Ethiopian Awarded ‘Best Airline in Nigeria’ by the National Association of Nigerian Travel Agents-24 March, 2016

Ethiopian Airlines, the largest airline in Africa, was chosen as the Best Airline in Nigeria by the National Association of Nigerian Travel Agents (NANTA) on 17 March 2016. The ceremony took place at the Association’s 40th annual general meeting at Premier Hotel Ibadan.

The 1500 members of the Association voted and Ethiopian got the majority vote to win the award. The Ethiopian Airlines Area Manager for Nigeria, Mr. Solomon Begashaw, was presented with the award by former NANTA President, Alhaji Aminu.

In his acceptance speech Mr Begashaw spoke about the values of Ethiopian Airlines, in particular the pan-African ideals at the core of Ethiopian, passenger safety above all else, hard work, and skills development. He said the airline was working hard to continue improving its services.

Mr. Begashaw announced that traveller seeking Ethiopian visas can get them with the help of registered tour operators in Nigeria, and need not visit the Ethiopian embassy in Abuja. Ethiopia, the home of the African Union (AU), is spearheading the AU plan to make travel easier for Africans around Africa. Under the new arrangement tour operators will be able to approach the embassy on behalf of their clients, removing an obstacle in the way of travellers and tourists. Ethiopia wants to encourage tourists to visit the country. It has a rich history and the largest number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Africa. This simplification of the visa process for Nigerians is one way Ethiopia in encouraging tourism.  

Ethiopian Airlines has been flying to Nigeria since 1960. Today ET flies to Lagos, Abuja, Enugu and Kano.

This award enhances what is already a year of celebration for Ethiopian Airlines. 2016 is the year of Ethiopian’s 70th anniversary. As part of the celebrations the airlines has already inaugurated its renovated and expanded Aviation Academy and in early March there was a week of facility tours that opened Ethiopian up to business leaders, politicians and other notable people to share the expertise and best business practices that make the company Africa’s most profitable airline.

About Ethiopian

Ethiopian Airlines (Ethiopian) is the fastest growing Airline in Africa. In its seven decades of operations, Ethiopian has become one of the continent’s leading carriers, unrivalled in efficiency and operational success.

Ethiopian commands the lion share of the pan-African passenger and cargo network operating the youngest and most modern fleet to 92 international destinations across five continents. Ethiopian fleet includes ultra-modern and environmentally friendly aircraft such as the Boeing 787, Boeing 777-300ER, Boeing 777-200LR, Boeing 777-200 Freighter, Bombardier Q-400 double cabin with an average fleet age of five years. In fact, Ethiopian is the first airline in Africa to own and operate these aircraft.

Ethiopian is currently implementing a 15-year strategic plan called Vision 2025 that will see it become the leading aviation group in Africa with seven business centers: Ethiopian Domestic and Regional Airline; Ethiopian International Passenger Airline; Ethiopian Cargo; Ethiopian MRO; Ethiopian Aviation Academy; Ethiopian In-flight Catering Services; and Ethiopian Ground Service. Ethiopian is a multi-award winning airline registering an average growth of 25% in the past seven years.

For more information about this press release, please contact:

Mrs. Hanna Atnafu

Manager Corporate Communications

Ethiopian Airlines

Tel: (251-1) 517-89-07/656/165/913/529

publicrelations@ethiopianairlines.com

www.ethiopianairlines.com

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www.twitter.com/flyethiopian