Is European airspace shunning Africa? The blacklist of carriers recently updated by the European Union's Aviation Safety Agency reveals a worrying trend. overrepresentation African airlines in the group banned from European airspace. The Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola are the countries whose carriers have been targeted the most. But in three countries - Sudan, Liberia and Libya - all the airlines certified by the national authorities have been banned. banned from European skies. While most of these are carriers with ageing fleets and no real ambitions for international destinations, the national airline Air Tanzania, which is in the process of applying for a licence to fly to Europe, has sprung a surprise by also finding itself on the blacklist.
The extreme diversity of the African aviation ecosystem further blurs the interpretation of this result. As a result, the sector as a whole remains very dynamic with two leading companies, Royal Air Maroc and Ethiopian Airlines. According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), African airlines are set to double their profits to 200 million dollars this year. This increase comes against a backdrop of growth in both passenger demand (+8%) and capacity (+7.7%).
However, more passengers and more flights do not solve the fundamental problems facing African airlines, namely a heavy legacy of high operating costsThis is the result of an astronomical level of tax: " The reality is that the critical mass of many African airlines does not allow them to have the operational skills and experience that we expect in Europe and other parts of the world. This is due to the difficult environment in which they operate. For example, air fares in Africa are very high because the taxes applied are very high. Sometimes the tax can be as high as 60 % of the cost of the ticket, with no offsetting investment in airports. "says John Grant, chief analyst at OAG.
Maintenance problems
Against this tense financial backdrop, airlines are faced with the dilemma of maintenance, which is also costly and, above all, denominated in US dollars. And this at a time when several countries on the continent are facing currency turbulence and the greenback scarcity. " It's a dollar-based industry, from the purchase of the aircraft to fuel, maintenance and navigation costs. A company that sells passenger tickets in local currency, whether Nigerian naira or CFA franc, faces an unfavourable exchange rate against the dollar. Not to mention the fact that there aren't many dollars in Africa. "says John Grant.
However, in this crucial area of business Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO), the leaders are currently foreign. These include Raytheon Technologies Corporation, Lufthansa Technik and Airbus. MRO centres remain centred around Casablanca and Addis Ababa, the hubs of the continent's two largest airlines. In this respect, much depends on the forecasts of the manufacturers and their choices to eventually deploy in other countries on the continent.
Airbus, for example, is keeping a close eye on developments in Nigeria, as it sees the cost of maintaining the continent's commercial aircraft doubling to $5.5 billion a year by 2042. West Africa's largest economy has twenty-five airlines and its MRO spending has soared. The country is trying to set up a local MRO centre in partnership with a British group, AJW Consortium. Just like Ghana, which in 2022 launched a maintenance business in partnership with a subsidiary of Egypt Air, or like many African countries hoping to develop local MRO options.
Lack of cooperation
However, the strategy overlooks the possibility of pooling resources by forming alliances of African airlines, along the lines of European carriers. The obstacle ofnational pride and competing political aspirations are frequently cited to explain this bias. Lacking cooperation and resources, African carriers are now condemned to costly audits and a merry-go-round of experts to improve their chances of getting off the European blacklist - even though many of the African airlines concerned do not have the resources to expand to Europe anyway. Even in the case of Air Tanzania, " with a sub-optimal fleet of three or four 707s, as is their case, there is no way of achieving gains and productivity, it's more a matter of ego "says John Grant. An ego that is costing the continent dearly, given that many destinations between African capitals are still not served, or are very poorly served.
