Ethiopian Airlines has confirmed that it is to operate flights from Dublin to both Los Angeles and Addis Ababa from next summer.
The airline agreed a deal with the government to allow it to pick up passengers in Dublin while flights are en route from Addis Ababa to LA and vice versa. Seats will be sold for both legs of the journey and the service will operate throughout the year, with three return flights per week.
Welcoming the news, CEO of Dublin Airport Authority, Kevin Toland, said that, "this service will reconnect Dublin with Los Angeles and also bring unrivalled connectivity into Africa, as Ethiopian has the largest number of African destinations of any airline."
As well as allowing Irish tourists to fly directly to both these destinations, the government is hoping that it will help grow visitor number to Ireland from the United States, which is one of our major tourism markets.
Ethiopian Airlines are able to embark on this new venture as a result of the government granting them fifth-freedom rights, which allows non-EU and non-US airlines to pick up passengers on stopovers. The government has pledged to grant more of these rights as part of its draft aviation policy.
Earlier this week, Dublin airport announced that WOW airlines would be operating flights between Dublin and Reykjavik from next Summer. These flights will operate three times a week and will be offered throughout the year.
