Ethiopian Airlines returns to Changi Airport in March 2023

SINGAPORE, 16 December 2022 – Changi Airport Group (CAG) and Ethiopian Airlines today announced the airline’s return to Changi Airport on 25 March 2023, with four weekly services between Singapore and Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. Addis Ababa is a unique city link for Changi Airport.

The leading African flag carrier – voted “Best Airline in Africa” for five consecutive years[1] – will utilise a 270-seat Boeing 787-8 aircraft in a two-class configuration on the service, which will have a tag-on to and from Kuala Lumpur.

Mr Lim Ching Kiat, CAG’s Managing Director of Air Hub Development, said, “We are thrilled to welcome Ethiopian Airlines to Changi Airport again. Ethiopian Airlines has been consistently voted as the Best Airline in Africa, and the network from its Addis Ababa hub connects with more than 60 destinations on the African continent. The flight between Singapore and Ethiopia will offer more travel options for passengers from our region to Africa. For many Singaporeans, Ethiopia could also be an exciting new vacation destination as it boasts many attractions ranging from historic sites such as Axum to breathtaking natural geography such as the Simien Mountains and Blue Nile falls.”

Mr Mesfin Tasew, Ethiopian Airlines Group Chief Executive Officer said, “We are delighted to continue our service to Singapore, which was suspended in March 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The flight will further expand our network in Asia and create air connectivity for passengers travelling between Africa and Singapore. The new flight will also facilitate trade, investment, and tourism ties between Africa and Singapore. In line with our plan for growing our network around the world, we will keep on opening new routes to enhance connectivity between Africa and the rest of the world via Addis Ababa.”

Before the pandemic, passenger traffic between Africa and Southeast Asia grew steadily between 2015 and 2019[3]. More than 1.4 million passengers travelled between these two regions in 2019 alone, an increase of about 30% from 2015. Passenger traffic between Africa and Southwest Pacific similarly registered steady growth between 2015 and 2019[4], with over 600,000 passengers for 2019, a 14% growth from 2015.

Trade and collaboration between Africa and Singapore have been expanding too. The African continent is one of the world’s fastest growing regions, with investments from Singapore into Africa rising from US$17 billion to US$20 billion from 2015 to 2019[5].

On the air cargo front, in the first nine months of 2022, airfreight carried between Singapore and Africa reached 79% of pre-Covid levels. Inbound cargo consists of semiconductor components, agriculture machinery parts and perishable goods such as food, while outbound cargo comprises mainly semiconductor goods.

Ethiopian Airlines last operated its passenger services to Changi Airport from June 2017 to March 2020. In 2019, Ethiopian Airlines contributed about 69,000 passenger movements to Changi Airport, a 3% increase from the preceding year. While it suspended its services due to the pandemic and border closures, it continued to operate ad-hoc Passenger Aircraft Carrying Cargo services.