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I’m planning a trip to Namibia in July 2022 and the cheapest airfares by far are on Ethiopian Airlines They also are the shortest duration and bypass JoBerg. Anyone fly on EA recently and how would you rate them?


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Several friends have flown them and recommend them. None flew in coach.

Saw Patrick from Travel with Guns recently and he was recommending them to a hunter going to Namibia.

Last edited by BlackHunter; 02/01/22. Reason: spelling error

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I I flew with them last February. Service was topnotch and the Ethiopian stewardesses were extremely nice and spoke good English. The airport in Addis Ababa was another story with respect to flying with a firearm. Airport personnel spoke broken or no English at all and I was late getting to the gate both times there.


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Originally Posted by DoeSlayer
I I flew with them last February. Service was topnotch and the Ethiopian stewardesses were extremely nice and spoke good English. The airport in Addis Ababa was another story with respect to flying with a firearm. Airport personnel spoke broken or no English at all and I was late getting to the gate both times there.


I've heard from more than one account that the airport experience, when travelling with guns, is well less than stellar in Addis Abba. That alone would persuade me to cross Ethopian Airlines off my list. Add in that their pilots were not adequately trained to fly the 737 Max. Instead of shutting off the auto features and flying the plane, they spent 10 minutes looking through the manual before the plane crashed. So well Boeing and the FAA screwed up, the pilots didn't fly the plane per say, they were used to letting the computers do most of the work. When the computer screwed up, they had no answer for it. They didn't shut it off and manually fly the plane, they tried to get the computer working properly. Or at least that is what a pilot told me at SCI.
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I don't have any first hand knowledge, but have read that you will need lots of time in Addis Abba as you will have to go to the bowels of the airport and claim and have your firearm inspected. From what I have read it's easy going, but returning can be problem. The next thing that concerns me is Ethiopia has a lot of rebel action north of the airport. Currently, it's not a problem, but I would hate to be there when it does become a problem. However it looks like the tide is turning.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/ethiopian-government-repels-rebels-pledges-peace-talks-11642005374

Last edited by wesheltonj; 02/01/22.
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I’m not worried about delays due to firearms inspections- I’ve used camp rifles my last 3 trips to Namibia. I’ve always avoided checked luggage and carried on a Red Oxx bag wih meds, underwear and 2 changes of clothes. Supposedly Ethiopian Airlines has a weight limit of 15 pounds for carryons. Do they really enforce that??


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Good luck..


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I'll leave you with this thought; Remember when all those 737s were falling out of the sky with flight control issues? (not a single one happened over here) but Ethiopian Air lost one...pilot ignorance/error...


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Originally Posted by AB2506
Originally Posted by DoeSlayer
I I flew with them last February. Service was topnotch and the Ethiopian stewardesses were extremely nice and spoke good English. The airport in Addis Ababa was another story with respect to flying with a firearm. Airport personnel spoke broken or no English at all and I was late getting to the gate both times there.


I've heard from more than one account that the airport experience, when travelling with guns, is well less than stellar in Addis Abba. That alone would persuade me to cross Ethopian Airlines off my list. Add in that their pilots were not adequately trained to fly the 737 Max. Instead of shutting off the auto features and flying the plane, they spent 10 minutes looking through the manual before the plane crashed. So well Boeing and the FAA screwed up, the pilots didn't fly the plane per say, they were used to letting the computers do most of the work. When the computer screwed up, they had no answer for it. They didn't shut it off and manually fly the plane, they tried to get the computer working properly. Or at least that is what a pilot told me at SCI.
.

This....


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I flew Ethiopian a couple years ago, coming home from Tanzania. The flight and service were fine, even though we were stuck in coach. The firearms checking problem at Addis Ababa was a pain in the ass and I won’t fly through there with guns again unless I have to. Of course, to be fair, I was dealing with significant knee problems at the time and had to walk the length of the airport twice for the gun check, so I was not happy with them at all over this issue. My flight was held while they did the gun check and departed over 30 minutes late because of it. Imagine the cost to have a full 767 sitting at a gate over one passenger.

If either Emirates or Qatar fly where I’m going, I only fly them now. They’re the best, by far, in my opinion.

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Thanks for the responses thus far. I’m still concerned about the 15 lb weight limit for carryons. I’d prefer not to check baggage if it’s humanly possible. Of those who have actually flown Ethiopian did you observe them actually weighing carryons?


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I flew to Tanzania last year on Ethiopean last summer. Did't have my carry on weighed coming or going.
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Thanks Bruce


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Any updated experience with Ethiopian Airlines regarding weighing of carryons? My layover in Addis is less than one hour and I worry that a checked bag wouldn’t make it on the plane to Windhoek.


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When you fly a 3rd world airline, you may have great service, but a 1st quality airline starts in the maintenance department, and ends in the cockpit, and has little to do with what "points guy" thinks...


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That is a great decision

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It also depends on one's definition of "Third World". For example, Quatar, Emirates use a lot of British pilots for their aircrew AND maintenance and therein lies the key, but Ethiopian? no chance..


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I flew Ethiopian from Toronto to Addis Ababa and on to Harare, then returned yesterday with the same route except a stop in Dublin. Planes were on time, service was OK ( I flew economy fare, exit aisle ) and there was no unusual hassles or challenges. It's a long haul in economy, if I was doing it again I might consider upgrading my seat. About the only compliant I can think of is meals were just OK, but acceptable and the sound system / earbuds for the in-flight entertainment was actually quite poor.

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Originally Posted by BulletBud
Thanks for the responses thus far. I’m still concerned about the 15 lb weight limit for carryons. I’d prefer not to check baggage if it’s humanly possible. Of those who have actually flown Ethiopian did you observe them actually weighing carryons?

It is a gamble that you need to be prepared to take.

I have had my carry on weighed 2 times one time it made weight the other time it did not. I had my large Nikon camera and binoculars and rangefinder in the carryon bag. I also carry a 6 ounce stuff sack that I took items out of the carry on and put in the stuff sack. You are also allowed a personal item along with your carryon bag. After I boarded the flight and found my seat I put it all back in my carryon bag.

Now if your carryon bag is more than 30 pounds you are in trouble, and you probably should check a bag.


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