A nation whose GDP per capita totals only $846. One that has only been governed by its current constitution since 1995. A country that ranks 174 out of 188 in terms of Human Development Index. All of these stats at first glance run counter to the ideal place from which to run a continent"™s largest airline.
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia-based Ethiopian Airlines, however, has begun to thrive in recent years operating out of a single hub "“ Bole International Airport "“ in the nation"™s capital, despite the numerous challenges it faces.
Movement Towards Modernization
After World War II, Ethiopia was no longer threatened by the previously belligerent Italians. To further move along the modernization of his still somewhat young nation, Emperor Haile Selassie I asked the U.S., U.K., and France to help him craft a national airline. And in 1945, he and American airline TWA inked a deal to form a carrier that would eventually be named Ethiopian Air Lines.
After launching operations in February of the next year with five Douglas C-47 Skytrains, the airline was on a path to gain a sizable foothold in the domestic, African, and world aviation markets.
The airline continued to grow and expand, before late in the 2000s announcing that it would acquire Boeing 787s, Airbus A350s, Boeing 777-200LRs, and various other equipment in order to better operate and compete on longhaul flights across the globe…
