According to an updated report by the African Airlines Association (Afraa), the COVID-19 pandemic continued to hammer Africa’s aviation industry in 2021, resulting in an estimated $8.6 billion revenue loss.

While the figure is less than the $10.21 billion revenue loss recorded by the sector in 2020, it did mark a 49.8% decline when compared to the revenue recorded by the sector prior to the pandemic in 2019.

The report blamed the revenue loss on the stringent travel restrictions placed by governments, in a bid to contain the Coronavirus. While the restrictions were well-intentioned, they also inevitably made it impossibly for African airlines to operate optimally.

As a matter of fact, the traffic volume from January through to December was 42.3% less than what was recorded in 2019.

“Across Africa in general, passenger traffic volumes remain depressed due to the unilateral and uncoordinated travel health restrictions imposed by some governments following the outbreak of the Omicron variant of COVID-19.

“Airline revenues have remained low with many operators battling with cash-flow issues. Full-year revenue loss for 2021 is estimated at $8.6 billion, equivalent to 49.8 per cent of the 2019 revenues,” said a part of the report.

The Afraa report further noted that the ongoing political upheaval in Ethiopia also contributed to the loss because traffic volumes into the Horn of Africa country contracted, particularly between November and December last year.

Do note that during the year under review, only three African airlines were able to continue with their international routes expansion, the report said.

Source: Business Insider Africa

Ethiopian Airlines has commenced reactivation of its Boeing 737 MAX fleet. The 737 MAX, which is the first of four passenger jets, has returned to the skies for the first time since the aircraft were grounded in spring 2019.  

The Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8, registration ET-AVI, was spotted on February 1, 2022. According to Flightradar24.com data, the jet took off from Addis Ababa Bole International Airport (ADD) at 09:21 a.m. (UTC) for a two hour-long reactivation flight and returned to the airport around 11.46 a.m. (UTC).  

The jet was the first of four 737 MAX passenger planes operate by the airline before the type was grounded following two fatal crashes. 346 people died when Lion Air Flight 610 crashed on October 29, 2018, and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crashed on March 10, 2019. 

The MAX reactivation follows Ethiopian Airlines’ initial schedule, which was announced by the airline in December 2021.  

At the time, Tewolde Gebremariam, Ethiopian Airlines CEO revealed that it had taken more than 20 months for the airline to regain confidence in the safety of its MAX fleet.  

“We have taken enough time to monitor the design modification work and the more than 20 months of rigorous rectification process…our pilots, engineers, aircraft technicians, cabin crew are confident in the safety of the fleet,” the CEO said in a statement seen by Reuters, which was dated January 2022.  

Gebremariam also noted that safety is the airline’s “topmost priority” and guides “every decision [it] makes and all actions [it] takes”. 

Source: Aerotime Hub

The airline industry is raising the stakes in a showdown with AT&T and Verizon over plans to launch new 5G wireless service this week, warning that thousands of flights could be grounded or delayed if the rollout takes place near major airports.

CEOs of the nation’s largest airlines say that interference from the wireless service on a key instrument on planes is worse than they originally thought.

“To be blunt, the nation’s commerce will grind to a halt” unless the service is blocked near major airports, the CEOs said in a letter Monday, January 17, to federal officials including Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who has previously taken the airlines’ side in the matter.

AT&T and Verizon plan to activate their new 5G wireless service Wednesday, January 19, after two previous delays from the original plan for an early December rollout.

The new high-speed 5G service uses a segment of the radio spectrum that is close to that used by altimeters, which are devices that measure the height of aircraft above the ground.

Two weeks ago, the companies struck a deal with the Federal Aviation Administration to delay the service for two more weeks and reduce the power of 5G transmitters near airports. That delay ends Wednesday, January 19.

AT&T and Verizon say their equipment will not interfere with aircraft electronics and that the technology is being safely used in many other countries. Critics of the airline industry say the carriers had several years to upgrade altimeters that might be subject to interference from 5G.

