Tewolde Gebremariam Age, Biography

Some Lesser Known Facts About Tewolde Gebremariam

• After completing his postgraduation, Tewolde Gebremariam received an honorary doctorate from Addis Ababa University in 2019.

• In November 1985, he joined Ethiopian Airlines in Addis Ababa. He served in the various positions such as transportation agent, lead transportation agent, supervisor, and manager cargo traffic handling positions till March 1995.

• In 2004, he started working as the Executive Officer of Marketing and Sales at Ethiopian Airlines. In this role, he led the marketing and sales operations department of the airlines. He served in the position till July 2006.

• On 1 July 2006, he was appointed as the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Ethiopian Airlines. He served in the position till December 2010.

• During this period, Tewolde Gebremariam was responsible for the main operating divisions, including Commercial, Flight Operations, Customer Services, and Maintenance and Engineering of the airlines.

• He served as the Group CEO of Ethiopian Airlines from January 2011 to March 2022 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
  

  Tewolde Gebremariam during his period at Ethiopian Airlines

• Under his leadership, Ethiopian Airlines became the largest airline in Africa. During this period, the airline also became a member of Star Alliance, one of the world’s largest airline networks.

• Tewolde Gebremariam worked as a head of the Ethiopian Airlines for more than a decade and helped the airline grow in many ways. Its yearly turnover increased from about US$1 billion to US$4.5 billion.

• Under his leadership, the number of aircraft also grew from 33 to 130, and the number of passengers increased from 3 million to 12 million before the COVID-19 pandemic.

• During his leadership, the Ethiopian Airlines group grew almost four times in different areas.

• The airline also built huge infrastructure worth more than US$700 million. This included Africa’s biggest hotel, a large cargo terminal, MRO hangars and shops, an Aviation Academy, and Full Flight Simulators.

• Tewolde Gebremariam was especially praised for the way he led the airline after the crash of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

• He helped in transporting COVID-19 vaccines and bring Brazilian citizens back to Brazil during the pandemic.
  

  Tewolde Gebremariam posing at his workplace

• He was then honoured with the “Ordem de Rio Branco” award by the Government of Brazil for his services to the nation.
  

  Tewolde Gebremariam posing with his award

• During his service at Ethiopian Airlines, he also served on many national and international organisations.

• He has served as a member of the High-level Advisory Group on Sustainable Transport (HLAG-ST) under United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

• He also served as a member of the Board of Governors of the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

• Tewolde Gebremariam was an Executive Committee member of the African Airlines Association (AFRAA).

• He also served as a board member of the Airlink Advisory Council, the Africa Travel Association (ATA), Ethio Telecom, the Ethiopian Railway Corporation, and the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia.

• He has served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Ethiopian Tourism Organization (ETO).

• In April 2022, he started a consultancy company TGM Advisory Services LLC and started working as its Aviation Consultant for all Aviation Sectors, such as Airlines, OEM’s, MRO’s, Airports, Ground Handling Companies, Logistics Companies, Logistics Integrators, Aircraft Lessors, Aviation Investors, and Venture Capitalists.

• In November 2022, Tewolde Gebremariam started working as a Senior Strategic Advisor at Delta Air Lines in Atlanta, Georgia, United States.
  

  Tewolde Gebremariam during a conference

• In August 2026, he was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Air India. He succeeded Campbell Wilson in the position.

• Reportedly, the board of Air India selected him after carrying out a detailed search for a new executive.

• At the time of his appointment, Air India was going through a major changes under the Tata Group.

• During this time, the airline was also facing serious operational and financial problems. It was going through heavy losses and the impact of the June 2025 Air India Flight AI171 crash.

• An official from Air India said in the media that Gebremariam would lead the airline through its next stage of growth and expansion. The company added that that his experience in leading Ethiopian Airlines would help him in this role.