Ethiopian Airlines suspended every flight to Mekelle, Axum and Shire on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, after Tigrayan forces took control of the airport in Mekelle, the capital of Ethiopia’s Tigray region. The carrier gave no date for flights to resume.
No other airline serves the region, the Associated Press reported. Charter flights remain the only other option.
What happened at Mekelle airport
Tigrayan forces took Mekelle airport from federal police overnight, two local sources told Reuters. According to the AP, fighters of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) carrying light arms moved in on Wednesday morning, and the takeover appeared peaceful, with no gunfire heard.
Ethiopian announced the suspension on social media, citing “the current situation in Tigray region” and giving no further detail. In a notice carried by The Reporter, the airline apologized to customers and said it would inform them once flight operations resume.
Getachew Reda, a former TPLF negotiator who now advises Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, said the TPLF “has taken over federal controlled airports in Tigray leading to the suspension of flights,” the AP reported. Who holds the Axum and Shire airports had not been independently confirmed at the time of writing.
The fighting behind the seizure
The seizure follows months of worsening relations between the federal government and the TPLF, which fought a war from 2020 to 2022 that ended with a peace agreement in November 2022. On Sunday, the TPLF said it had formed an alliance with six other armed groups aimed at overthrowing Abiy’s government, according to Reuters.
Each side blames the other for the latest fighting. Tigray’s regional government said it ordered its fighters into a “defensive war” after federal forces attacked on Tuesday with drones and heavy artillery, the AP reported. The African Union’s commission chairperson, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, called for “restraint and immediate de-escalation.”
The airport, Alula Aba Nega International (MQX), sits about 6 miles (10 km) southeast of Mekelle and has a single runway of 11,825 feet (3,604 m). Its flights link the region to Ethiopian’s hub at Addis Ababa Bole.
How long the last shutdown lasted
Travelers have been here before. Ethiopian Airlines resumed flights between Addis Ababa and Mekelle on December 28, 2022, weeks after the peace deal, and Axum service only restarted on June 9, 2024, after repairs to that airport, AeroTime reported.
That history is the practical warning for anyone booked to or from Tigray. The airline’s own notice promises only that passengers will hear when operations resume, so affected travelers should contact Ethiopian directly about rebooking or refunds.
What is still unknown
Ethiopian has given no restart date. Control of the Axum and Shire airports had not been independently confirmed, and the federal government and the TPLF give conflicting accounts of who started the latest fighting.
The last time Tigray lost its flights, Axum waited until 2024 for service to return. How long this suspension lasts depends on whether the fighting spreads or the two sides return to the terms of the 2022 agreement.
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About the Author
Tim is the owner and lead editor of AeroCorner since 2019, overseeing aviation content covering aircraft, airlines, airports, and the broader aviation industry. Through years of researching, writing, editing, and publishing aviation-focused content, he has developed extensive practical knowledge of commercial aviation and air travel. Based in Asia and a frequent traveler himself, Tim also brings firsthand passenger experience to AeroCorner’s coverage. Outside of publishing, he has also explored aviation firsthand through hands-on flight training in New Zealand.