Ethiopian Airlines

✅ Verified Review | Addis Ababa to Windhoek with Ethiopian Airlines. One of the worst customer service experience ever encountered. On 7th November, 14 people missed a flight from Addis Ababa to Gabone/Windhoek because there was no bus driver on the bus that we were told to board. A driver finally came 5-10 minutes later, but he had no clue where the airplane was and simply drove us in a circle around the airport before arriving back at the departure gate. It took 30 more minutes for them to admit that the plane had already left as the airline does not have policy of counting passengers in the plane. Ground staff/customer service agents also admitted to their mistake. We have booked 2 Ethiopian Airlines flights and both times this has happened. The first time we got lucky as more than 20+ people got stuck in the airport in Zanzibar for a flight from Zanzibar to Addis Ababa. This time we were not so lucky. Compensation for more than a day and a half of lost time, hotel bookings and lost meetings? Initial offer: Nothing except an economy class re-booking on a later flight about 15 hours later. Subsequent offer: After much haggling a $300 voucher or $150 cash even though we had asked what is considered a reasonable request of $200 cash. However, two things to note about the offer. First no passengers were able to get the cash in Addis Ababa as the customer service officers claimed to not have cash on hand. Second the voucher is less valuable than the cash as you must buy the tickets through the airline ticket office which is often at least $150 higher than any ticket you would buy online. The customer service also used a stalling tactic by handing us off from one officer to the next. After 9 hours of waiting an agent finally came that told us they would come back within 10 minutes so that people could receive their cash and concerns would be addressed. However, no one showed up for another few hours giving only a half hour before boarding in which they claimed that there was no cash available because they do not handle money. One last thing to note is that of the 12 passengers that were routed to Windhoek (Namibia) via Johannesburg from Addis Ababa 4 of these passengers did not board the early morning flight on Air Namibia flight that Ethiopian Airlines had said they had booked from Johannesburg to Windhoek. Upon arrival at the transit desk the officer for Air Namibia stated that the tickets were either not booked or canceled. In the end the customer service people aggravated 14 customers who likely now will try to avoid flying Ethiopian Airlines whenever possible. If a company is professional this handling of customer service issues would never make good business sense.

✅ Verified Review | For us, the return flight from Dublin to Los Angeles was very good, and Ethiopian did an excellent job. Their fare was unbelievably low (seriously!), their service was good (cabin staff were all very friendly), and any delays were minor (the route starts in Addis and picks up people in Dublin, so there is usually a 30 min delay). If you are someone who is happy to fly Aer Lingus, US Airways, United, Delta, etc to the USA, then Ethiopian (on this route anyway) are well able to match them. And the Boeing 787 on the route is an added bonus! In terms of improvements they could make, the food could be better and the in-flight entertainment needs to be expanded.

✅ Verified Review | Kuala Lumpur to Dar Es Salaam via Addis Ababa with Ethiopian Airlines. On way back, my flight was changed to another flight departing 3 hours later without any prior warning. Same was done for a lot of other passengers in my original flight. This caused a lot of confusion at the check in counter. They gave us a food coupon. The food coupon could not be used at any outlet in the airport as none of the outlets acknowledged the coupon from Ethiopian Airlines. The layover in Addis Airport was the worse I have ever encountered anywhere. No place to sit, bathrooms were stinking and the smell came drifting outwards to the boarding gates. Never ever in my life will I fly Ethiopian again.

✅ Verified Review | London Heathrow to Cape Town via Addis Ababa. Horrendous experience. 21:00 flight was cancelled due to a technical fault with the plane, passengers were taken to a holiday inn at 22:00. The airline attempted to book guests into shared rooms until obviously they objected. Guests were finally in single rooms by 2:00am. The airline promised to deliver the in flight meals to the hotel rooms, they did not. At 8:20am guests were called to return to the airport for a rescheduled 10:50am flight. On arrival at the departure gate, the screen announced that this flight was also now delayed until 12:00pm. No airline staff were around for information or reassurance. Flight finally departed and arrived at the scheduled destination >24 hours later. This resulted in the loss of an entire day, loss of a nights paid accommodation and loss of tour bookings. The flight was sub-standard with no working in flight entertainment and uncomfortable seating. I appreciate faults happen, but the handling of the situation was completely ridiculous.

