Africa’s aviation industry is at a crossroad
With the global aviation industry taking a nosedive in recent years, the sector across Africa is defying growth trends.
Passenger numbers continue to rise every year, and 2016 was the safest year for flights in a decade for African carriers.
New flight routes and airlines continue to crop up as the biggest African airlines square up to international competition.
However, once you take a closer look at the landscape across Africa’s aviation industry, the story becomes more complex. As new airlines are born, others disappear. And for every African airline taken off the European Union blacklist over safety concerns, another seems to be added.
Then there’s the huge question of creating open skies above African nations – a potential move that will shake up the industry. Now more than ever, African aviation is at a crossroads that will shape its future.
Steady growth
For the biggest names in African aviation, growth is relatively steady. In June, Ethiopian Airlines won the “Best African Airline of the Year 2016” award, a year after winning the same award for 2015.
Aviation Africa – the organisers of the award, credited the airline’s continued rapid growth, increased profitability and contribution to aviation development in Africa – despite a number of challenges facing the airline and wider industry.
Ethiopian Airlines reported an impressive 18 per cent increase in passenger numbers last year, boosting profits to $265 million, making it one of the fastest-growing airlines in the world right now – not only in Africa.
Meanwhile, RwandaAir recently opened its first flights between London and Kigali with a keen eye on making the most of its growing reputation as a tourist destination, much like Ethiopia.
According to last year’s Air Transport Action Group (ATAG) industry report, the aviation sector contributes $72.5 billion to Africa’s GDP and more than 6.8 million jobs.
Growth is expected to continue over the next decade too, as experts mark it as one of the most important regions for the wider aviation industry.
It’s not all good news, however. Some of Africa’s leading airlines, including EgyptAir and South African Airways (SAA), are enduring hard times – particularly SAA, whose financial future is under scrutiny. Meanwhile, Kenya Airways is in the process of financial restructuring and Nigeria airlines continues to fight a losing battle for survival.
Dollar prices and African currency crunches are also putting pressure on African airlines this year, making the outlook bleak for airlines that are already struggling. Fuel availability and prices are also an issue while security and infrastructural issues are a growing problem.
However, many experts point to a much bigger problem, that’s Africa’s aviation industry’s inability to maximise its potential.
—eastafricamonitor/GB