Ethiopian Airlines (ET, Addis Ababa International) has announced it has started longhaul operations out of the Bahar Dar, a city in north-western Ethiopia, as of January 24.

The carrier said in a statement its non-stop cargo flights to Liège, Belgium, would allow Bahar Dar's flourishing horticulture industry to have direct access to European markets without the need to transit Addis Ababa International.

“Today marks yet another big milestone in the history of Ethiopian Cargo & Logistics Services for we start direct freighter service dedicated to flowers with the aim of delivering the best flower produces of the country to end users fresh, timely and direct from the farm to Europe," Ethiopian Group CEO Tewolde Gebremariam said in a statement. "With its daily freighter services to Belgium, Liège and Brussels, Ethiopian transports a total of 130 tonnes of flowers."

According to the ch-aviation schedules module, Bahar Dar's passenger operations are still restricted to domestic Ethiopian services to each of Addis Ababa, Dessie, and Lalibela.