According to an industry performance update issued recently by the African Airlines Association (AFRAA) the performance of African Airlines have improved significantly and exceeded pre-Covid levels both in terms of capacity and traffic carried signaling recovery for the industry across the continent.
The report revealed that the number of seats offered in the region increased by 12.6%, from 14.3 million in March 2019 to 16.1 million in March 2024. This increase was attributed to the establishment of new routes and additional frequencies.
Similarly over the same period, ASKs grew beyond the March 2019 level by 7.7%. This saw African airlines accounting for 49.5% of the international capacity and 35.9% of the intercontinental capacity.
Furthermore, AFRAA estimates that passenger traffic carried by African operators in 2024 will be about 98 million. In terms of the capacity split between African and non-African operators on both regional and intercontinental routes, AFRAA estimates these to be 50.7% and 49.3% respectively. However, a closer look into the capacity on only the intercontinental routes reveals a much lower share of 35.7% for African airlines as against 64.3% for non-African operators.
While it is noteworthy that intra-African connectivity grew beyond pre-Covid levels since December 2022 on a continental basis, it must be stressed that major hubs such as Johannesburg and Casablanca are yet to reach 2019 levels.
AFRAA also notes that just like traffic growth, African airlines are seeing improved revenue performance, seeing as the estimated revenue for January 2024 was US$ 1.83 billion compared to US$1.56 billion in November 2023. This amounts to a revenue growth of 14.75%.
It is also important to put into perspective the global price of Jet A1 which continues to fluctuate week on week, with the global average jet A1 price ending the week of March 22, 2024, going up 1.1% at $109.08/bbl.
