Ethiopian Airlines to Launch Flights to Kuala Lumpur

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – (Press Release) – Ethiopian Airlines, the fastest growing airline in Africa, is pleased to announce that it will commence scheduled thrice weekly flights to Kuala Lumpur on October 31, 2012, via Bangkok.

Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia and dubbed the Garden City of Lights, is renowned for its numerous tourist attractions, which include the Batu Caves, Menara Tower, the Bukit Nanas Forest Reserve, the Islamic arts museum, the Thean Hou Temple, Dewan Filharmonik, Kulala Lumpur Bird Park, Butterfly Parks, aquariums and the historic Malacca. It is also the economic and financial heart of Malaysia, one of the most dynamic economies in South East Asia.

Mr. Tewolde Gebremariam, Chief Executive Officer of Ethiopian Airlines, said, “As the fastest growing airline in Africa, Ethiopian is pleased to offer the opportunity to business people as well as tourists to explore Kuala Lumpur’s potential both for investment and leisure. Ethiopian is pleased to be the first East African carrier to fly to Kuala Lumpur, connecting Africa to the Asia region and in turn strengthening the tourism and trade ties between the peoples of Africa and Asia.”

With this new flight, Kuala Lumpur will be connected to dozens of cities in Africa via Ethiopian hub at Addis Ababa. Convenient connections will be available to and from major African cities such as Johannesburg, Nairobi, Lagos, Accra, Dar Es Salaam, Entebbe, Harare and Khartoum. As part of its launch package, Ethiopian will implement a promotional fare on its Addis Ababa-Kuala Lumpur route.

Kuala Lumpur will be Ethiopian 70 th international destination and 18th in the Middle East and Asia. Ethiopian has one of the youngest fleet in the world including, the 1st B787 Dreamliner in the world outside Japan.

About Ethiopian

Ethiopian Airlines, the fastest growing airline in Africa, made its maiden international flight to Cairo in 1946 and now the Airline provides dependable services to 69 international destinations spanning four continents.

Ethiopian is proud to be a Star Alliance Member. The Star Alliance network is the leading global airline network offering customers convenient worldwide reach and a smoother travel experience. The Star Alliance network offers more than 21,555 daily flights to 1,356 airports in 193 countries.

Ethiopian is a multi-award winner for its commitment and contributions towards the development and growth of the African aviation industry and in recognition of its distinguished long-haul operations enhanced by the introduction of new routes and products. Recently, Ethiopian won Gold in the African Airline of the Year 2011/2012 Awards organized by the African Aviation News Portal. Ethiopian also received the 2011 AFRAA award for being consistently profitable over the years and has won the “AFRICAN CARGO AIRLINE OF THE YEAR 2011 Award” for its excellence in air cargo. Ethiopian also won the NEPAD Transport Infrastructure Excellence Awards 2009 and “the Airline of the Year 2009 Award” from the African Airlines Association (AFRAA).

With its acquisition of and firm orders for several new modern aircraft and its fast expanding network, the airline is well positioned to become the leading aviation group in Africa, per its Vision 2025 strategic roadmap.