After a great week in Awassa, it was time to return to Addis Ababa and we received an unexpected equipment upgrade on Ethiopian Airlines from a Q400 to a 737-800 for the 55-minute flight back to the capital.
Ethiopian Airlines 737-800 Economy Class Review
Ethiopian is known for equipment swaps and while I was expected another Q400 turboprop to take us back to Addis Ababa, a 737-800 landed instead. My round-trip ticket was $126 plus $66 in taxes for a total of $192 (USD).
Check-In
We showed up to the airport 90 minutes before our flight and that turned out to be very early…the airport is tiny, check-in took only a couple minutes (the “Cloud 9” business class line was roped off, so Star Alliance Gold members and everyone else had to use the standard check-in line). Furthermore, our flight was delayed…though no announcement was made.
Instead, that became clear when we made it past the security checkpoint and saw no aircraft on the ground. Our boarding time came and went, then our departure time came and went. Finally, we saw lights in the distance and a 737-800 landed. That was an unexpected surprise, but not an unpleasant one.
That aircraft was cleared and soon we were invited outside to board.
Ethiopian Airlines 175
Awassa (AWA) – Addis Ababa (ADD)
Sunday, April 7
Depart: 05:50 PM
Arrive: 06:45 PM
Duration: 00hr, 55min
Aircraft: Boeing 737-800
Distance: 133 miles
Seat: 21L (Economy Class)
We finally boarded air stairs at 6:17 pm, nearly 30 minutes after scheduled departure.
Seat
The biggest surprise was walking onboard and seeing a business class cabin…even for a 55-minute flight I would have loved to sit in one of these seats, but the entire cabin remained empty and apparently Ethiopian does not sell business class seats on this particular domestic route (logically, because of the last minute aircraft swap).
Ethiopian’s 737-800 features 16 seats in business class arranged in the familiar 2-2 configuration, the same Rockwell Collins recliners you will find throughout narrowbody fleet. Seat pitch runs about 42 inches, which is more generous than with most US carriers.
Economy class consists of 138 seats in a 3-3 layout, with a pitch of about 30–31 inches depending on the row. It’s tight, but Ethiopian keeps the cabin reasonably well-padded, and the seats are not as hard as the slimlines that have metastasized across Europe and the USA. On shorter sectors, it’s more than tolerable, and the legroom is manageable unless you’re exceptionally tall or unlucky enough to be assigned a misaligned window seat.
There was a pillow and blanket at each seat and individual air vents in the overhead passenger service unit.
IFE + Wi-Fi
Ethiopian Airlines offers no Wi-Fi internet and no screens on its 737-800 fleet. Thankfully I had brought the (good) book along and it was also a beautiful evening to look out the window.
While browsing through the duty free catalog, I was surprised to see cigarettes so cheap…those could be sold for such a profit in much of the world!
Food + Drink
After takeoff, water bottles were distributed to each passenger, but that was the extent of in-flight service.
Lavatory
Because I had a window seat and the flight was so short, I did not get up to use the lavatory, but there is one in the front of the aircraft and two in the rear.
Service
The flight attendants performed a manual safety demonstration and were efficient in handing out water bottles, but otherwise remained seated for the flight.
CONCLUSION
Operationally, this domestic flight was like many Ethiopian flights: late and with a last-minute aircraft swap. But I am quite fond of the Ethiopian flag carrier and look forward to returning to Awassa.
But now, on to dinner in Addis Ababa.
That’s quite a swap! Matt you’re fearless. Thank you for these unique reviews. Like, this isn’t your typical travel blog post. (Let’s just say, Gary isn’t reviewing Ethiopian domestic flights…)