Ethiopian to Launch Flights to Chicago in 2018

One more US city is getting a new option to Africa. Ethiopian Airlines is launching nonstop (one stop on the westbound leg) service between Chicago (ORD) and Addis Ababa (ADD), beginning later this year.

As reported by Routes Online, the carrier will launch a new route between ORD and ADD with a stop in Dublin (DUB) beginning June 2, 2018. The 3x weekly service will be operated with one of the carrier's Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners on the following schedule:

• ET510 Addis Ababa (ADD) 10:15pm Departure ⇒ Dublin (DUB) 4:25am (+1) Arrival
• ET510 Dublin (DUB) 5:25am Departure ⇒ Chicago (ORD) 7:55am Arrival
• ET511 Chicago (ORD) 9:55am Departure ⇒ Addis Ababa (ADD) 7:40 (+1) Arrival

Note that like Ethiopian's route between Washington, DC (IAD) and ADD, there is only a stop in Dublin on the westbound leg from ADD to IAD. The eastbound leg from IAD to ADD is nonstop.

This is the latest addition from Ethiopian to its US route network. Just last week, the carrier announced that it was adding one-stop service from Newark (EWR) to Addis Ababa (ADD) via Abidjan (ABJ).

Ethiopian's 787, which it will fly on the ADD-DUB-ORD route, offers two cabins: economy and Cloud Nine (business). The business-class cabin offers 24 seats in a 2-2-2 configuration. The seats are a bit outdated and aren't quite fully flat — they're only angle-flat at 170 degrees. In economy, you'll find 246 seats in a 3-3-3 configuration, with each seat offering 33 inches of pitch and 17 inches of width.

Daily Newsletter

Reward your inbox with the TPG Daily newsletter

Join over 700,000 readers for breaking news, in-depth guides and exclusive deals from TPG’s experts

Email address

Sign up

By signing up, you will receive newsletters and promotional content and agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe at any time.

Ethiopian is a member of Star Alliance, so check on award availability through its partner, United. You can fly on the nearly 14-hour route for 80,000 United MileagePlus miles + taxes and fees one-way in business, or 40,000 miles one-way in economy. Taxes and fees look to be minimal — on most days we're seeing $5.60 each way.

This is a great option for travelers originating in Chicago looking to get to Africa — and just one of a slew of new ways to get to Africa in 2018. Ethiopian also offers other fifth-freedom routes such as these, continuing on to ADD. For example, the carrier flies from Los Angeles (LAX) to ADD via Dublin (DUB).