ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES READY TO LAUNCH FLIGHTS TO THE COMOROS
(Posted 23rd September 2016)
Flights from Addis Ababa to Moroni / Comoros are thought to be a major boost for trade and travel to and from these Indian Ocean islands, which are presently among the least connected among the Vanilla Island group.
The initial three times a week service will from the end of October route via Dar es Salaam, using a Boeing B737-800NG with a dual cabin layout of Business Class and Economy Class.
CEO Tewolde Gebremariam reaffirmed his airline’s commitment to be the number one Pan African Airline and that Ethiopian’s commitment to connect Africa via Addis Ababa will continue until all political and commercial capitals are served by ET.
It was incidentally off the shores of the Comoros that on 23rd November 1996 a hijacked Ethiopian Airlines Boeing B767 ran out of fuel and only the skills of the pilots averted all on board to be killed with 50 passengers and crew surviving the fast impact on the choppy waters of the Indian Ocean. Captain Leul Abate, who was in command of the flight, gained global prominence as he was probably the only pilot in the world to survive this and two previous hijackings even though he credited his copilot for fighting the terrorists, thus giving him time to avoid a nosedive crash.
