Ethiopian Airlines, the largest airline in Africa, is prepared to renew its codeshare arrangement with the recently privatised Air India. Over the years, the airline has been fairly aggressive in expanding its network in India and has benefited from a sizable influx of connecting customers from that nation.
Ethiopian Airlines and Air India are actively negotiating to renew their codeshare arrangement. The two airlines first agreed on the partnership in 2011, but because to operational issues, it was suspended just before the pandemic. The African carrier believes the moment is perfect to renew the connection with AI now that the markets have opened up again following COVID.
Lemma Yadecha Gudeta, the chief commercial officer of Ethiopian, told The Hindu Business Line that he spoke with representatives of Air India at the last IATA Annual General Meeting in Doha, and that they were enthusiastic about preserving the partnership.
Ethiopian has its sights set on other Indian airlines in addition to Air India. The airline hopes to draw as many Indian travellers as possible to its principal hub at Addis Abeba Bole International Airport for flight connections.
With Indian low-cost carriers like SpiceJet and IndiGo, the carrier hopes to establish business alliances. Ethiopian Airlines is also evaluating the viability of locating its facilities for aircraft maintenance, repair, and overhaul in the nation.
