopian code share with Air Mozambique" (Press release). Ethiopian Airlines. 4 May 2011. Retrieved 5 May 2011.
  33. ^ "RWANDAIR SIGNS CODESHARE WITH ETHIOPIA - 10 September 2009
  34. ^ "Ethiopian Enters Codeshare with Saudi Arabian Airlines - 5 December 2008
  35. ^ a b c d "National Airline Soars Despite Global Turbulence - 08 June, 2009
  36. ^ "Ethiopian, Turkish Airlines negotiate code sharing
  37. ^ "ShebaMiles and Miles and More Partnership". Ethiopian Airlines. Retrieved 6 May 2011. Starting October 28, 2007 ShebaMiles Members can Accumulate award miles and Claim Award tickets on all Lufthansa's worldwide Network.
  38. ^ "Other News - 07/07/2008". Air Transport World. 8 July 2008. Retrieved 24 June 2011. Ethiopian Airlines and privately held Togolese startup ASKY signed an MOU to form a strategic partnership covering marketing, operations, maintenance, training, financing and management contracts, ET announced.
  39. ^ Kurt Hofmann (11 June 2010). "Ethiopian moves to broaden foothold in Africa". Air Transport World. Retrieved 24 June 2011. "ASKY has become profitable already," Wake told ATWOnline this week on the sidelines of the IATA AGM in Berlin.
  40. ^ Perry Flint; Aaron Karp (21 January 2010). "Ethiopian orders 10 737-800s, launches West African airline". Air Transport World. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  41. ^ "Ethiopian Airlines–Details and Fleet History". Planespotters.net. Retrieved 9 May 2011.
  42. ^ a b "Ethiopian | Fleet". Ethiopian Airlines. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  43. ^ "Ethiopian Airlines confirma a Airbus un pedido de 12 aviones A350 XWB por más de 1.900 millones". finanzas.com (in Spanish). Noticias EUROPAPRESS. 16 November 2009. Retrieved 20 February 2011. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
  44. ^ "Ethiopian Leases Two Boeing 777F Aircraft" (Press release). Ethiopian Airlines. 30 May 2011. Retrieved 25 June 2011.
  45. ^ "Ethiopian Airlines receives another Boeing 777-200 LR aircraft". People's Daily. Xinhua News Agency. 20 December 2010. Retrieved 24 May 2011.
  46. ^ "Ethiopian Airlines receives 2nd Boeing 777-200 LR Aircraft". nazret.com. 19 December 2010. Retrieved 24 February 2011.
  47. ^ a b David Lilienthal (22 November 2010). "Exclusive Look On-Board Ethiopian Airlines' First Boeing 777-200LR: Photo Gallery". NYCAviation. Retrieved 5 April 2011.
  48. ^ "Boeing's 900th 777 Delivered to Ethiopian Airlines". NYCAviation. BNO News. 17 November 2010. Retrieved 24 February 2011.
  49. ^ "Boeing Delivers Its 900th 777 Airplane to Ethiopian Airlines". Boeing. 17 November 2010. Retrieved 24 February 2011.
  50. ^ Ben Mutzabaugh (19 November 2010). "Ethiopian Airlines takes delivery of 900th Boeing 777". USA TODAY. Retrieved 24 February 2011.
  51. ^ Isaac Hamza (21 November 2010). "Boeing delivers 900th 777 aeroplane to Ethiopian Airlines". African Business Review. Retrieved 24 February 2011.
  52. ^ a b c d e f g h i "World Airline Survey–Ethiopian Airlines SC" (pdf). Flight International: 569–570. 13 April 1967. Retrieved 4 April 2011.
  53. ^ a b c d Alfred Price (24 April 1996). "Ethiopian birthday". Flightglobal.com. London. Flight International. Retrieved 30 May 2011.
  54. ^ a b c d e f g "World Airline Directory–Ethiopian Airlines" (pdf). Flight International: 77–78. 29 March 1986. Retrieved 4 April 2011.
  55. ^ "African Fokkers". Flightglobal.com. Flight International. 23 October 1996. Retrieved 30 May 2011. Ethiopian Airlines received its first of five Fokker 50s on 2 October. The aircraft were ordered in 1995, to replace ATR 42s.
  56. ^ "Accident record for Ethiopian Airlines". ASN. 15 June 2011. Retrieved 17 June 2011.
  57. ^ "Accident record for Ethiopian Air Lines". ASN. 28 November 2004. Retrieved 17 June 2011.
  58. ^ "Ethiopian Airlines jet crashes into sea off Beirut". BBC News. 25 January 2010. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  59. ^ "Witnesses: Ethiopian plane tumbled out of sky off Lebanon". The Star Online. 26 January 2010. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  60. ^ "Maintenance, Repair & Overhaul | About Us–Approval and Accreditations". Ethiopian Airlines. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  61. ^ "Ethiopian Airlines Pioneer of African Aviation Industry," Ethiopian Government

External links

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