Tewolde GebreMariam received the Airlines Business Award at this year’s Airline Strategy Awards











Former Ethiopian Airlines chief executive Tewolde GebreMariam received the Airlines Business Award at this year’s Airline Strategy Awards on Sunday.

Organized by FlightGlobal, the awards – which have been held since 2002 – recognize individuals, airlines, and companies supporting air transport that have demonstrated dynamic leadership and clear vision.



This year, Tewolde was among senior aviation industry leaders recognized in a ceremony held on Sunday.

Tewolde received the prestigious Airline Business Award to recognize his achievements over an 11-year spell at the helm of Ethiopian Airlines, during which he showed skill across a range of disciplines, from crisis management to long-term strategic planning.

Between Tewolde taking charge in 2011 and 2019, Ethiopian quadrupled in size, growing from a fleet of 33 aircraft carrying three million passengers to a fleet of 130 aircraft carrying 13 million passengers, as it became a gateway to the African continent.

When he stepped down earlier this year, Tewolde handed over an airline that is a rare case study in making a success of operations on the African continent.



“He has shown true leadership in a region where success is hard to come by at the best of times. Under his watch, Ethiopian was not just the envy of other African carriers – it had admirers from all around the world,” said Airline Business editor Lewis Harper.

Tewelde was replaced by Mesfin Tasew as the CEO of Ethiopian Airlines in March 2022.

Apart from the former Ethiopian CEO, Turkish Airlines chief executive Bilal Eksi also received the 2021 Executive Leadership Award in recognition of the Istanbul-based flag carrier’s standout performance over the past two years, as it demonstrated both resilience and strategic nous.

The other individual winners at the Airline Strategy Awards were Korean Air chief executive Walter Cho, Sun Country Airlines chief executive Jude Bricker, and Allegiant Air’s Maurice Gallagher and John Redmond



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