The CEOs of 10 passenger and cargo airlines, including American, Delta, United, and Southwest, said 5G will be more disruptive than they originally thought because dozens of large airports that were to have buffer zones to prevent 5G interference with aircraft will still be subject to flight restrictions announced last week by the FAA and because those restrictions won’t be limited to times when visibility is poor.

“Unless our major hubs are cleared to fly, the vast majority of the traveling and shipping public will essentially be grounded. This means that on a day like yesterday, more than 1,100 flights and 100,000 passengers would be subjected to cancellations, diversions or delays,” the CEOs said.

Source: AFAR

Following the worst crisis commercial aviation has ever experienced, Ethiopian Airlines is now cash positive and profitable, its chief executive officer Tewolde Gebremariam said on Thursday. How it got there? Riding the updraft of a booming air freight market.

E-commerce and medical supplies

When physical stores closed down, people suffering from lockdown boredom took to online retail therapy. As entry restrictions erupted across the globe, regular supply chains were disrupted. As a result, the e-commerce business flourished, Jeff Bezos added a few more billions to his fortune, and airlines were thrown a lifeline in the form of soaring air cargo demand.

Passenger seats were quickly expelled from widebody aircraft in so-called ‘preighters’ to make space for more cargo – for some time nearly worth its weight in gold. Ethiopian Airlines was one of the first commercial carriers to turn to freight to generate revenue throughout COVID. It has succeeded in keeping the momentum going.

“For us, Ethiopian Airlines, the cargo business is strong and I would say is a breadwinner in the group,” Gebremariam said during a video link to a conference in Dubai, as reported by Reuters. “We are cash-positive. We are profitable,” he continued.

Strategic hub for pharma and goods

The crisis has seen the airline and Addis Ababa become an important hub for the transport of vaccines and other medical supplies onwards to the continent. Ethiopian Airlines also strengthened its position as Africa’s leading pharmaceutical carrier at the end of last year when it received the Center of Excellence for Independent Validators in Pharmaceutical Logistics (CEIV Pharma) certification.

The Ethiopian Airlines CEO further stated that his airline had made it through the pandemic this far with its own finances and without relying on any bailouts. It has even offered pay-rises and bonuses to airline staff. The carrier is now back to about 70% of pre-pandemic operations.

No signs of slowing down

The LoadStar is reporting that there is no expectation of air cargo demand – or rates – dropping any time soon. With passenger traffic again slowing down due to Omicron concerns, belly capacity is reducing, and airlines with dedicated cargo fleets stand to gain.

Ethiopian Airlines operates three permanently converted Boeing 737-800s and nine 777Fs. However, at the height of the crisis, it converted several Airbus A350s, Boeing 787 Dreamliners, 777s, 767s, and additional 737s in order to boost cargo capacity.

No passengers to Dubai since Christmas

Meanwhile, passenger airline traffic is still far from making a recovery, Gebremariam warned his fellow conference-goers. He criticized what he sees as fragmented approaches from governments, creating bottlenecks and slowing down recovery.

Dubai, the host of the event, currently has an entry and transit ban in place on those who have been in Ethiopia and 13 other African countries. As a result, Ethiopian Airlines has not flown passengers to Dubai since Christmas.

Source: Simple Flying

Kenya has suspended all inbound and transit passenger flights from the United Arabs Emirates (UAE) to retaliate against Dubai’s move to ban all passenger flights from Kenya over fake Covid-19 tests.

In a statement, Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) said the suspension took effect Monday midnight for a period of seven days.

The ban does not, however, affect cargo flights that are normally flown by carriers such as Kenya Airways and Emirates airline from UEA into Kenya.

“Inbound and transit passenger flights from UAE are suspended for a period of seven days. We are doing this to reciprocate a ban on Kenyan passenger flights to UAE,” Director-General Gilbert Kibe said. 

The ban comes barely two weeks after UAE extended Kenya flight ban after it established that travelers from Nairobi were testing positive for Covid-19 after arrival in the Middle East nation, despite carrying negative test results.

