Flight ET 684 of Ethiopian Airlines arrives at Pudong International Airport in east China’s Shanghai, March 30, 2014. /Xinhua Editors Note: Stephen Ndegwa is a Nairobi-based communications consultant and international affairs columnist. The article reflects the author’s views, and not necessarily those of CGTN.
Thousands of airlines the world over have not flown in the last couple of months. From high-cost airlines to low-cost flights, planes have been grounded, as international, regional, and even national routes remain cancelled.
But even at a time when it still looks like it has to get worse before getting better, the Ethiopian Airlines Group made a surprise announcement. During an interview on May 5, company CEO Tewolde GebreMariam said that the Group is in talks with Mauritius and South Africa to revive their insolvent airlines.
"The Mauritian government is thinking of restarting that business with Ethiopian Airlines. We are at the initial point of the discussion to see what kind of partnership or joint venture it will be."
Although there were no proposals on the table with South Africa yet, GebreMariam said Ethiopian was willing to hold negotiations aimed at reviving the country’s bankrupt airline. South Africa Airways is also embroiled in a tussle between various stakeholders about its ownership.
It seems like the COVID-19 pandemic has just handed Ethiopian Airlines an opportunity to follow up on its vision of becoming the leading Africa airline by 2025.
In January 2018, Ethiopian bought a 45 percent stake in Zambia Airways, and was in talks for the revival of Ghana Airways. Ethiopian also operates Malawian Airlines and is in partnership with the privately owned ASKY Airlines in Togo.
Indeed, the biggest airlines in Africa are reeling from the devastating economic effects of coronavirus. Kenya Airways, the sixth largest airline on the continent, has occasionally asked the country’s government for an urgent bailout to avoid going into bankruptcy, and protect the jobs of 3,900 employees. In July 2019, the Kenyan parliament voted to re-nationalize the airline, 23 years after it was privatized.
Another of Africa’s top 10 airlines, Nigeria’s Arik Air, went under receivership in February 2017, after it was unable to pay both its workers and creditors. Although the huge potential for African airlines has been well documented, Aviation Business News cites several challenges that hinder their financial take-off. These include high taxation, high cost of fuel (which is around 35 percent higher than other regions), and the lack of an integrated […]