This article is published in Aviation Daily part of Aviation Week Intelligence Network (AWIN), and is complimentary through Jun 14, 2026. For information on becoming an AWIN Member to access more content like this, click here.
RIO DE JANEIRO—Ethiopian Airlines expects to make fleet decisions soon on new regional and cargo aircraft despite being hit with huge fuel cost increases.
Ethiopian operates to more than 10 destinations in the Gulf/Middle East region. “During the [outset of the Iran] war we had to suspend those flights. That meant a loss of traffic from the region. Now we are flying more than 90% of that schedule again, but the traffic is not great,” Ethiopian Airlines Group CEO Mesfin Tasew told ATW June 7 on the sidelines of this week’s IATA AGM in Rio de Janeiro.
“But the long-term consequences of the Middle East war is the high fuel price. Initially, we had some fuel supply challenges in Ethiopia, but those have been addressed,” Tasew said.
Before the war, Ethiopia imported its jet fuel from Gulf countries, but that supply was interrupted by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. “Now we are buying fuel from different sources, including Nigeria, and we have signed a contract with a Saudi Arabian fuel company for a longer period,” Tasew said.
“Our fuel costs used to be close to 40% of our total expenses, now they are up to 54%,” he added. “We are trying to mitigate this through strong cost-cutting measures and a rationalization of routes, partially by increasing fares and introducing a fuel surcharge. In the short term, this will have also an impact on our profitability. Our margins will definitely be reduced, but we remain profitable. And over the long term it will not affect us.”
Plans to fly to Australia will be delayed by at least two years because of a shortage of widebodies. “In 2028, we will start receiving the widebodies that will enable us to launch flights to Australia,” Tasew said.
“Today we operate 147 aircraft, and we have 117 aircraft on order. Currently, we are evaluating additional aircraft from all manufacturers,” Tasew said, adding that the Airbus A220, Boeing 737 MAX and Embraer E2 were all being considered for regional network needs, for which Ethiopian is looking for about 25 aircraft and plans to make a decision soon.
The other fleet evaluation process is focused on freighters. “We are looking at the Boeing 777-8F and the A350F. We have been negotiating with both manufacturers and hope to make a decision soon. The number of freighters would be eight firm and four options,” Tasew said.
Additional widebody passenger aircraft candidates are the A350, 787 and the forthcoming 777X. Tasew said Ethiopian already has an order for eight 777Xs plus 12 options and deliveries are expected to begin in 2028.
Related Content
