Ethiopian Airlines earnings jumped 20% to $6.1 bln in the 2022/2023 fiscal year, despite the impact of the Russian-Ukraine war and the increase in fuel prices, the country’s state news agency reported on Thursday. The airline transported 13.7 million passengers and 723,000 tons of cargo in the fiscal year, which ends on July 7, the company’s chief executive officer Mesfin Tasew said, according to the Ethiopian News Agency.
The state-owned carrier increased its fleet by 11 passenger planes, bringing the total to 140, and converted two into cargo planes, bringing the total number of cargo planes to 15, Mesfin said. Ethiopian Airlines introduced seven new international destinations, including Copenhagen, Atlanta, and Karachi during the budget year.
Earlier this month Mesfin said the company was evaluating possible Airbus and Boeing wide-body plane orders and was expecting to make a decision by the end of the year.