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A week ago Simple Flying reported that Ethiopian Airlines was launching a national airline for Zambia. Along with its plans for expansion, Ethiopian will also be launching a national airline for Chad.

Ethiopian Airlines is Africa’s leading airline, flying B787 aircraft to the likes of London, Dublin, and Madrid. The flag carrier of Ethiopia, the airline was founded in 1945. It is currently headquartered in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital city. The airline has a total fleet size of over 100, with some of the newest aircraft available, such as the B737-MAX and the Airbus A350.

About Chad

The Republic of Chad is located in the centre of Africa. The population of Chad exploded in half a century from 2.6m in 1950 to 7.6m in 2000. In the following 15 years, the population of the country almost doubled again. The country currently has no national airline, making it the perfect place for Ethiopian Airlines to launch a new airline.

Ethiopian’s Plans

Similar to the arrangement with the Zambian government, Ethiopian Airlines has funded just under half of the airline, with the national government footing the other half. The Chadian Government owns 51% of the venture, with Ethiopian Airlines owning the other 49%, meaning that the government has the controlling say in the airline.

Starting up slightly earlier than its Zambian sister, Chadian Airlines aims to launch operations in just over a month on the 1st October. Initially launching with a few domestic routes, the airline will gradually expand to the rest of Africa. In the future, it will then expand further afield to Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. The base for the airline’s operations will be Chad’s N’Djamena International Airport. Mr. Tewolde GebreMariam, Group CEO of Ethiopian Airlines commented:

The strategic equity partnership in the launching of the new Chad national carrier is part of our Vision 2025 multiple hub strategy in Africa. The new Chad national carrier will serve as a strong hub in Central Africa availing domestic, regional and eventually international air connectivity to the major destinations in the Middle East, Europe and Asia.

Many National Carriers

Along with being the national carrier of Ethiopia, Ethiopian Airways has also launched national airlines in Malawi, Zambia, and Guinea, as well as this new undertaking in Chad. Additionally the airline is making plans to launch a carrier in Mozambique. This is part of Ethiopian Airways’ growth strategy for the next 15 years. The strategy is called Vision 2025.

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Through its multiple hubs strategy in Africa, Ethiopian currently operates hubs in Lomé (Togo) with ASKY Airlines and Malawian in Lilongwe (Malawi), while having the already acquired stakes in Zambia’s and Guinea’s national carriers and making preparations to launch Ethiopian Mozambique Airlines.

The Future

While 2025 is still over 6 years away, it is clear that Ethiopian is continuing with its rapid expansion. Almost certainly, domination of the African aviation market is getting closer. Launching an airline in Chad is just a part of this plan.