HeadwaterCompany strategiesBuild yours

Ethiopian Airlines

Vision 2035, 15-year plan to 2035

Become one of the top 20 most competitive and leading aviation groups in the world
Ethiopian Airlines’ Vision 2035

Vision 2035

Ethiopian Airlines is Africa’s largest airline group, flying from its hub in Addis Ababa to more than 160 destinations, and running cargo, maintenance, airports, and an aviation university around the airline. Vision 2035 is its 15-year plan to become one of the world’s top 20 aviation groups.

PAX

ADD
Vision 2035

Passenger and Cargo Transport and Logistics

  • Network. Fly to more than 209 international destinations by 2035.
  • Fleet. Grow the fleet to more than 271 modern aircraft, with more than 100 on order, including Africa’s first Boeing 777X.,
  • Multi-hub. Run a multi-hub network, with partner hubs in Lomé with ASKY, Lilongwe with Malawi Airlines, Lusaka with Zambia Airways, and Kinshasa with Air Congo.
  • 29 July 2026Revenue rose 20% to a record US$9.1 billion in 2025/26. Passengers rose 10% to 20.7 million, and cargo 16% to 897,000 tonnes.
  • 29 July 2026Ethiopian added eight aircraft and four new routes in the year, including Portugal, Vietnam, and Abu Dhabi.

About 67 million passengers a year by 2035

Ethiopian carried 20.7 million passengers in 2025/26, 10% more than the year before, and its revenue rose 20% to US$9.1 billion. Vision 2035 also aims for US$25 billion of revenue.,

Front

20.7m

Passengers in 2025/26, of the 67 million a year Vision 2035 aims for.

Each seat is one million passengers a year.

A new airport for 60 million passengers by 2030

Construction of Bishoftu International Airport began on 10 January 2026. Its first phase, due by 2030, is for 60 million passengers a year, and the finished airport for 110 million. The African Development Bank is arranging its financing.,

10m20m30m40m50m60m70m80m90m100m110m

0m

Passengers a year, in the first phase, due by 2030. Each bay is ten million.

  1. Build what the plan will depend on.

    Ethiopian’s growth needs more room than its hub has, so Vision 2035 includes a new airport, whose first phase is due in 2030. We recommend naming the capacity a plan will run out of, and starting to build it before it is needed.

  2. Grow through partners where you cannot go alone.

    Ethiopian runs partner hubs with airlines in Togo, Malawi, Zambia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. We recommend deciding where partners reach faster than you could, and making those partnerships part of the plan.

  3. Train the people before the growth needs them.

    Ethiopian runs its own aviation university, which graduated nearly a thousand trainees in a year. We recommend planning the skills the strategy needs years ahead, and owning the training where the supply is short.

Sources

  1. 1. Ethiopian Airlines Group (2024). Ethiopian Airlines to Expand Widebody Fleet with Up to 20 Boeing 777X Jets. Ethiopian Airlines press release, 5 March 2024. corporate.ethiopianairlines.com
  2. 2. Ethiopian Airlines Group (2025). Annual Report 2024/25. Ethiopian Airlines Group. corporate.ethiopianairlines.com
  3. 3. Ethiopian Airlines Group (2025). Ethiopian Airlines Group and African Development Bank Sign a Mandate Letter for financing Africa’s Largest Aviation Infrastructure Project. Ethiopian Airlines press release, 11 August 2025. corporate.ethiopianairlines.com
  4. 4. Ethiopian Airlines Group (2025). Ethiopian Achieves Major MRO Breakthrough with First A350-900 Full Strip and Paint Program in Africa. Ethiopian Airlines press release, 26 November 2025. corporate.ethiopianairlines.com
  5. 5. Ethiopian Airlines Group (2026). Ethiopian Airlines Marks the Groundbreaking of Bishoftu International Airport Construction. Ethiopian Airlines press release, 10 January 2026. corporate.ethiopianairlines.com
  6. 6. Ethiopian Airlines Group (2026). Ethiopian Aviation University Graduates Over 450 Aviation Professionals from 12 Countries. Ethiopian Airlines press release, 17 January 2026. corporate.ethiopianairlines.com
  7. 7. Nethersole, E. (2026). Ethiopian Airlines Reports 20% Jump In Revenue To $9.1B. Aviation Week, 29 July 2026. aviationweek.com

Headwater is not connected with Ethiopian Airlines Group. Ethiopian Airlines, ASKY, Malawi Airlines, Zambia Airways, and Air Congo are trade marks of their owners. Updated 29 September 2026.

All company strategies