Work has begun on the largest and most expensive airport in the history of Africa.
Ethiopian Airlines has announced that the construction of its new $12.5 billion (£9.28 billion) airport project has begun. The new facility will become the largest airport on the African continent and its first mega-hub, with the capacity to handle over 100 million passengers each year.
The airport is being built in the Ethiopian city of Bishoftu, which is about 40 miles away from the nation’s capital, Addis Ababa.
For those who love to travel and hope to explore more of Africa, the travel hub may prove particularly exciting and useful.
When fully operational, it will have four runways, along with terminal capacity to accommodate approximately 110 million passengers annually, and parking facilities to accommodate around 270 aircraft. This is compared to the 140 million passengers Heathrow Airport hopes to handle each year once its expansion project is complete.
The current largest airport in Ethiopia (Addis Ababa Bole International Airport) can only handle around 25 million passengers annually. The new Ethiopian airport will open in 2030 with two passenger terminals, a cargo terminal and two parallel runways.
During the first phase, modern motorways providing road links to the capital city of Addis Ababa, along with a high-speed rail system, will be built.
Do you have a travel story to share? Email webtravel@reachplc.com
Ethiopian Airlines broke ground on Saturday. The airline will fund 30% of the project, and the remaining capital will be credited by the African Development Bank and other interested parties from the Middle East, Europe, China and the USA.
In a post on X, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed described the development as “the largest aviation infrastructure project in Africa’s history” and said it would position Ethiopia among the world’s leading air transport hubs.
Ethiopian Airlines operates flights to more than 160 domestic and international passenger locations at the moment. It also has cargo destinations across five continents. Its operations are likely to grow as extra capacity is unlocked by the new airport.
Currently, Emirates, Qatar Airways, Turkish Airlines, EgyptAir, Kenya Airways, Saudia, Air Arabia, British Airways, flydubai and Etihad Airways all fly into Addis Ababa airport, offering connections across Africa, the Middle East, Europe and beyond.
Beyond access to the rest of the Continent, there are plenty of reasons to visit Ethiopia. The country has a unique blend of ancient history, kept alive through the rock-hewn churches of Lalibela, diverse landscapes in the Simien Mountains and Danakil Depression, and rare wildlife. The Ethiopian wolf and gelada baboon are two rare beasts that live here.
The country recently endured two years of civil war, between 2020 and 2022, when forces clashed in the Tigray Region between forces allied with the Ethiopian federal government and Eritrea on one side, and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front.
The UK Foreign Office currently advises against travel to many parts of the country.