A park for loss and healing
Alebel Desta Consulting Architects and Engineers
On March 10, 2019, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crashed shortly after takeoff from Addis Ababa, killing all 157 people on board. The tragedy left deep scars and sorrow, while raising urgent questions about mechanical defects in the Boeing 737 and global aviation safety. The crash site soon became a place of mourning. In December 2019, Boeing announced it would fund the creation of a memorial park, working with a committee of bereaved families, Ethiopian Airlines, and local stakeholders.
ET-302 Memorial Park, designed by Alebel Desta Consulting Architects and Engineers and selected through an international competition in 2022, embodies the themes of absence, revelation, and healing. At its core are two sacred sites: the crash site and the burial ground. Pathways, structures, and gathering spaces unfold around them, guiding visitors through the experience of grief. From the southwest entrance, a path traces the final six minutes and forty-four seconds of the flight, leading to a central monument that seems to rise from the earth. Four tilted structures represent Africa, Europe, North America, and Asia, the continents to which the victims belonged. Made of rough-textured red concrete, the monument evokes Ethiopia’s geological and architectural heritage. Embedded plaques, recalling the windows of a Boeing 737, record each victim’s name, year of birth, and nationality. At the convergence of the four paths, an inner sanctum-like space allows visitors to experience both collective mourning and private silence, encountering a spiritual resonance that transcends loss.
Main Monument
Amphitheatre Area
Parking and Utilities
Undisturbed Burial Garden
Rock Garden
Main Access Path_Flight story line
To the west lies a circular burial ground. The pure geometry of the circle serves as a silent testimony and a boundary, both physical and spiritual. On the eastern side stands the Healing Monument, where sunlight pierces through small openings in weathering steel, creating a landscape of light breaking through darkness. Along the park’s edge, an open-air amphitheater accommodates up to 360 people, serving as both a site of collective commemoration and a social device for shared memory. Another layer is found in the stone garden, composed of rocks sent from around the world, reinterpreting traditional symbols of mourning in quiet presence.
ET-302 Memorial Park does not seal away past pain but continually recalls it, honoring the dead and comforting the living. Its geometric language, grounded in both Ethiopian tradition and modernity, transcends mere form. Voids, tilted masses, and paths scattered yet connected give powerful presence to absence, showing how shared memory can be embodied through architecture.
Project: The ET-302 Memorial / Location: Gimbichu Woreda, Oromia Region, Ethiopia / Architect: Alebel Desta Consulting Architects and Engineers / Project team: Abraham Lelisa, Alebel Desta, Biniyam Bewketu, Daniel Waju, Edom Elias, Frezer Abrha, Shiferaw Tatek, Solomon Desta, Tibebu Arega, Tinsae Tsegahun / Project management: Turner & Townsend / Structural Design: Kenmos Engineering / Sanitary and Mechanical Engineering: Werede Melaku and Team / Electrical Consultant: Splenor Technology PLC / Detailed Road Design and Supervision: ENISRAD / Landscape Works: Green Paradise Gardens / Material Sourcing and Shipping (Italy): ACOMEX / Project Coordination: ZIAS Engineering Team / Logistics, Events, and Coordination: Prologue Marketing PLC / Contractor: Elmi Olindo Contractors Plc / Client: The Boeing Company and Ethiopian Airlines Group / Use: Memorial Park / Site area: 40,000m² / Bldg. area: 40,000m² / Brand & Manufacturer Listing: SIOF S.P.A, Casalgrande Padana, FASSA BORTOLO, Mapei, Geoplast, SINECO, Reguitti, IAM Design, Cavatorta, Fils, EDILCHIMICA, Onduline Italia, INDA, Vama, Goman / Voluntary Committee Representing the Families of ET-302 Victims: Catherine Berthet, Elamu Peter, Emmie Auma, Eshetu Mulatu, Florah Mwashix, Jaboma Allan Onyango, Marianne Gysae-Edkins, Paul Njuguna, Njoroge Samira, Yaser Eissa, Tom Maina, Kabau Zekarias, Asfaw Shenkut / Emergency Response: Blake Emergency Services / Design: 2022 / Construction: Completion: 2025 / Photograph: ©Aron Simeneh (courtesy of the architect)
