Much of the airline’s recent transformation and success stands with Girma Wake, who served as CEO from 2004 to 2011. Under his leadership the airline pursued aggressive fleet renewal, expanded its route network at pace and championed its Vision 2025 strategic plan. Wake’s legacy is an airline that stopped thinking regionally and started thinking globally, sowing the seeds for continental dominance that Ethiopian has since achieved.
The airline is frequently cited as one of Africa’s great economic success stories. A state-owned carrier that has thrived, Ethiopians operates with a commercial discipline more commonly associated with privately owned carriers despite being government owned. The airline group has also established itself as a technology leader, introducing cutting edge aircraft to the African continent, has leveraged opportunities within the cargo sector and developed MRO and training capabilities into some of the most capable facilities on the continent.
The airline’s scale of investment has been impressive. In July 2025, Ethiopian opened a component maintenance workshop, a central warehouse and a two-bay general maintenance hangar at a combined cost of more than US$150 million.
Plans are also in place to establish an MRO venture in Togo, West Africa through a collaboration with ASKY Airlines. The airline has also developed the Ethiopian Aviation University, which saw 457 aviation professionals graduating in January 2026.
