[FDOS]

Comparing ET to AA, which with 957 aircraft versus ET’s 146 I would argue they are not statistically similar enough to compare

I don’t wish to take over EasternPedlars thread in an attempt to re-run Stats 101, so will just leave it by saying it is not the fleet sizes, it is the number of flights over a period of 50 years or more that makes for sample sizes that are clearly statistically significant, in the context of commercial air transport.

Given this rich data set, one could develop a null hypothesis and a hypothesis to analyse and compare.

I think this particular branch has come to its end.

Hope you have a super trip, @Eastern Pedlar.

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EasternPedlar

[alistairNicoll]

I transited Addis in December and again on the way back in January. Travelling business class I was very pleasantly surprised by the efficiency of the airport although my transit times were somewhat longer and I took advantage of the free stopover package which again was very efficient. With a short transfer one possible issue is that many flights require a bus transfer to the terminal which if you are late could be nerve racking.

If you are fortunate to get one of their planes in 1-2-1 layout enjoy.

As far as the debate about safety I had and have no problem in choosing Ethiopian. I sure every airline with the 737 max considered themselves very lucky that it was not one of their planes and I don’t recall any evidence of poor maintenance or training issues with Ethiopian indeed I believe they have very high standards

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EasternPedlar, LetsFlyNow, FDOS

[michaelj2]

One thing to bear in mind with ET is that tend to change the scheduled aircraft quite frequently so you may book on a A350 late model but may find yourself on an earlier version or a 787 or even a 777

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EasternPedlar

[TimFitzgeraldTC]

Have clients who work all over Africa and Ethiopian is the airline of choice for many staff on the projects they undertake. Take them over Air France / SN Brussels / Lufthansa / Turkish (should these carriers operate on the routes they need) should the ET schedules and fares be reasonable.

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EasternPedlar

[ChrisJR]

I have flown Ethiopian through Addis on a number of occasions over the last 10 years on business class flights to West, East and Southern Africa. It was always the best value (sorry, lowest prices!) and my company would not have paid the fares for other carriers. My experiences were generally not good. Starting with Bola as a transit airport – it is small and during the 8-11am rush, it is totally packed. The Start Alliance and Ethiopian BC lounges are packed, and the breakfast food offering is not great. Security screening is a scrummage. The last time I traveled through on my way to Nigeria, someone tried to steal my laptop bag at the security scanners. It had my phone, passport and wallet in it, not to mention other valuables. It was a 1 in 50 chance that I spotted the perpetrator and managed to wrestle my belongings back. The security staff were incompetent and didnt help at all.

As an airline, personally I would avoid Ethiopian. As others have noted, they swap planes at the last minute. I was scheduled on a new 787 from Kano to Bola and they swapped it to a crappy old 767 at the last minute. The BC seat I had was broken (wouldn’t recline fully, and the cushioning was totally worn). Some crew are unprofessional, and I have had instances where a flight with two pilots, one would come out and sleep in the BC cabin leaving only one pilot plus one cabin crew on the flight deck for over an hour. I do not believe they are in control of the check-in, baggage and boarding at some of their destination airports like the European carriers are. Damming as this may be, they are probably the best African airline I have flown. But these days, I would prefer to pay the extra and fly through the middle east or one of the European carries (e.g. LH or Brussels who have good African networks).

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[Jacqueline]

I have flown frequently with Ethiopian Airlines the last couple of years between the UK and Botswana. Have found them organised, efficient and courteous. As long as the transfer time is acknowledged on their website then you should be fine. Addis Ababa airport is heaving and extremely busy most times but somehow they seem to get the right people on the right planes! I have, admittedly, been flying business class which has helped. The scale and logistics of their operations is quite amazing.

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EasternPedlar

[EasternPedlar]

Back from my trip, and I thought that I’d share some feedback

– I flew on 4 different types of aircraft – 777-200 (old, shabby, 2-3-2 in business, but still a spacious and comfortable flat bed), 737-Max 8 (new, 2-2 recliners in business, a smooth flight), 787-9 ( very new plane, 1-2-1 in business, excellent flat beds, extremely comfortable) and the A350 (good condition, 2-2-2 flat beds, a little cramped though). The 787-9 was a winner.

– As mentioned by ChrisJR they tend to change aircraft at the last minute. The 777-200 flight was supposed to operate with an A350, but that got changed unexpectedly. I suppose the experience could have been worse if they sent one of their 777-300s as those apparently have angled beds.

