Speaking at the event about the Indian market, Arefaine said, “Indian market is one of the strategic and profitable markets for Ethiopian Airlines. We are currently connecting 4 Indian cities to Adis Ababa and intend to soon add Hyderabad to the list. We are also looking at increasing our frequencies from India and moving back to our pre-covid weekly frequency from Mumbai and New Delhi. Ethiopian Airlines is the biggest carrier for Indian travellers connecting Africa and forward (like Europe, US and South America). Additionally, we are also keen to develop Ethiopia as a tourism market for the Indian market as we have a great culture, history and wildlife.”

Being appointed in the Indian market in January 2020, Eshetu got emotional while speaking about her overall experience in this market. She said, “I was appointed in this amazing Indian market during the most challenging times the global aviation world has ever witnessed. However, with support from our partners and governments, Ethiopian Airlines is one of the 22 airlines flying from India under the air bubble policy during the tough times and managed to serve our communities and countries with medical aid and passengers repatriation flights. I am thankful to each one of our partners and team members for making Ethiopian Airlines one of the most preferred airlines to Africa for Indian travellers.”