adminConrad Mwanawashe Harare Bureau
THE largest airline in Africa, Ethiopian Airlines is targeting to fly 18 million passengers globally from the current six million and increase aircraft to 140 from the current 66 by 2025. In its Vision 2025, the airline targets to move 820,000 tonnes of cargo from the current 200,000 tonnes.
The airline also targets to increase revenue to $10 billion with a profit of $1 billion by 2025. Currently Ethiopian Airlines is collecting about $2 billion in revenue.
“By 2025, we plan to fly to more than 100 international and 26 domestic destinations from the current 82 international destinations,” Zimbabwe Country Manager Mrs Almaz Yigzaw said.
The airline, which flies daily into Harare is planning to introduce flights to Victoria Falls if the government grants permission as the airline sees “a bright future” in Zimbabwe.
Ethiopian Airlines last week took delivery of its ninth 787 Dreamliner, dubbed “Great Wall of China”. The airline was the first outside Japan to receive the ultramodern aircraft back in August 2012 and currently operates the largest 787 fleet in the continent.
The Ethiopian 787 offers unique features, which enhances passenger comfort such as greatly reduced noise, higher cabin humidity, biggest windows in the sky, lighting adaptable to the outside environment, wider aisles, more headroom and more seating flexibility.
It flies to China, India, Europe, the United States of America, Brazil and Africa.
The airline plans to continue to expand the 787 destinations. Ethiopian Airlines’ aviation school recently joined IATA’s global training partner network as an IATA Authorised Training Centre. The Ethiopian Aviation Academy attained the recognition following the evaluation of its successful application to become an IATA Authorised Training Centre by the IATA Training and Development Institute and the IATA regional office. The authorisation allows the aviation academy to deliver additional training programmes; the IATA International Travel and Tourism Training programme and the Foundation in Travel and Tourism.
Chief executive officer of Ethiopian Airlines Mr Tewolde Gebremariam said the recognition is the result of the continuous heavy investment in human resource development, a critical pillar of the Vision 2015.
“In the last four years alone, we have invested more than 80 million dollars to expand both the scope of the training and the in-take capacity of the academy. Today, our academy receives more than 1,000 students per year to train as pilots, aircraft technicians, cabin crew, marketing and finance personnel, customer service agents as well as aviation leaders,” Mr Gebremariam said.
The airline plans to increase the in-take capacity to 4,000 by 2025.
derick.khumalo