► MALAWI: Ethiopian Airlines unveil Lilongwe as Southern African hub.

In a predictable follow on to its recent announcement of the launch of a renewed Malawian national carrier, dubbed Malawi Airlines, Ethiopian Airlines (ET) has officially unveiled Lilongwe as the location for its Southern African hub.

In a statement marking the occasion, Ethiopian Airlines said the new partnership with Malawi is part of the airline's Vision 2025 longterm vision and that as a direct result of this strategic partnership, Lilongwe will become Ethiopian's third hub on the continent after its main hub in Addis Ababa and its Lomé, Togo West African hub; home-base for ASKY Airlines (KP).

"The establishment of multiple hubs in Africa is an overarching strategy of our Vision 2025. We have participated in the establishment of a regional airline in West Africa, ASKY, which has been quite successful. I am confident that our new partnership with Malawi Airlines will also be successful and will greatly benefit the travelling public in the Southern Africa region,” said Tewolde Gebremariam, CEO of Ethiopian.

Ethiopian Airlines with Malawian Airlines'
predecessor, Air Malawi, in Lilongwe (ffield)

From the Ethiopian carrier's point of view, owing to the African economic boom, demand for air travel is growing at a much faster pace than the global average which, in conjunction with uneven competition from large foreign carriers that currently dominate the African market, cannot be overcome by one single African airline. Therefore, for indigenous African airlines to succeed and get their fare share of the market, partnerships between them are a must.

Ethiopian and Malawi Airlines will harmonize their flight schedules so as to provide seamless and best connectivity options for travellers within, to and from the Southern Africa region.

As per its Vision 2025 multiple African hubs stratagem, Ethiopian Airlines aims to set up hubs in all regions of the continent and to become the leading aviation group in Africa generating 10 billion dollars in annual revenue by 2025.

Ethiopian had originally announced plans to set up shop in Zambia where negotiations with Lusaka were said to be ongoing regarding the possibility of setting up a similar joint venture airline to replace the defunct Zambia Airways (QZ). 

The Central African hub is slated to be in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo.