Ethiopian Airlines boss Tewolde Gebremariam has doubled down on his decision to continue running flights to China during the Covid-19 outbreak.
Ethiopian was one of several airlines which continued to fly to cities such as Beijing and Shanghai in early months of 2020.
Gebremariam told the BBC that the airline did not believe that there was any correlation between direct flights to and from China and the spread of coronavirus, adding that the firm was a vital "lifeline" for Africa's economies trading with China.
Gebremariam argued that even countries which had introduced travel restrictions had still suffered from coronavirus cases, but conceded that a balance needed to be struck between prioritising public health and keeping the economy running.
He indicated that the pandemic had posed a significant challenge for the aviation sector, but insisted that Ethiopian would take on additional cargo flights to compensate for the loss in commercial revenue and boost its prospects.