My first experience on a Boeing 787 of Ethiopian Airlines and it was a very pleasant experience. I was going to Seychelles from Milan via Addis Ababa. I wasn't truly convinced I have to say, but facts proved me wrong! I was in the Business Class. Food was delicious, the flight was really confortable, seats and everything and the hostess on board kind for all the needs. The flight was on time so I'm really keen to fly again with Ethiopian Airlines in the foreseeable future.

✅ Verified Review | Just returned from a short trip Tel Aviv - Addis Ababa - Kinshasa - Addis Ababa - Tel Aviv. Unfortunately Ethiopian Airlines is always a let down in one way or another. I believe this will be my last trip with them. Its back to AF/KL/BA/LH. The way over was great, B738 TLV to ADD, friendly crew, good food, comfortable bulkhead seat and nice music channels. Addis Bole airport is an insult to ET and Star Alliance. Crowded, dirty, disgusting bathrooms, chaotic boarding procedures. The B772 to FIH was empty, so I had 3 seats for myself and the crew were friendly (all females). The return trip was a very different story, it's where ET fails in every aspect of service. I had a reserved seat FIH-ADD, emergency exit, as I need leg room to avoid back pain and free access to the bathroom. Of course ET changed equipment at the last minute to B738, I lost my good seat and on top of it a two hour delay in Kinshasa due to the Aircraft change. No word from the local staff re the delay, no word about AC change, I had to struggle with a most unfriendly agent to get an aisle seat. No apologies onboard from anyone re the delay, not the Captain nor the Inflight manager. I guess passengers should expect to lose their long time assigned seats, spend hours waiting and get zero 'sorry'. One Cabin crew member was great when I told her my story, she was apologetic, sincere and warm. When landing in ADD, passengers started opening overheads while in taxi, left them open so items could fall and injure passengers. The crew did nothing to stop this. Again Bole airport a crowded dirty mess, the flight to TLV was late one hour without any explanation, I guess it's the norm at ET. The only shining Star at ET is their cabin crew. I made it home safely and that's all that counts.

✅ Verified Review | Luanda to Hong Kong via Addis Ababa. The aircraft leaving luanda was a very nice Boeing 777, it was good for the money spent. Arriving at Addis Ababa its was a long wait till my flight for Hong Kong, the transit area was really bad no place to rest and food court was really terrible. Next flight on a Boeing 767, the seats were really cramped and the entertainment system was awful, food service was so bad. They lost my luggage and apparently I was not the only one. I got my luggage only 1 week later, had to buy clothes in Hong Kong to cover up their mess. If you want a cheap flight and don't care about service you can pick Ethiopian Airlines.

In short, my flight was delayed over four hours due to mechanical problems, including with the plane's landing gear. The service from all members of staff we encountered was dismal. My flight was scheduled to depart Addis Ababa at 12.50am and arrive in Vienna at 5.50am. At Addis Ababa, we were directed to one entrance for security screening, whereupon staff closed the doors in our faces and directed us to a second entrance, the second entrance directed us back to the first entrance, we were then directed to a third entrance, where we waited a while, until being redirected to a fourth entrance. After boarding, we sat in the plane for forty five minutes before being told that the landing gear was broken. After another half an hour we were told that the air conditioning was also broken. The heat was sweltering. After a full hour and forty five minutes of this heat, the air stewardesses thought to bring us water. A stewardess handed the last cup to the passenger beside me, looked at me, then returned to the back of the plane. I pressed the call button three times over fifteen minutes. There were several other passengers also using their call buttons. Because I was sitting at the very back of the plane, I could hear the stewardesses chatting and laughing behind me. Finally I got out of my seat, walked past the stewardesses sitting around doing nothing, and poured myself a cup of water. In the end, the flight departed over four hours late, meaning that I missed connecting flights from Vienna to London and London to Montreal. In total I was in transit for 50 hours, rather than 38. I spoke to the airline's representative company, Celebi, in Vienna airport. Celebi provided me with accommodation and meals, but told me to call Ethiopian Airlines on the subject of further compensation. I called Ethiopian Airlines, and was told to talk to Austrian Airlines. I spoke to Austrian Airlines, who informed me that because the flight was operated by Ethiopian Airlines, I must speak to Ethiopian Airlines. I called Ethiopian Airlines again and it was confirmed to me that this was correct, but that I must contact Ethiopian Airlines via email. I did so and have been waiting almost a month for a reply.

