China Southern's first Guangzhou–Changsha–Addis Ababa flight lands in Ethiopia

A China Southern Airlines flight from Guangzhou via Changsha landed in Addis Ababa on the night of 12 October, completing the inaugural flight of a new route, Xinhua reported on 13 October. The flight carried more than 200 people and was greeted with a traditional water cannon salute, Xinhua said.

Xinhua described it as the only route operated by a Chinese carrier between China and Ethiopia. Flights run twice a week, on Mondays and Fridays. The outbound flight is CZ8095 and the return is CZ8096, according to the Guangzhou Daily-linked news site Dayoo, which reported the schedule on 18 September.

The new service would use Boeing 787-9 aircraft, the Guangdong news site Newsgd reported on 18 August. It said the route is China Southern's first scheduled service to Ethiopia and makes Addis Ababa its second destination in Africa, after Nairobi.

AeroRoutes, an aviation news site, reported on 14 August that bookings on the route were open to 26 March 2027, as of 13 August.

Zhu Binghong, a tour group leader, said his group of 20 travellers from Guangzhou took the first flight, according to Xinhua. They will spend nine days in Ethiopia, visiting the capital and tribes in the south of the country.

Newsgd said on 18 August that Ethiopian Airlines already flew non-stop between Guangzhou and Addis Ababa.

China Southern said it would keep looking for intercontinental routes and expand air links between China and Africa, Xinhua reported.