Ethiopian Airlines, the Largest Aviation Group in Africa and SKYTRAX Certified Four Star Global Airline marks its one-year anniversary of flying from Manchester Airport to Addis Ababa. Manchester is the airlines second UK destination providing four times a week service connecting the north of England to over 60 destinations across Africa.
The Ethiopian route unlocked a huge number of African destinations for passengers from Manchester, via its Addis Ababa hub including Kenya, Zanzibar and Seychelles. Over the last 12 months the airline has carried over 17,500 passengers and flown close to 1.5 million miles between Manchester and Addis Ababa.
Ethiopian Airlines, UK Country Manager Michael Yohannes said: “We are proud to celebrating one year of service from Manchester. In addition to our operation from London Heathrow the 4 times a week Manchester service makes Africa even more accessible for both business and leisure passengers from the north of the country. Passengers have been enjoying the comfort of our Boeing 787 Dreamliner’s and the convenient onward connections from Addis Ababa to the rest of the continent.”
Tim Bettney, Traffic and Sales manager for Manchester added “The first year of operation has been very successful. Addis Ababa has not surprisingly been our top destination with onward routes to Zimbabwe, Cape Town and Malawi proving very popular. Our Cargo service has performed well carrying 222 tonnes of goods between our continents. Our Ethiopian service and hospitality have provided passengers with close to 35,000 meals and 30,000 cups of our famous Ethiopian Coffee.”
The service to Addis Ababa operates on Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday departing from Terminal 2 at 18:05, arriving at Addis Ababa Bole International Airport at 06:45. Return flights depart Addis Ababa at 00:45 and arrive in Manchester at 07:20 and are scheduled to provide convenient connectivity with flights to and from other African destinations.
The airline celebrated the one-year service milestone by hosting a special celebration at terminal 2 check in for passengers and extended guests on the afternoon of the 12th December before the anniversary flight departed at 1805. There were also celebrations at the departure gate providing traditional Ethiopian hospitality and commemorative gifts for passengers.