Cotonou to Nairobi via Addis Ababa. The Ethiopian Airlines experience is horrible from one end to the other. ✅ Verified Review | Chaotic boarding in Cotonou, plane 45 minutes late with no apologies from the crew. No earphones distributed at any point for the entertainment system and not even an inflight magazine. Do not let Ethiopian’s ads on their new fleet fool you - planes (737s with Sky Interior in this case) are not properly looked after. On the Cotonou-Addis flight, there was fruit jam on the tablet and chewing-gum in the seat pocket. The seat covers were worn and falling apart. The overhead screens were not working and kept coming up and down. Very slow service with disgusting food and it took the crew about an hour and a half to clear the trays. Addis Ababa airport is a horrific place. Overcrowded, dirty, smelly (especially since the smoking areas do not close hence people smoke outside). The shops are a disgrace, with no fixed prices and people haggling over the price of items. Most items are just lying on the floor or on broken shelves, still in their delivery packages. Credit card payments did not work in two duty free shops out of three. The Ethiopian/Star Alliance Gold lounge is dark, dirty and has a very limited food choice. When I entered nobody was at the reception to scan my boarding pass. It is usually impossible to find a seat available in the evening. Better to stay outside and sit on the floor. The toilets, both in the lounge and outside, are dirty and smelly. Ethiopian Airlines ground staff are impolite, permanently yells at passengers to rush them to the gates and does not answer questions when asked something. Be careful as flights are not announced or the general chaos can lead one to miss the boarding announcements and therefore, the flight. Addis-Nairobi was similarly terrible, with tired seats (despite the young age of the aircraft, another 737 with Sky Interior). It was once again 45 minutes late with no apologies whatsoever. No earphones or inflight magazine, once again. No pre-take off checks, most people had their seatback down and/or were using laptops and electronic devices. Food very bad, with crew throwing the tray on the tablets saying “chicken” and again, the overhead screens were dysfunctional. I should also mention that at no point in Cotonou or Addis were there separate queues for Business/Gold members and Economy passengers during boarding, with disorganised queues, staff yelling in every direction and in general, a sense of squalor. It is a real pity to be sometimes forced to use Ethiopian Airlines because of the lack of competition in African skies. Avoid at all costs and prefer Kenya Airways whenever possible.

✅ Verified Review | Harare to London Heathrow via Addis Ababa. Appalling to say the least. Ethiopian may have new aircraft but don't let this fool you. On the HRE-ADD sector I had to tell the cabin crew to issue an infant seat belt to someone travelling with an infant seated adjacent to me, this being after two cabin crew walked through to secure the cabin. The senior crew member left the trolley unattended in the middle of the cabin during the flight to help a colleague for a good 5 minutes. The crew had zero personality, and even asked 'what does she want' to a pax sat next to the pax the crew member was referring to. They did not offer a choice of meal and instead just said 'chicken' and dumped the tray on my table. I requested fish, she returned with a meal that had fish written on the lid but was actually vegetarian inside. There was no apology, just no personality with any of the crew on all four sectors. Credit where due, one meal was edible, the rest were cold and under cooked on all sectors. Out of all four sectors, I was only able to check in and choose my seat on one. Addis Ababa airport is dismal. They are seemingly meant to be upgrading the airport. I tried to buy a sandwich with my card but couldn't because the system was down. Security is horrendous. I am all for safe flying given the current times but you will need to allow at least an hour to pass through security as they then do a passport check - and don't take any duty free liquids as these are confiscated. I was reluctant to travel with Ethiopian Airlines more on a safety level but had minimal choice as Emirates was full. I didn't expect such poor service as well.