Turkish Airlines, the airline that flies to the more countries than any other in the world, made a new addition to its privileged services offered to guests in this rapidly evolving era of technology and digitalization where customer satisfaction has become increasingly important. The flag carrier has introduced the Flight Tracker digital globe for use in its Business Lounge, emphasizing the diverse and enjoyable aspects of digital channels, modernized with a solution oriented approach. With the Flight Tracker digital globe, guests will be able to track real-time locations of Turkish Airlines aircraft, flown destinations, current weather conditions, and experience the use of many different features such as flight information and Miles&Smiles membership. This technology, which is a result of extensive market research and presented for passengers’ appreciation, was launched with live flight information and destination data, along with a unique interface design exclusive to Turkish Airlines. On the new service of the flag carrier, Turkish Airlines Chief Marketing Officer Ahmet Olmuştur stated: “As Turkish Airlines, from the first day we were established, we have been working to provide our guests with a flawless travel experience, in addition to safety and comfort during their travels. With our new service, we offer our guests the opportunity to learn the weather of the destinations they will go to, and also the possibility to create a Miles&Smiles membership via QR code. We prepare and develop our solution alternatives according to the needs of our guests with the strength that the evolving and changing technology adds to our brand.” Turkish Airlines has raised the bar in its service approach by adding the Flight Tracker digital globe to its Business Lounge, where guests also enjoy spending time with the Hezarfen Flight Simulator, console games, a golf area and children’s play areas.
SOURCE: breakingtravelnews

Travel will remain strong on the back of robust demand in select emerging economies even
as a potential recession looms, a top executive at the World Travel and Tourism Council has
said.
“At the moment, the bookings we’re seeing are record breaking [and] when you survey
people, and you ask what are their most important needs in life, travel is now number three,”
Julia Simpson, WTTC president and chief executive, told The National in an exclusive
interview.
“We also have emerging middle classes. India is a massive growth market, China is an
incredible market [and] the Japanese market is coming back.”
The global travel and tourism sector is expected to reach $9.5 trillion in 2023, only 5 per cent
below 2019 highs, the WTTC reported.
Despite economic and geopolitical challenges, the industry grew 22 per cent to reach $7.7
trillion last year.
An aggressive return to travel post-Covid-19 has resulted in bottlenecks and delays,
particularly in the aviation industry.
The sector has also been facing severe staffing shortages following the lifting of pandemic-
related restrictions last year.
“Demand is outstripping supply … the airlines at the minute can only fly 80 per cent of their
capacity because there’s a backlog in the number of planes that people can buy and also in
some parts of the world, there are some labour shortage pressures,” said Ms Simpson.
“We’ve got people that may have left the sector [and] not all of them have come back,
although that is beginning to improve.”
Global passenger traffic rebounded to 15 per cent below its pre-pandemic levels in February,
led by airlines in the Asia-Pacific region, which recorded the fastest growth, the International
Air Transport Association said in a report last month.
Total passenger traffic worldwide increased by 55.5 per cent on an annual basis in February,
despite the uncertainty hanging over the global economy, Iata said.
The global economy faces a “rocky” recovery as geopolitics, monetary tightening and
inflation continue to weigh on growth, the International Monetary Fund said last month.
The IMF lowered its global economic growth estimate for this year by 0.1 percentage points
to 2.8 per cent, from what it previously projected in January, with the estimate below the 3.4
per cent expansion recorded in 2022 and the historical growth average of 3.8 per cent from
2000 to 2019.

High inflation could also pose a risk to the travel and tourism industry’s recovery, Ms
Simpson said.
Although airports and airlines try to avoid passing higher costs on to their customers, “it has
to be paid for” at the end of the day.
“That is why you will see some higher fares in the market and also higher prices in hotels,”
she added.
Meanwhile, Ms Simpson also called for an increase in sustainable aviation fuel
production using economic incentives.
SAF, which is made from resources such as agricultural waste, green hydrogen and cooking
oil, is widely considered to be the most significant contributor to helping the sector reach its
net-zero emissions target by 2050.
Countries could consider introducing policies similar to the US Inflation Reduction Act, which
provides SAF producers with a tax credit of $1.25 per gallon, Ms Simpson said.
Current SAF production only meets 0.1 per cent to 0.15 per cent of the requirement, despite
a 200 per cent jump in production last year, according to the WTTC.
“One of the big problems with SAF at the minute is it can cost up to five times as much as jet
fuel. Now, aviation is a very price-sensitive business … that’s why we need the financial
offsets [and] some form of grants or subsidies,” said Ms Simpson.
SOURCE: The National News

International Air Transport Association (IATA) has said African airlines saw overall cargo volumes decline 6.2 percent in March 2023 compared to March 2022.