– All flights were reasonably punctual, and the aircraft were neat and clean. No strange noises, no rattling, nothing that would unnerve a passenger.

– The food was decent with a choice of 4 mains, but nothing remarkable.

– Service was pleasant but on 2 of the flights the crew vanished after the meal service and didn’t keep an eye on the cabin thereafter. If you needed something, you had to go find them. On one flight the cabin service director was very proactive, and we were well looked after.

– Bole has a relatively new terminal which is quite spacious. They have a large lounge with a range of food options, including an Ethiopian food counter. The lounge was very busy, tables were being shared, but the seating was comfortable and one could find space after a bit of a search.

– Bole is very busy in the mornings and evenings when all the connections take place. I had plenty of time so there was no stress, but some passengers were cutting through the queue as their flights were about to leave. I’d say they are fairly efficient at managing the crowds and the experience was no worse than transiting Heathrow! Passengers to the UK, US & Canada go through a full second security screening, which is a nuisance!

– ET has a formidable network throughout Africa and good connections to other continents. I can imagine that they offer the best routing to a number of cities.

– Regrettably I got no FFP points flights as the lowest Business Class RBD – P – is ineligible. I was quite upset when I found out!

In summary, they are a value for money carrier, mostly nice planes, decent service and edible food, but no frills. Fly them if they are substantially cheaper or if they offer flights that save you time and trouble. Bear in mind the risk that you might not get to fly the advertised equipment.

Manny thanks for all the contributions to this thread!

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AndrewinHK, cwoodward, sparkyflier, LetsFlyNow

[cwoodward]

That was a very informative and helpful thread and a great final report Eastern Pedlar -tks
I would have previously avoided Ethiopian but will now give them a try.

On the other side of the continent I see that the second largest African airline ‘Royal Air Moroc (OW) has finally placed a long awaited tender to all 4 major manufacturers for 200 new aircraft, most large medium size Jets but smaller aircraft also.

Currently the airline has 50 aircraft and is seemingly struggling to maintain its expanding network and needing short and wet lease aircraft.
I will be interested to see where this airline is in 4-5 years time as a couple of years back there was a fair amount of ‘noise’ re them flying long haul to Asia (Cathey were one of their OW sponsors).

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EasternPedlar

[sparkyflier]

EasternPedlar – great to read your feedback on ET. But away from that how was Victoria Falls? As good as expected? Any hotel tips? Did you cross the border to the Zambian side? Was the border crossing easy? Hope all was good for you!

[EasternPedlar]

@sparkyflier Victoria Falls was an amazing sight, especially as water levels are high in April, and the Falls were in full spate. I definitely recommend seeing them from the Zambian as well as Zimbabwean sides as the experiences are different. Zimbabwe issues a visa called the Kaza visa which allows multiple entries for a month and with this it is extremely easy to travel between the two countries.

The Victoria Falls Hotel is a splendid colonial property with great views of the gorges, and I recommend staying there if your budget will allow. Mine didn’t, so I stayed at a very nice lodge but went to the Victoria Falls Hotel for dinner and a cultural show, which I enjoyed. Zimbabwe uses the US Dollar as its currency, so it is expensive there compared to the neighbouring countries and especially vs South Africa!

I also went on a day safari to the Chobe National Park in Botswana, and on some other excursions, so my 4 days in Victoria Falls were well utilised.

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AndrewinHK

[sparkyflier]

Great to hear! Useful feedback. Can I ask which lodge you used? Good to recommend?

And just some queries re the ET service..

Did they give out menu cards and was there an inflight magazine?

And on the 789 did you have complete control of the window? 787s have dimmable windows which some airlines allow the cabin crew to control. But for me not being able to look out the window flying over Africa would be a crime (if people want to sleep use they can use eye masks!). So my query is if you had complete control over how dimmed the window was…more relevant if it was a day flight!

Thank you for your feedback so far! And as I originally mentioned April is a great time to go and glad you saw the Zambian side too.

[EasternPedlar]

@sparkyflyer Yes there were elaborate menus provided, and there were two inflight magazines from what I remember. I’m afraid I had a middle seat on the 789, so I can’t tell you about the window controls. I stayed at a lodge called Pamarah Lodge, and was very comfortable there. I researched them on Tripadvisor before booking, and there were other well-rated lodges in the vicinity, so you can look there too.

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sparkyflier

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