Ethiopian Airlines Cargo will return to Brussels Airport in late March after the Belgian Federal Government inked a new bilateral agreement with Ethiopia, enabling the carrier to undertake direct flights from Belgium to Asia and the Middle East. From 26 March, Ethiopian Cargo will undertake 12 weekly freighter flights out of Brussels Airport to Dubai, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong.

Ethiopian shifted its all of its flights out of Brussels last November after failing to secure a renewal of the necessary traffic rights. This had dire consequences for Brussel’s cargo volumes – which in February 2016 were down 14.5 per cent year-on-year, solely due to the departure of Ethiopian Cargo.

“I am delighted that Ethiopian Airlines Cargo has decided to return to our airport,” said Brussels Airport Company’s CEO Arnaud Feist. “The carrier’s return is a highly positive development, not just for Brussels Airport but also for the Belgian economy as a whole.

“This move will not only see the reinstatement of the jobs that were lost with the air carrier’s withdrawal in November, it will also create many new jobs as Ethiopian Airlines Cargo is planning to more than double the number of flights a week out of Brussels Airport compared against last year. All direct flights out of Brussels to Dubai and three Asian destinations are day-time flights”, he added.

The new bilateral agreement between Belgium and Ethiopia now also allows Ethiopian airlines to operate direct cargo flights from Belgium to Dubai, Shanghai and Hong Kong, in addition to Guangzhou which was already included under the previous bilateral agreement.

From January through October 2015, Ethiopian Airlines Cargo carried out four to six day-time flights a week to Dubai, Shanghai and Hong Kong. Although these flights still involved a stopover in Addis Ababa during the first few months, from August through to October Ethiopian Airlines Cargo was able to conduct these flights directly out of Brussels Airport thanks to traffic rights granted on a monthly basis.

Since Ethiopian Airlines Cargo’s withdrawal, Brussels Airport stayed in touch with both the airline and the Belgian Federal Government. In the interests of the hundreds of employees who owed their jobs to Ethiopian Airlines Cargo, Brussels Airport had pleaded its case with the Federal Government to amend the bilateral agreement between the two countries to allow for direct flights to various key destinations in the Middle East and Asia.