Chinese Companies Hold Inside Track for Ethiopia's Huge New Airport

 Vietnam's VN Express published on 16 August 2026 an article titled "Africa's Biggest Airport Project Puts Chinese Firms on Shortlist" by Phan Anh.

Chinese state-owned companies have been short-listed for 15 of the 33 places for Ethiopia's $12.5 billion international airport outside Addis Ababa.  No US company made the shortlist, but Boeing supplies most of the aircraft for the Ethiopian Airlines fleet.  

The project requires more than $9 billion in external funding.  This is the most expensive aviation project ever undertaken in Africa.

US-China Competition for Ethiopia's New International Airport

 Business Insider Africa published on 30 July 2026 an article titled "Ethiopia's $12.5 Billion Airport Has Become the Latest Investment Battleground between the U.S. and China in Africa" by Solomon Ekanem.

The United States is seeking a role for its private sector companies in the development of Ethiopia's new $12.5 billion Bishoftu Airport as it challenges China's commanding position of building infrastructure projects in Africa by its state-owned companies.

The United States sees this as an opening for its construction and engineering companies and an opportunity to sell more Boeing aircraft to Ethiopian Airlines.  In addition, the Bishoftu Airport is a gateway to influence Africa's fast-growing aviation, logistics, and technology sectors.

China's Expanding Airpower in the Western Indian Ocean

 Strategic Horizons, a publication of the Air University, just published an edition that contains my article titled "China's Expanding Airpower in the Western Indian Ocean."

This is an in-depth analysis of China's evolving airpower posture across the Western Indian Ocean from Pakistan to the coast of Africa from Egypt to South Africa, including the island countries.  It reflects research as of mid-2025 

Kenya Commissions Refurbished Chinese Military Helicopters

 Pulselive.co.ke posted on 30 October 2024 an article titled "KDF Boosts Aviation Capabilities with Deadly Z-9 Helicopters" by Denis Mwangi.

The Kenya Army Corps of Aviation commissioned on 29 October refurbished Harbin Z-9 helicopters provided by the China Aviation Technology Import and Export Corporation.  The report did not cite the number of helicopters that were commissioned.  

Kenya's the Nation published on 3 July 2020 an article titled "Queries Raised over Military Choppers that Have Yet to Fly."

The article indicated that Kenya received 8 Chinese Z-9 helicopters in January 2020 that had not been airborne as of July 2020.  There was no explanation why they remained on the ground without flying.

Comment:  It is not clear if the undetermined number of recently commissioned, refurbished Z-9s are the same ones as the 8 delivered in January 2020,

Thedefensepost.com posted on 16 July 2024 an article titled "Kenya Receives Military Helicopters from US" by Joe Saballa.

Coincidentally, the United States delivered the first two of eight UH-1 Huey military helicopters in July 2024 to the Kenya Defence Forces.  They were promised during the state visit to Washington by President William Ruto.  

Conflict on the Nile, US Policy, and Ethiopian Flight Ban

 The Washington Post published on 6 October 2020 a commentary titled "A Conflict Is Brewing on the Nile--and the Trump Administration Is Making Things Worse" by Stephen Paduano, London School of Economics.  

The author argues that the United States should help to solve Egypt's water needs by promoting better water management programs in Egypt than threatening to cut aid to Ethiopia.  

In the meantime, the director-general of Ethiopia's Civil Aviation Authority has banned all flights in the vicinity of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam in order to secure the dam from possible attack.  

China's First Aircraft Carrier Goes into Service

The Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies has just opened a new website called China Power. The first entry is a lengthy piece titled "How Does China's First Aircraft Carrier Stack Up?" It evaluates the capabilities and likely use of the Liaoning, which was originally built for the Soviet Navy but was extensively modernized and commissioned by the PLAN in 2012 as a training ship. It will be several years before it is fully integrated into the PLAN.