Ethiopian Airlines is doubling down on its ambition to be Africa’s dominant carrier and a global player. In 2029, it plans to open a $10bn mega-airport in Bishoftu, 45km from Addis Ababa.

With four runways, space for 270 aircraft and capacity for 100 million passengers a year, it will dwarf its current base, Bole International, which handles around 25 million.

The project underscores the flag-carrier’s momentum. In 2024-2025, it carried 19 million passengers and took in $7.6bn in revenue.

“Their strategy has always been to be the continent’s main hub – and they’re executing it exactly as intended,” says Sylvain Bosc, an aviation consultant.

Clear skies at home

Ethiopian Airlines’ African rivals are weak. South African Airways (SAA), once the continent’s leader, was gutted by corruption and mismanagement. Kenya Airways remains shackled by debt and security concerns after a 2013 terrorist attack in Nairobi.

Outside a handful of mid-sized players such as Royal Air Maroc, Egyptair and Air Algérie, most African airlines cannot afford to add new routes. That leaves Ethiopian with little competition for intra-African traffic.

The Bishoftu hub will be 20% funded by Ethiopian, with the rest coming from foreign lenders. The African Development Bank has pledged $500m and is arranging a further $7bn.

To fill its hub, Ethiopian has built a small empire of stakes in other African airlines: 49% of Malawi Airlines, 45% of Zambia Airways and 40% of Asky Airlines in Togo.

Most exist to feed Addis Ababa-bound traffic rather than to develop as strong carriers in their own right. Asky is the exception, connecting West African capitals, but it will not be allowed to fly long-haul to Europe in competition with its part-owner.

Pushing into Asia and the Gulf

Ethiopian’s growth is being held back by Boeing. The airline is still waiting for 53 aircraft from recent orders, including a dozen wide-bodies. Mesfin Tasew, its chief executive, has publicly accused Boeing of “sleeping” and is now eyeing Airbus and Embraer models. The aim is to expand the fleet from 162 aircraft today to 270 by 2035.

In aviation, nothing is guaranteed – especially in Africa

In the meantime, Ethiopian is pushing into Asia and the Gulf – territory dominated by Emirates, Qatar Airways and Turkish Airlines. Sitting astride the Africa-Asia corridor, these carriers offer slick service and deep route networks, ranking among Skytrax’s top 10 airlines for 2025. Ethiopian is 38th.

They are also buying into Africa: Qatar Airways holds stakes in RwandAir and Malawi Airlines; Emirates partners with Kenya Airways; Turkish Airlines is growing in West Africa through code-share deals, including with Air Algérie.

Ethiopian Airlines has begun to respond. In July, it launched a daily Addis-Abu Dhabi service through a code-share with Etihad. But the competition is fierce. “Gulf carriers and Turkish Airlines are powerful, aggressive and competitive,” says Bosc. “For Asia-bound traffic, they are especially strong.”

Can Ethiopian hold its ground? “In aviation, nothing is guaranteed – especially in Africa,” says Bosc.

The fall of SAA and the collapse of Comair after the Covid pandemic are reminders that even giants can topple. For now, Ethiopian is fighting for every Africa-Asia passenger it can get.