The Emergent African Airline – RL Vol XII No 351 MMXVIII

The Emergent African Airline –

 Ethiopian Airlines, ‘Going to Great Lengths to Please’

Lecture at the Africa open skies agreement, African Union preparatory summit

Public Lecture - RL Vol XII No 351 MMXVIII

Costantinos Berhutesfa Costantinos, PhD

Professor of Public Policy & Sustainable Institutional Reforms

https://addisababa.academia.edu/CostyCostantinos

Abstract

Ethiopian Airlines is Ethiopia's flag carrier^] and is wholly owned by the country's government. Ethiopian Airlines was founded on 21 December 1945 with an initial investment of USD one million with shares that were entirely held by the government. It commenced operations on 8 April 1946. It expanded to international flights in 1951. The firm became a share company in 1965. The airline has been a member of the International Air Transport Association since 1959 and of the African Airlines Association since 1968. Ethiopian is a Star Alliance member, having joined in December 2011. Ethiopian Airline’s 70-year history can be divided into two phases: the first 60 years, when there was steady if unspectacular growth, and the next decade, when, following the first posted loss after the conclusion of the war with Eritrea, the company enjoyed a strategic turnaround. As a result of a “strategic analysis”, the airline then developed its Vision 2010, “which repositioned the airline” driven by the objective of transforming turnover from $400-million in 2005 to $1-billion within five years. This was to be achieved by a “revamped network”, with a “morning bank” of about 52 flights to African destinations and an “evening bank” when these, apart from those west of Togo, would return and go out “again to the Middle East, Europe, Asia and the Americas”. The airline’s strategy, says its Tewolde, its CEO, is broken up into a number of different pillars: affordability and sustainability, the maintenance of global standards at the lowest possible costs, the maintenance of global standards at the lowest possible costs,  infrastructure -“our mission drives our fleet, which means we need long and range capacity. Diversity is a necessary evil.” The final pillar is the integration of the airline’s people, process and technology. Ethiopian’s visionary leaders have to keep a compelling vision for their business, see beyond the challenges of today to an empowering picture of tomorrow, impregnating their team and the organisation itself with this vision and fuelled by inspirations, the organisation charts its course to this new future. They aren’t authoritarian nor seek control over their employees. Instead, they provide freedom to employees to determine the best path to actualising this vision. It’s a discipline to hold the end picture in mind and commitment to work towards this vision each day. The hallmark traits of visionary leaders are being inspirational, emotionally, intelligent, open minded, imaginative, resolute, persistent, collaborative, bold, magnetic and optimistic. Ethiopian Airlines has the potential for fulfilling the Single African Air Transport Market

Key words: Africa, SAATM, Ethiopian Airlines, Air Transport, 

Updated Dec 2018 - see lecture here or  https://www.academia.edu/38006808/The_Emergent_African_Airline_-_Ethiopian_Airlines_Going_to_Great_Lengths_to_Please

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