Ethiopian, the Fastest Growing Airline in Africa, to Launch Flights to Toronto - 18 May, 2012

Ethiopian Airlines, by far the fastest growing airline in Africa, is pleased to announce new flights from Addis Ababa to Toronto. The first flight will operate on 16 July 2012.

This new flight will be the only regularly scheduled non-stop flights from Toronto to the African continent. The flight will be operated with Ethiopian’s brand new and ultra-modern B777-200LR aircraft, configured with 34 seats in Ethiopian’s luxurious Cloud Nine business class and 287 seats in economy class.

The new flight will operate twice a week with the following schedule:

Ethiopian was unable to start with more than 2 flights per week due to bilateral limitations, but plans to immediately increase the frequency once approval is obtained. Mr. Tewolde GebreMariam, CEO of Ethiopian Airlines said, "It has been our vision to connect Toronto with our hub, Addis, and to the rest of the world. Now, Ethiopian is committed to start services to the exciting market of Toronto twice a week, introducing a new route between Africa and Canada. By adding Toronto to our network, Ethiopian reinforces the ties between Canada and Ethiopia enhancing trade and investment."

Toronto will be Ethiopian’s 67th international destination, and second in the Americas. With this new flight, Toronto will be connected to dozens of cities in Africa via Ethiopian’s hub at Addis Ababa, including Johannesburg, Nairobi, Dar es Salaam, Kigali, Lusaka, Bujumbura, the Seychelles, Douala, Kinshasa, and Harare.

Passengers traveling from cities such as Montreal, Edmonton, Calgary, Vancouver, Boston, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, and San Francisco will find convenient connections via Toronto using Ethiopian’s partner Air Canada on the new flight. As Ethiopian is a member of the Star Alliance, members of Air Canada’s Aeroplan program will be able to earn miles on this and any flight operated by Ethiopian Airlines.

About Ethiopian

Ethiopian Airlines, the fastest growing airline in Africa, made its maiden international flight to Cairo in 1946 and now the Airline provides dependable services to 65 international destinations spanning four continents.

Ethiopian is proud to be a Star Alliance Member. The Star Alliance network is the leading global airline network offering customers convenient worldwide reach and a smoother travel experience. The Star Alliance network offers more than 20,000 daily flights to 1,293 airports in 190 countries.

Ethiopian is a multi-award winner for its commitment and contributions towards the development and growth of the African aviation industry and in recognition of its distinguished long-haul operations enhanced by the introduction of new routes and products. Recently, Ethiopian won gold in the African Airline of the Year 2011/2012 Awards organized by the African Aviation News Portal. Ethiopian also received the 2011 AFRAA award for being consistently profitable over the years and has won the "AFRICAN CARGO AIRLINE OF THE YEAR 2011 Award” for its excellence in air cargo. Ethiopian also won the NEPAD Transport Infrastructure Excellence Awards 2009 and "the Airline of the Year 2009 Award" from the African Airlines Association (AFRAA).

With its acquisition of and firm orders for several new modern fleet, the airline is well positioned to pursue aggressively the implementation of its 2025 strategic plan to become the leading aviation group in Africa.