Why Ethiopian Airlines Wins Where Every Other African Carrier Dies

Across Africa, national airlines have launched with ambition, burned through cash, and collapsed into bailouts or bankruptcy. Ethiopian Airlines is the exception: profitable, expanding, and carrying millions through Addis Ababa as the continent’s dominant connector. But its home hub is running out of room. So Ethiopian is betting on Bishoftu, a massive new airport designed to turn Addis into Africa’s aviation crossroads. The problem is that Emirates, Qatar Airways, Turkish Airlines, and even a Gulf-backed African rival are chasing the same passengers. Can Ethiopian build Africa’s Dubai before Dubai beats it there?