On December 20, the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority (DCAA) announced a 48-hour suspension on all flights from Kenya after several passengers arriving from Nairobi tested positive for Covid-19. 

However, the Arab League nation extended the ban that was to end on  Christmas eve

“Until further notice, flights to and from Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania and Uganda are suspended,” DCAA said.

It asked passengers who have been in or transited through these countries in the last 14 days will not be allowed to enter or transit through Dubai,” said the notice from the airline.

“They banned flights from Kenya due to many false negative Covid-19 PCR results. The Ministry of Health is investigating and will report findings soon,” KCAA said. 

The aviation tiff between the two is likely to hurt Kenya’s growing labour export to the UAE, considering that majority were yet to travel back after Christmas festivities. 

Government data shows that there are at least 40,000 Kenyans working in UAE, with the figure rising by the day. 

Even so, this is not the first time Kenya and UAE are embroiled in an aviation war. 

In March, Kenya blocked UAE’s push to have more flight frequencies by the Emirates Airline.

This, despite Dubai writing to Nairobi not to fly any carrier with more than 220 passengers into its territory yet Emirates is using aircraft of more than 400 seat capacity into Nairobi.

This angered Kenya, with the Transport Cabinet Secretary James Macharia calling out the Arab nation for unfair air transport trade. 

According to him, Emirates was seeking an additional daily flight to Nairobi yet it does 14 weekly flights.

“When you add Etihad Airlines and Air Arabia, in total they have 28 weekly flight frequencies against Kenya Airways’ seven, an arrangement that is a skewed advantage in favour of airlines from the Gulf region,” Macharia said. 

The CS said Emirates Airlines, Etihad Airlines and Air Arabia—all designated to fly from the UAE—currently have a combined weekly seat capacity of 15,400 against Kenya Airways’ 5,510.

”Giving Emirates more flight capacity means they will get 90 per cent of business between Nairobi and Dubai while KQ receives 10 per cent. This is not tenable,” said CS Macharia.

He said Emirates Airlines benefits from substantial government subsidies and can sell out the seats in the Nairobi-Dubai route at throw-away prices due to the support.

More than a decade ago, Nairobi and Dubai were involved in a bitter diplomatic exchange after four members of the Dubai royal family were kicked out by immigration officials in Nairobi on suspicion that they were a terror gang.

Dubai retaliated by imposing restrictions requiring all Kenyans entering the UAE to present proof of higher education to obtain a visa.

The 2010 incident triggered fear of deportation among thousands of Kenyans working in the Gulf nation, prompting truce talks.

Even so, the two nations have enjoyed a cordial relationship, more so during President Uhuru Kenyatta’s tenure. 

In 2014, Uhuru travelled to UAE where he held talks with rulers from Jordan and UAE on expanding and deepening cooperation in areas of mutual interest between Kenya and the UAE.

The discussions were centered around issues of security, combating terrorism, and stemming out radicalization.

In 2018, UAE and Kenya signed a memorandum of understanding that aimed to promote cooperation in domestic employment.

The MoU, which is complemented by a cooperation agreement on domestic workers, was signed by Nasser bin Thani Al Hamli, Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation, and Ukur Yatani, then CS Labour and Social Protection.

Dubai said the MoU was the outcome of solid cooperation in employment and includes the regulation of the recruitment and employment of Kenyan labour and the work of the private recruitment agencies, with the aim of adopting transparent practices in all stages of the contractual work cycle.

In 2019, Kenya lobbied Dubai officials to support Kenyatta’s Big 4 Agenda and held talks over logistics, infrastructure, retail, tourism, agriculture, manufacturing, and finance. 

In February last year, Uhuru sent Interior CS Fred Matiang’i to Abu Dhabi for bilateral discussions on security sector collaboration between the UAE and Kenya.

Matiang’i and his host His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed also discussed the possible easing of VISA restrictions for Kenyans travelling to the UAE in the wake of the Covid- 19 pandemic.

