Ethiopian Airlines launches flights from Dublin to Addis Ababa and Los Angeles from June 2015. The first service linking the two cities with Africa

Wednesday 15th October 2014

Ethiopian Airlines, the largest airline in Africa, is pleased to announce it will commence three times weekly flights from Dublin to Addis Ababa from June 2015, complementing its daily departures from London Heathrow.  It will also commence flights to Dublin and Los Angeles at the same time.  Schedules and fares will be announced during World Travel Market 2014 next month.

Ethiopian flights to Dublin and Los Angeles will be flown by the ultra-modern Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which offers unparalleled on-board comfort to passengers. These flights will be the only direct services connecting Africa with Ireland and the West Coast of the United States, following Ireland's move to grant Ethiopian fifth freedom rights, enabling the airline to sell tickets on all sectors of the new Addis Ababa to LA route.

Travellers from Ireland and Los Angeles will be able to enjoy seamless and convenient connectivity options thanks to Ethiopian's extensive network in Africa, spanning 49 destinations.  Similarly, as the flights will be the only direct service between Dublin and Los Angeles, the Irish and U.S. travelling public between the two cities will greatly benefit from the opening of the route.

Ireland's Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Paschal Donohoe welcomed Ethiopian's decision to introduce the new routes.  "I am delighted to welcome these new services to Dublin Airport. The new routes to Los Angeles and Addis Ababa will strengthen Ireland's connectivity to the west coast of the USA and to Africa, offering additional choice and convenience for passengers. California is a major market for Irish tourism and this new service to Los Angeles will help Ireland continue to grow visitor numbers from the United States over the medium term."

DAA Chief Executive Kevin Toland added: "We are delighted to welcome Ethiopian Airlines to Ireland. This new service will reconnect Dublin with Los Angeles and also brings unrivalled connectivity into Africa, as Ethiopian has the largest number of African destinations of any airline."  (From Addis Abba it serves such destinations such as Johannesburg, Khartoum, Lagos, Nairobi, and Zanzibar).

"Our new flights connecting Addis Ababa, Dublin and Los Angeles will play a critical role in the expansion of trade, tourism investment between the fast growing continent of Africa, and the United States and Ireland. As these flights will be the first and only direct air route linking Africa with Ireland and the West Coat of the U.S., they will bring these two seemingly far away cities much closer to Africa and will facilitate mobility and connectivity for businesses and the large African Diaspora community living in the West Coast of the United States.

In line with our Vision 2025 strategic roadmap, we are expanding our network and deploying the most technologically advanced aircraft as part of our commitment to our customers to provide them the best possible travel experience and connectivity options. Our flights to Dublin and Los Angeles will be operated with the B787 Dreamliner, which offers unmatched on-board comfort especially for such a very long haul route with its unique features such as greatly reduced noise, higher cabin air humidity, biggest windows in the sky and spacious cabin interior." said Tewolde  Gebremariam, CEO of Ethiopian Airlines Group.

With the addition of Dublin, the airline's 11th European city and Los Angeles, its fourth point in the Americas, Ethiopian's international network will cover 85 destinations across 5 continents.

Ethiopian is a Pan-African global carrier voted by passengers as the Best in Africa for two years in a row by Passenger Choice Awards, the most comprehensive survey in the industry. The airline operates the youngest fleet in the continent with an average of less than seven years and currently serves 83 international destinations across five continents with over 200 daily departures.

About Ethiopian

Ethiopian Airlines (Ethiopian) is the fastest growing and most profitable airline in Africa. In 2014, IATA ranked Ethiopian as the largest airline in Africa in revenue and profit. In its operations in the past close to seven decades, Ethiopian has been a pioneer of African aviation as an aircraft technology leader providing the first jet service in the continent in 1962, and availing the first African B767 in 1984, the first African B777-200LR in 2010 and the first African and second only to Japan B787 Dreamliner in 2012.

Ethiopian commands the lion share of the pan-African passenger and cargo network operating the youngest and most modern fleet to more than 83 international destinations across five continents. Ethiopian fleet includes ultra-modern and environmentally friendly aircraft such as the Boeing 787, Boeing 777-300ER, Boeing 777-200LR, Boeing 777-200LR Freighter and Bombardier Q400 with a double cabin. In fact, Ethiopian is the first airline in Africa to own and operate these aircraft.

Ethiopian is currently implementing a 15-year strategic plan called Vision 2025 that will see it become the leading airline group in Africa with seven strategic business units: Ethiopian International Passenger Service; Ethiopian Regional Service; Ethiopian Cargo; Ethiopian MRO; Ethiopian Aviation Academy; Ethiopian In-flight Catering Service and Ethiopian Ground Service. Ethiopian is a multi-award winning, including SKYTRAX and Passenger Choice Awards in 2013 and has been registering an average growth of 25% per annum in the past seven years.

Ethiopian Airlines is exhibiting at the World Travel Market in London's Excel.  November 3-6th.  Stand No AF130.  The airline will host a press briefing on Wednesday, 5th November from 2pm to 3 pm.

www.flyethiopian.com