Africa’s largest airline group, the Ethiopian Airlines, has announced that it will for the first time, be operating an all women flight in Africa on December 16, 2017.A local newspaper, the Independent report on Tuesday quoted a statement issued by the airline on Monday in Addis Ababa, as saying that the flight from Addis Ababa to Nigeria will be manned by women from the pilots and cabin crew to in flight ramp operations, as well as flight dispatchers on ground.

It added that the flight, which is expected to leave for Lagos, Nigeria from Addis Ababa on December 16, will have on board some selected Nigerian journalists.

“This flight shows us that if women get equal opportunities and work hard,  they can achieve whatever they want in all fields including the aviation industry,” the report quoted the pilot, Capt. Amsale Gualu as saying.

“The all-female crew which also has Tigist Kibret as First Officer, will be flying the Boeing 777.

“In a country where few women have dared to enter the highly male-dominated profession of piloting, Captain Guale, in 2010 became the first Ethiopian female captain to fly an Ethiopian Airlines Bombardier from Addis Ababa to Gondar,” the statement said.

According to the statement, the airline is promoting women’s empowerment and encouraging more African women to pursue aviation careers.

The airline noted that although one-third of its employees are women, the figure is smaller when it comes to positions such as pilots and technicians.