Source: The Star

Africa has the oldest aircraft fleet in the world. Despite Africans representing more than 17% of the world’s population, their aircraft fleets amount to roughly 6% of global commercial passenger and cargo aircraft in 2020, the African Airlines Association (AFFRA) data indicates. This means that Africa has the lowest level of aircraft per capita of any other region in the world.  

For the past two decades, the average age of global aircraft fleets has varied between 10 and 12 years. In comparison, the average fleet age across Africa stands at around 17 years, the oldest of any world region.  

For instance, according to Planespotters.com data, South African Airways, South Africa’s flag carrier, operates a fleet of 14 jets with an average age of 15.4 years. Meanwhile, Nigerian carrier Arik Air has a fleet of 18 jets, with an average service age of 14 years. 

Similarly aged fleets are also operated by the national airline of Tunisia, Tunisair (14 years in service on average) and Air Algerie (13.9 years on average).  

Even the Moroccan national carrier, Royal Air Maroc, one of the largest African airlines by aircraft size, which joined the Oneworld alliance in 2020, flies 59 passenger aircraft that have already spent 13 years in operation.  

However, not all major carriers in the region operate such aging fleets. For example, Kenya Airways, a primary competitor airline of Royal Air Maroc, flies 39 aircraft, which have already spent a decade on average in passenger operations. Meanwhile, Egyptair, another large African carrier and the operator of 68 passenger jets, boasts an even younger fleet where the average age of a jet is just over seven years.  

Even the leading African airline operates a relatively old fleet. Ethiopian Airlines, Africa’s largest carrier, operates almost twice as many aircraft as Egyptair. The data shows that the Ethiopian government-owned company flies 130 jets that have completed almost eight years of service.  

Elderly planes usually have a longer list of former owners. For example, an 18.2-year-old Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737-700 jet, registered as ET-AVO, was previously owned by Aeromexico and Sun Country Airlines before it was passed to the hands of its current owner.  

Another Boeing 737-700 aircraft, the EI-GVW, which is currently owned by Arik Air, has been in operation for 11 years. Initially delivered to KLM Royal Dutch Airlines in 2011, the jet was re-registered and handed over to Mongolian carrier Eznis Airways in August 2011. But a month later it was leased by African airline Arik Air.  

South African Airways is another example of an African carrier that successfully uses older planes for commercial passenger services. The company’s Airbus A340-300 jet, the ZS-SXG, is more than 21 years old and was primarily used to serve Spanish carrier Iberia’s flights between 2001 and 2010. In March 2010, the aircraft, which was initially registered as EC-HQF, received a new registration number, F-WJKF, and was transferred to Airbus Financial Services before it joined South African Airways.  

What will African aircraft fleets look like in the future? 

While the region’s leading airlines operate much older planes, some experts have noted that there is a more promising outlook for the future.  

American plane manufacturer Boeing states that the global commercial fleet in 2021 was composed of 25,900 aircraft. In the Boeing Commercial Market Outlook, a long-term forecast of commercial air traffic and aircraft demand, the company forecasts that the global fleet will consist of around 49,405 jets by 2040. The majority, reportedly 43,610 planes, will be newly delivered aircraft that will expand the existing airlines’ fleets or will become replacements for older jets.  

Boeing estimates that the aviation market in Africa will see a demand for 1,030 new planes valued at around US $160 billion. Such a demand for the emerging African market will be driven by the anticipated 3% annual economic growth over the upcoming two decades, Boeing analysts say. They add that this should result in the need for more than 63,000 new aviation staff by 2040, including 19,000 pilots, 24,000 cabin crew, and 20,000 technicians. 

The continent expects 740 new deliveries of narrow-body jets as well as 250 wide-body aircraft over the next 20 years, meaning that fleets across the African region are expected to grow by around 3.6%.  

It is also expected that 80% of African aircraft deliveries will serve fleet growth with more sustainable aircraft such as the Boeing 737, Boeing 777X, and Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Meanwhile, the remaining 20%, will serve as a replacement for older commercial planes.  

Source: Aerotime Hub