Ethiopian Airlines

We should have listened to the warnings. "Never fly Ethiopian Airlines. They are always late, always have problems, and Addis is the worst airport to be stuck in."

But the price was right and with a direct flight from Nairobi to Addis to Rio de Janeiro. World Cup 2014 here we come, or so we thought...

My husband booked the flight in December. He searched the internet looking for the best route for hours. Ethiopian Airlines seemed legit, how bad could it be?

The months went by and we eagerly awaited our trip. We received no emails or calls from Ethiopian so when we arrived at Jomo Kenyatta airport we were a little surprised to hear that a portion of our flight did not exist. At first we figured that the Nairobi office didn't know what they were talking about. They checked our luggage through all the way to Rio but we were not on the flight from Sao Paolo to Rio. When questioned, the check-in clerk said we could take a bus. I don't think she was aware the distance from Sao Paolo to Rio is 300 miles or a 4-5 hour drive. And more importantly, what happened to our direct flight to Rio?! We got on the flight to Addis hoping that maybe things could be figured out there.

After safely arriving in Addis, we immediately go to customer service and wait for 20 minutes. Mr. Yimer was very polite and redirected us to the Transfer Desk. 30 minutes later Ms. Eleni relayed the bad news that the direct-to-Rio flight was canceled and that we would need to fly to Sao Paolo first and then get a flight to Rio two days later. There were no other options. At this point, I wanted to strangle someone. How could a business operate this way? Why weren't we notified? Is there any other way to get to Brazil? Another airline, another flight? Anything? Ms. Eleni searched again. Aha, a flight leaves Addis at 1 am to Rome then to Paris and finally to Rio. Unfortunately for us, it was 11 am. No way, we said and stalked off to find a flight on our own.

An hour later, I was back in line, tail between my legs, hoping that the flight to Rome was still a possibility. Another 45 minutes go by until my turn with Ms. Eleni. We explain that we want to do the Rome-Paris route. At this point I must mention it was difficult to communicate with her due to a group of irate customers in line next to us. In fact, we were the only pleasant people in the vicinity. Everyone was screaming and yelling, and no semblance of an orderly line remained.

A group of Indians from Mumbai were late making their connection and were demanding $300 each as compensation. Apparently one of them had received money before so they all "jumped on the plane" expecting the same thing. The far more vocal complaints came from the Nigerians. One man's booming voice was immediately joined by the other men and one fierce woman. "We want to go to Lagos. I pay you money to take me to Lagos. My ticket says Lagos. Give me my money." In the USA security would have been called long ago with the yelling contingent thrown in airport jail. But not in Ethiopia. The ladies at the Transfer Desk kept on working at what I have now concluded to be the worst job in the world.

Over the deafening roar, we were issued new tickets and a hotel voucher complete with lunch, dinner, and bus transport. We gathered our things, with one last thank you and pitying glance at Ms. Eleni, picked up our luggage and made our way to the bus. Woohoo! My first trip to Ethiopia.

The Panorama Hotel was very hospitable, the staff extremely polite and accommodating. We walked through the door and were immediately handed a key and shown to our room. No long lines or check-in process. The room was basic but seemed clean. Next stop, the restaurant where we chose items from a set menu: soup, salad, vegetable spaghetti which was included for our free meal. There was wifi and soccer playing on the tv. What more could we want? Later we had dinner where the chef made me special shiro (I was not leaving Ethiopia with out it), took a nap, woke up, and returned to the airport for our flight.

The rudeness of passengers on Ethiopian flights will never cease to amaze me. After boarding the plane, a chunky red-faced Italian man was berating the flight attendants for moving his carryon bag. Other passengers tried to calm him but he kept on screaming at everyone. "These stupid people. I will calm down when I feel like it." I think he may have even stomped his foot like a child having a temper tantrum. Once again, where was security? His behavior was completely inappropriate. Our flight was delayed leaving, almost sending my husband into cardiac arrest.

Everything went well from then on out. To Rome, sprint to the next gate. To Paris, race to the next gate. To Rio, exhausted, disoriented, but we finally made it. Only 48 hours of travel time.

And lest I forget, our return flight to Nairobi was also canceled and all flights on the same day were full, so after missing our time in Rio at the beginning of our trip, we gained it back at the end of our trip.

I do not recommend Ethiopian Airlines. Our experience with the flight attendants and "people on the ground" were positive but the airline itself is completely incompetent when it comes to booking flights and communicating changes. I plan on writing a letter of complaint in hopes of receiving some sort of compensation in the form of a refund or another flight since I have to go to Addis for a conference in September. Maybe something good can come from the experience.

Ethiopian Airlines The New Spirit of Africa. I think I might prefer the old.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad