Airlines in Africa see 20.7% growth in international traffic as Ethiopian leads

• Surge in capacity but load factors drop to 74%.

Rise in demand is seeing airlines across the African continent benefit as data released by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) show a 20.7 percent rise in passenger traffic this year compared to this time last year.

Kenya Airways, Ethiopian Airlines, Egyptair, Royal Air Maroc, and Air Senegal are among a collection of carriers who have benefitted from this rise in demand, the data shows.

According to monitored reports, per Simple Flying, African Airlines are surging forward with the expansion, which has seen capacity grow by 22.1 percent yearly, catapulting the continent’s aviation scene into a new realm.

It reports that the growth has been expected as the world continues its post-pandemic recovery, with Africa’s numbers adding to the 5.7 percent global increase in passenger numbers seen in February this year.

Downside of the data from the IATA is that although demand and capacity have gone up, there is a slight increase in overall load factors across Africa, with a slight decrease in numbers seeing the region reach just 74 percent, a drop compared to the previous year.

Optimistic for the region

Willie Walsh, the IATA director general, who once headed International Airlines Group remains optimistic about travel across Africa. Walsh reiterates the positive momentum the region is seeing. Growth will be expected as more people look to travel, plus accelerated investment in airports and airlines and ‘resilient passenger demand’.

He clarified, however, that the continued imposition of new taxes across Europe could be detrimental to growth not just in Africa but across the aviation industry and could lead to increases in airline ticket costs.

Details of the data released show that in Africa, domestic operations posted over 13.7 percent growth compared to pre-pandemic levels, and between 2023 and 2024, there were 15 percent more operations. This was driven by strong demand over the new year period (however, it remains in the shadows compared to China during this time, which saw an increase of 31.5 percent).

According to Simple Flying, when compared to February 2019, an increase of 0.9 percent was seen, with annual growth for international operations reaching over 26.3 percent, noting that operations towards Asia and the Pacific led the spike as demand for travel between those regions and Africa witnessed demand surpassing 53.2 percent. For those destined for South America, growth between Africa and the likes of Sao Paulo contributed to a 21 percent increase in travel between the two continents.

Ethiopian still leads Africa

Ethiopian Airlines maintains its status as the continent’s largest airline from its base at Addis Ababa Bole International Airport (ADD). In February, Simple Flying had published that the carrier will operate up to 78 destinations across the African continent this year, adding Freetown, Sierra Leone, in May and Maun Botswana in June.

For international travellers heading towards North America, the carrier already serves up to 37 weekly flights between Ethiopia and the likes of Washington, Chicago, Toronto, Newark, Atlanta, and New York JFK.

However, further growth is expected. Last November, the Ethiopian’s  chief commercial officer (CCO) disclosed that two additional North American destinations will be added “per year over the next few years.” He said Denver, Minneapolis, Seattle, Houston, and Montreal are coming.