Hi, folks. I'm planning a pretty significant trip for me next year: a four-country tour of Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda. I'm currently looking at tickets and I was wondering if Ethiopian will interline bags to other airlines when starting at an outstation, as opposed to, let's say, other airlines interlining to Ethiopian or an interline between ET and another carrier with the journey beginning at ADD. (Yes, I'm aware that there is, or at least should be, an interlining agreement given that both are in *A.)

So far I'm planning to book MAD-ADD with TK, with segments within the region on local carriers. Specifically for this post, I'm planning to fly KGL-ADD on ET, which would then connect to ADD-IST-MAD on TK departing around three hours later. Will I run into trouble asking at KGL for my bags to be checked through all the way to MAD? I'm prepared to get a second eVisa if need be, but if I can save $60 I'd much rather do that. Also, at ADD how could I ask for my boarding passes should I get to check my bags through to MAD?

Thank you all in advance for any advice you may have, and I'm excited to actually head to this part of the world for the first time!

Yes this is fairly straightforward.

Just ask for them to check your bags to destination - in most cases they should be able to do this manually.

In Addis Ababa proceed to the transfer desk and obtain your Turkish Airlines boarding passes (if you can't get them from online checkin already).

Also worth getting the transfer desk to verify that your bags are being forwarded, share your bag tags with the staff and ask them to check. If not at the transfer desk then at the lounge or at the gate, but the sooner the better so there is time for the bags to be redirected if they did not get forwarded correctly.

+1

Personally, I have had issues with UA on this. ET is very helpful and will get your bags to the transfer point and will communicate with the other airline. But you may have to be proactive and make sure the receiving airline sees the interline baggage and acknowledges that they have it. The worst example of this I have had is connecting form ET to UA at YYZ. I had to demand that the rep at the UA transfer desk look up my bags and make sure they were loaded on our connecting UA flight. SHe was very hesitant (resistant?) in doing this. But they were eventually loaded on our flight. The previous time I had tried this, I did not double check the bags and UA did not load our luggage on our flight, and we did not get them until the next day.

Thank you, everyone! The trip is coming together (it is evolving quite rapidly in terms of time and cost) so I hope all moves smoothly. The biggest change is instead of leaving for MAD via KGL, I'm now leaving through EBB instead, spending less time in Uganda as opposed to Rwanda. Still hoping the same advice applies!

Hello, I have a similar question but with LH instead of TK. Airports would be LUN - ADD - BRU and after continuing to FRA via LH on different tickets. Am I right to assume that there will be no problem?

I didn't get to follow up here last year but at EBB ET was able to check my bags through all the way to MAD. I imagine they will be able to do it as well with LH given that they're in the same alliance.

Adding some datapoints:

1: LLW (ET) ADD (TK) IST on one ticket.

No through check available and required to go landside to pick up and recheck

2:: ADD (ET) FRA (LH) GVA on one ticket.

bag through check was available but not check in/no BP for the LH segment.