BY NDUMBE BELL GASTON IN DOUALA
Reliable sources of the corporate communications Division of the Ethiopian Airlines, said to be the largest carrier in the continent, say they will start services to Jakarta, Indonesia in June 2017 with one of the most recent ultra-modern Boeing 787-800.
Following their release of December 21 confirming this, their top officials say Africa as a whole stands to prosper from this development through tourism and trade ties from a country which is known to be the fourth most populous country in the world and one of the major economies in Asia. Jakarta is Indonesia’s economic, cultural and political hub and the nation, they add, is made up of over 13.000 islands.
The Ethiopian, as it is fondly called, which is reportedly known to command the lion’s share of the Pan-African passenger and cargo network with the youngest and most modern fleet, has an average aircraft age of less than five years serving more than 90 international destinations across 5 continents with over 240 daily departures and they are working very hard to connect Africa with the major trading centres of the world.
The Ethiopian’s Group CEO Tewolde GebreMariam commented on the envisaged launch, <As the fastest growing airline in Africa, Ethiopian is pleased to offer the opportunity to business people as well as tourists to explore Jakarta’s potential both for investment and leisure. This move will further increase our presence in Asia connecting Africa to the Asian region and in turn, strengthening the tourism and trade ties between the peoples of Africa and Asia> Moreover, the CEO assured <pilgrims and the West African community residing in Indonesia will be enjoying hassle-free connections to Ethiopia’s vast African network via it’s hub at Addis Ababa. Ethiopian Airlines is working very hard to connect Africa with the major trading centres of the World and Jakarta, Indonesia, is one of them.>