Italy has handed back Ethiopia’s first ever plane about nine decades after it was taken by Italy’s Fascist invading forces.
Ethiopia Prime Minister (PM) Abiy Ahmed Ali received the plane on Tuesday, January 30, in Rome on the sidelines of the Italy-Africa summit.
The plane named “Tsehay” is the first aircraft built in Ethiopia in 1935 under the collaborative efforts of the German engineer and pilot of the emperor, Herr Ludwig Weber, and Ethiopian individuals of that era said Abiy.
PM Abiy thanked his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni for facilitating the repatriation.
“Today is a day of great pride for Ethiopians as we celebrate the official handover of “Tsehay” by the Italian Government. I extend my immense gratitude to Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni for her support over the past year in facilitating its return,” PM Abiy said after receiving the aircraft.
Over the past year, Abiy has made great efforts in discussions with Meloni to ensure the return of the aircraft to Ethiopia.
Today marks another historic milestone for Ethiopia with the handover of “Tsehay” to the government of Ethiopia by the Italian authorities,” the Office of the Prime Minister also confirmed.
Ethiopia Plane Manufacture
The German engineer, Weber, travelled to Addis Ababa in 1933 as a representative of the German government and was emperor Haile Sellassie’s pilot.
Its name was chosen in honor of Princess Tsehay, the daughter of Emperor Haile Selassie.
He designed and supervised the construction of the Ethiopia first aircraft.
The aircraft was constructed with limited resources and space, relying on the craftsmanship of carpenters of that period.
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Tsehay was designed as a two-seat, dual-controlled aircraft, featuring a more powerful engine.
It possessed essential components such as a compass, pilot controls, and two fixed landing gears without brakes.
The engine, a seven-cylinder Walter Vinus with a water-cooling system, boasted a horsepower of 115.
The aircraft was taken to Italy after the invading forces of dictator Benito Mussolini occupied Ethiopia, then Abyssinia, in 1935, taking the capital Addis Ababa the following year.
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Italy Defense Ministry on Tsehay
Italian defense ministry said Tsehay made its first flight in December 1935.
It had a total of about 30 hours of flight time only to be abandoned in Addis Abeba in May 1936, before the arrival of the Italians, who requisitioned it.
Tsehay stands as the sole aircraft manufactured in Ethiopia prior to World War II.
It also represents the only surviving artifact from the aviation endeavors of the 1930s.
The ministry said the plane had been kept at the Italian Air Force Museum since 1941 and would later be transported to Ethiopia.
