Ethiopian Airlines is investing in the development of a new mega airport near Addis Ababa with the capacity for up to 110 million passengers per year.
The airline announced on August 12, 2024, that it has signed a contract with engineering and architecture firm Dar Al-Handasah Consultants (Shair and Partners), which is a partner of Zaha Hadid Architects.
The new greenfield airport will be located at Abusera, Bishoftu city, some 40 kilometers from Ethiopia’s capital city. In addition to a 1.1 million square meter state-of-the-art terminal, the complex will also include an adjacent “airport city” housing a number of related aeronautical support facilities.
Once completed, the new airport will quadruple the capacity of Addis Ababa’s current air hub, Bole International Airport (ADD).
The first phase of the project is expected to be completed by 2029, by which time the facility will already be able to handle up to 60 million passengers per year.
One of the additional advantages of the new airport is that it will be located at a lower altitude than the current one, mitigating some of the challenges related to high altitude operations. Addis Ababa Bole International Airport is located at a height of 2.334 meters, which makes it one of the highest major air hubs in the world.