Ethiopian Airlines (ET)

Ethiopian Airlines is Africa’s largest airline and a Star Alliance member. Hub: Addis Ababa Bole International Airport (ADD). It operates one of the densest networks on the continent, with strong domestic coverage in Ethiopia and extensive international links across Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and the Americas. Fleet includes Bombardier Q400 turboprops (domestic), Boeing 737s, 787 Dreamliners, Airbus A350s, and wide-body freighters.

Domestic (Local) Routes – Ethiopia

Ethiopian operates ~25 domestic destinations from Addis Ababa (and some secondary points). Key routes include:

Destination	Notes
Bahir Dar (BJR)	High frequency
Gondar (GDQ)	Popular tourist route
Lalibela (LLI)	UNESCO rock-hewn churches
Mekelle (MQX)	Regular service
Dire Dawa (DIR)	Multiple daily
Axum (AXU), Jimma (JIM), Hawassa (AWA), Arba Minch (AMH), Jijiga (JIJ), Asosa (ASO), Gambela, Shire, Kombolcha/Dessie, and others	Q400 turboprop operations

Recent expansions (2026) added or planned routes to places such as Debre Markos, Gore/Negele Borena, and further points, bringing the domestic network toward 25–27 destinations.

Sample domestic fares (Economy, highly variable):
Short domestic hops often start from low-to-mid tens of thousands of Ethiopian Birr (ETB) one-way or round-trip on promotional dates. Exact prices fluctuate strongly with demand and booking window.

International Routes

Ethiopian serves more than 60 African cities and over 145 international passenger + cargo destinations overall (one of the largest African networks).

Key African destinations (strong connectivity relevant to Kenyan travellers):
Nairobi (NBO), Mombasa (MBA), Entebbe (EBB), Dar es Salaam (DAR), Zanzibar (ZNZ), Kigali (KGL), Kilimanjaro (JRO), Johannesburg (JNB), Cape Town (CPT), Lagos (LOS), Accra (ACC), Kinshasa (FIH), Lusaka, Harare, Maputo, Beira, Nacala (new in Oct 2026), Djibouti, Juba, and many more across West, Central, East and Southern Africa.

Europe: London (Heathrow & Gatwick), Paris (CDG), Frankfurt, Rome, Milan, Brussels, Amsterdam area connections, Vienna, Madrid, Manchester, Lyon, etc.

Middle East & Asia: Dubai (DXB – high frequency), Jeddah, Riyadh, Doha, Mumbai, Delhi, Bangkok, Guangzhou, Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Seoul, Tokyo, and others.

Americas: Washington (IAD), New York area (via connections or direct variants), Chicago, Atlanta, Toronto, São Paulo, Buenos Aires.

Frequencies are high on trunk African and Middle East routes (multiple daily on key city pairs such as Dubai and major East African points).

Sample fares relevant to Kenyan travellers (Economy round-trip starting points observed recently – very date-sensitive):

• Nairobi (NBO) ↔ Addis Ababa (ADD): from ~KES 70,000–100,000+
• Mombasa ↔ Addis Ababa: promotional levels sometimes lower
• Longer African or intercontinental routes vary widely (often mid-to-high five-figure or six-figure KES depending on destination and season).

Business Class is significantly higher. Ethiopian frequently runs promotions; check the official site for current offers.