News: Ethiopian Airlines cites 'frozen account' as latest reason for suspending flights to Asmara

Addis Abeba – Ethiopian Airlines announced that a frozen account in Eritrea is the latest reason forcing the national carrier to suspend its flights to Asmara. This follows the airline’s announcement yesterday that flights were halted due to “difficult operating conditions” in Eritrea that are “beyond its control.”

In a press briefing held on 03 September, Ethiopian Airlines Group CEO Mesfin Tasew explained that the airline was informed on 31 August 2024, that its account in Eritrea had been blocked. “This has made it impossible for us to access our funds,” Mesfin said. He added that this situation left the airline with “no choice but to suspend all flights to Asmara.”

Mesfin noted that the current dispute was the latest development in an ongoing issue between the national carrier and the Eritrean Civil Aviation Authority.

The CEO explained that the issues began on 26 March 2024, when the Eritrean Civil Aviation Authority requested compensation for lost luggage. “We asked for the details of the lost bags, but we did not receive the information,” he explained.

Mesfin also highlighted additional restrictions imposed by the Eritrean authorities. “We were asked to reduce our flights from 14 to 10 per week and were limited to using smaller aircraft,” he said.

The CEO stated that although the airline was later permitted to increase flights to 15 per week and resume the use of wide-body planes in July 2024, Eritrean authorities blocked money transfers from the airline’s account on 25 July 2024. The airline was subsequently informed that its account was frozen, Mesfin said.

Despite efforts to resolve these issues, Mesfin noted that the situation remained unresolved. “We tried to contact the concerned bodies, but our efforts bore no results,” he said. However, he confirmed that the airline would continue to use Eritrean airspace and pursue diplomatic efforts to retrieve the blocked funds.

The airline had expressed regret for the inconvenience to its customers following the suspension of flights and assured affected passengers that it will make every effort to rebook them on other airlines at no additional cost.

Previously, Ethiopian Airlines said that was is “seeking clarification from the Eritrean Civil Aviation Authority” and was committed to resolving any issues amicably and promptly,” following a decision by the Eritrean Civil Aviation Authority announcing the suspension of all Ethiopian Airlines flights to Eritrea, effective September 30, 2024. AS