Ethiopian Adds Lyon Flights via Geneva July 2026
Key points
- Ethiopian Airlines plans to start thrice weekly service to Lyon on July 2, 2026 via Geneva
- Flights operate Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays with one stop in Geneva in each direction
- The schedule is marketed as ET738 eastbound and ET739 westbound, with local times published for each segment
- Most travelers should expect Schengen entry formalities at Geneva on the inbound and Schengen exit formalities at Geneva on the return
- The route is scheduled with Airbus A350 900 aircraft, which can change seasonally based on operational needs
Impact
- Where Time Risk Concentrates
- Connection timing and border processing at Geneva are the main variables that can stretch total trip time
- Who Gains A New One Stop Option
- Travelers based in the Lyon region gain a new one stop path to Addis Ababa and onward African connections
- How It Changes Arrival Timing
- Early morning arrivals into Lyon can make same day onward travel easier, but hotel check out and ground transport planning still matters on the return
- What To Monitor Before Booking
- Confirm whether bags are through checked at Geneva, and verify connection instructions on your specific ticket
- Decision Threshold For Rebooking
- If your Geneva connection is under 75 to 90 minutes during peak periods, consider rebooking to a longer buffer to reduce misconnect risk
Ethiopian Airlines says it will launch a new thrice weekly passenger service to Lyon, France, routed via Geneva, Switzerland, starting July 2, 2026. The airline positions the service as an expansion of its France footprint, adding Lyon to its existing Paris and Marseille service, and using its Addis Ababa hub to connect into a wider African network. For travelers, the practical change is a new one stop option between Addis Ababa and the Lyon region, with the key planning variable shifting to how the Geneva stop is handled on your ticket.
Ethiopian published the operating pattern as Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, using flight ET738 eastbound and ET739 westbound, with the aircraft continuing through Geneva on the same day. The published schedule shows ET738 departing Addis Ababa Bole International Airport (ADD) at 1210 a.m. local time, arriving at Geneva Airport (GVA) at 630 a.m., then departing Geneva at 730 a.m. for an 815 a.m. arrival at Lyon Saint Exupéry Airport (LYS). The return shows ET739 departing Lyon at 720 p.m., arriving Geneva at 805 p.m., then departing Geneva at 905 p.m. for a 455 a.m. arrival in Addis Ababa the next day.
Who Is Affected
Travelers starting or ending in Lyon, France are the most directly affected, because the new flight creates a new long haul gateway that does not require positioning to Paris or another European hub before heading to Africa. That matters for families and business travelers alike, because fewer separate tickets and fewer extra segments usually means fewer opportunities for baggage or misconnect problems, assuming the Geneva stop is managed smoothly.
Travelers connecting beyond Addis Ababa are also affected, especially those building itineraries to East Africa, Southern Africa, and Indian Ocean markets that Ethiopian often serves via its hub. The schedule design, with a midnight departure from Addis Ababa and an early morning arrival into Lyon, can be convenient for same day onward connections in France once you are on the ground, but it also means that a delay out of Addis Ababa can compress the Geneva turn and stress the Lyon arrival time.
Travelers transiting Geneva are affected in a different way. Switzerland is in the Schengen Area, so for many passengers, Geneva is likely to be the point where border formalities happen, not Lyon, even though Lyon is the final destination on the inbound. By July 2026, most Schengen external borders are expected to be operating under the EU Entry Exit System biometric process, which can make first time entries slower at busy times. Travelers should plan their Geneva connection with that reality in mind, and treat the border step as part of the connection, not a separate afterthought. EU entry/exit system starts October 12: what to expect
What Travelers Should Do
Book the itinerary as a single ticket whenever possible, because it keeps the Geneva stop protected under one reservation if the first segment runs late. After booking, check your itinerary details for whether you must clear passport control at Geneva before the Lyon segment, and whether the airline expects you to remain in transit or to follow standard arrivals and departures flows. Small differences in terminal routing can add meaningful minutes at Geneva during the morning peak.
Use a clear threshold for your personal risk tolerance before you commit. If your plan depends on arriving in Lyon and immediately catching a high value onward connection, for example a long distance train, a prepaid tour pickup, or a same day regional flight, treat the first months of a new route as a period where schedules can move. In that case, either build a larger buffer, or shift the critical onward segment to the following day, because new services can see timetable refinements after launch as airlines tune turn times, crew pairings, and slot performance.
Over the 24 to 72 hours before departure, monitor three things: the published flight status for ET738 or ET739, any travel advisory or operations notice affecting Geneva or Lyon, and any airline message about check in cutoffs or connection procedures at Geneva. If Ethiopian issues a schedule change, even a small one, recheck your ground transport plans in Lyon, because early morning arrival timing is often what drives hotel checkout strategy, car rental counter availability, and first train departure options.
How It Works
This route is structured as a one stop service that uses Geneva as the intermediate point between Addis Ababa and Lyon. Operationally, that means the same aircraft and flight number pair can cover both a long haul segment and a short intra Europe segment, which can be efficient for aircraft utilization, but it also concentrates reliability into the intermediate stop. A late departure from Addis Ababa can propagate into Geneva as a compressed turnaround, and that can ripple into Lyon arrival timing, then back into the evening departure window for the return.
From a traveler perspective, the biggest system effect is how borders and baggage interact with the stop. Because Geneva is a Schengen entry point, many travelers should expect to complete entry steps there on the inbound, then treat the Geneva to Lyon hop like a domestic Schengen flight. On the return, the reverse is typically true, you travel Lyon to Geneva as intra Schengen, then complete exit steps at Geneva before the long haul sector. That design can be smooth when queues are light, but it can also create second order impacts when the airport is busy, because border throughput is one of the few elements that the airline cannot fully control.
Aircraft type also matters for the traveler experience, even when the headline is about a new city pair. Ethiopian lists the Lyon service under sub fleet code 359, which is widely used to refer to the Airbus A350 900 family. That usually implies a long haul cabin product on the Addis Ababa to Geneva sector, and it can also influence seat availability and fare buckets if the airline swaps equipment seasonally. Travelers who care about a specific cabin layout should verify the aircraft assignment close to departure rather than treating it as guaranteed at the time of booking.