Bishoftu

History

Bishoftu, as a definite entity, did not come into existence until after the Second World War. Accounts of earlier travelers call the region "Adda", although one Swedish memoir from 1935 mentions a village named "Bishoftu". At about from Adda, on land that had been owned partly by Emperor Haile Selassie I, the Italians started Azienda Agraria di Biscioftu dell'Opera Nazionale per i Combattenti on 15,000 hectares, intending to create a center of colonization as well as an experimental agricultural station. The first foundation stone for the houses was laid 9 December 1937, but only 21 dwellings were ready by May 1938. Various administrative and service buildings were also built. The history of the Ethiopian Air Force is tightly woven with the history of Bishoftu. In 1946, the beginnings of what would become the Ethiopian Air Force was moved from Lideta airport in Addis Ababa, which was needed by Ethiopian Airlines, to Bishoftu. The initial group of 19 Swedes under Count Carl Gustaf von Rosen, who were to train the pilots and support personnel, arrived there after leaving Sweden between 9 January and 16 July 1946. Both Ethiopian cadets and the Swedish instructors took part in constructing the first buildings on the base. Six Saab 91 Safir training airplanes were bought in Sweden and flown to the new airbase 24 December 1946, and on 10 November 1947, a fleet of 16 Saab-built B-17s were landed at Bishoftu by Swedish pilots. On 2 October 2016 at Irreechaa celebration security forces fired tear gas at protesters forcing them to panic and as a result 52 people lost their lives after falling into ditches around Lake Hora. On 10 March 2019, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crashed near the town of Bishoftu. All 157 people aboard killed. On 10 January 2026, construction began on…

Geography

The city is located within the Bishoftu volcanic field, an area of Holocene lava flows, cinder cones, tuff rings and maars. Several of the maars are water-filled, forming five crater lakes: Lake Bishoftu, Lake Hora (a base for watersports, many water birds and an annual festival), Lake Bishoftu Guda, Lake Koriftu and the seasonal Lake Cheleklaka. Other nearby points of interest include Mount Yerer, Green Crater Lake and Lake Hora Kiloli. Bishoftu is also home to the Ethiopian Air Force, Harar Meda Airport (ICAO HAHM, IATA QHR), National veterinary institute, Ethiopia and new Bishoftu International Airport (BIA) as well as a station on the Addis Ababa–Djibouti Railway.

Most-observed species

• Marabou Stork

  Leptoptilos crumenifer (R.P.Lesson, 1831) · Aves
  324
• Egyptian Goose

  Alopochen aegyptiaca (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  287
• Black Kite

  Milvus migrans (Boddaert, 1783) · Aves
  273
• Red-eyed Dove

  Streptopelia semitorquata (Rüppell, 1837) · Aves
  242
• Hooded Vulture

  Necrosyrtes monachus (Temminck, 1823) · Aves
  232
• Sacred Ibis

  Threskiornis aethiopicus (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  205
• Red-knobbed Coot

  Fulica cristata Gmelin, 1789 · Aves
  200
• Speckled Mousebird

  Colius striatus J.F.Gmelin, 1789 · Aves
  196

Most recent

• M 4 — 2026-06-25
  41 km NW of Metahāra, Ethiopia
• M 4.6 — 2026-02-15
  23 km WNW of Metahāra, Ethiopia
• M 4.5 — 2025-02-24
  6 km WNW of Metahāra, Ethiopia
• M 4.3 — 2025-02-12
  6 km SW of Metahāra, Ethiopia
• M 4.2 — 2025-02-04
  11 km SSW of Metahāra, Ethiopia
• M 4.1 — 2025-01-23
  11 km W of Metahāra, Ethiopia