Ethiopian Airlines makes $175m profit, more than all airlines in Africa

Ethiopian Airlines is living true to its reputation as the leading airline business in Africa. Last week when the state-owned airline announced its profit for the 2014/2015 fiscal year, it made a total of $175 million, and this is more than the profit made by all airlines in Africa combined.

According to a report by CCTV Africa, the carrier is planning to increase its fleet to 140 planes by 2025 when it expects to be generating over $10 billion on annual revenue. The airline currently has 76 planes and recently announced plans to increase this by 60 percent by buying 44 new aircraft.

A report by the AFKInsider says while other major African airlines, including Kenya Airways and South African Airways, make huge loses, Ethiopian Airlines has grown its revenue and expanded its routes to become the most networked carrier on the continent.

Collectively, the report says other African Airlines are expected to post a profit of barely $100 million the lowest of all regions, according to the International Air Transport Industry Association (IATA). They are also expected to see the slowest growth among developing markets with capacity and demand expansion of 3.3 per cent and 3.2 per cent respectively this year.

In 2012, Ethiopian became the second airline in the world and first in Africa to own and operate the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The airline says it operates 13 Dreamliner planes as at June 2015.

By Emmanuel K. Dogbevi