The latest update of the global aviation body indicated that capacity was 4.1 percent below March 2022 levels.

According to logupdateafrica.com, “This was an improvement in performance compared to the previous month (-7.4 percent). Notably, Africa to Asia routes experienced significant cargo demand growth in March.” Global demand, measured in cargo tonne-kilometres (CTKs), fell 7.7 percent in March compared to March 2022 (-8.1 percent for international operations).

“This was a slight improvement over February 2023 performance (-9.4 percent) and half the rate of annual decline seen in January and December (-16.8 percent and -15.6 percent, respectively). At this point, it is unclear if this is a potentially modest start of an improvement trend or the upside of market volatility. Irrespective of this, March performance slipped back into negative territory compared to pre-Covid levels (-8.1 percent).”

Capacity (measured in available cargo tonne-kilometres, ACTK) increased 9.9 percent YoY. “The strong uptick in ACTKs reflects the addition of belly capacity as the passenger side of the business continues to recover.”

Willie Walsh, Director General, IATA says: “Air cargo had a volatile first quarter. In March, overall demand slipped back below pre-Covid-19 levels and most of the indicators for the fundamental drivers of air cargo demand are weak or weakening. While the trading environment is tough, there is some good news. Airlines are getting help in managing through the volatility with yields that have remained high and fuel prices that have moderated from exceptionally high levels. Looking ahead, with inflation reducing in G7 countries, policy makers are expected to ease economic cooling measures and that would stimulate demand.”

Regional performance

Asia-Pacific airlines saw their air cargo volumes decrease by 7.3 percent in March 2023 compared to the same month in 2022. This was a slight decrease in performance compared to February (-5.4 percent). “The drop in demand suggests that air cargo traffic in the region has not yet stabilised following China’s reopening in January. Available capacity in the region increased by 23.6 percent compared to March 2022 as more belly capacity came online from the passenger side of the business.”

North American carriers posted the weakest performance of all regions with a 9.4 percent decrease in volumes compared to the same month in 2022.

“The transatlantic route between North America and Europe saw traffic declining at an accelerated pace throughout March. Capacity increased 0.4 percent compared to March 2022.”

European carriers saw the most substantial improvement in demand in March over the previous month. Airlines in the region saw volumes decrease by 7.8 percent in March 2023 compared to the same month in 2022. This was an improvement in performance versus February (-15.9 percent). “Airlines in the region continue to be most affected by the war in Ukraine. Capacity increased 8.8 percent in March 2023 compared to March 2022.”

Middle Eastern carriers experienced a 5.5 percent year-on-year decrease in volumes in March 2023. “This was also an improvement to the previous month’s decline (-7.1 percent). The demand on Middle East-Europe routes has been trending upward in recent months. Capacity increased 9.7 percent compared to March 2022.”

Latin American carriers had the strongest performance of all regions in March despite posting a decline in performance over the previous month. “Carriers in the region reported a 5.3 percent decrease in cargo volumes in March 2023 compared to March 2022. This was a drop in performance compared to February which saw a 2.9 percent decline. Capacity in March was up 12.9 percent compared to the same month in 2022.”

International Air Transport Association (IATA) has said African airlines saw overall cargo volumes decline 6.2 percent in March 2023 compared to March 2022.

The latest update of the global aviation body indicated that capacity was 4.1 percent below March 2022 levels.

According to logupdateafrica.com, “This was an improvement in performance compared to the previous month (-7.4 percent). Notably, Africa to Asia routes experienced significant cargo demand growth in March.” Global demand, measured in cargo tonne-kilometres (CTKs), fell 7.7 percent in March compared to March 2022 (-8.1 percent for international operations).

“This was a slight improvement over February 2023 performance (-9.4 percent) and half the rate of annual decline seen in January and December (-16.8 percent and -15.6 percent, respectively). At this point, it is unclear if this is a potentially modest start of an improvement trend or the upside of market volatility. Irrespective of this, March performance slipped back into negative territory compared to pre-Covid levels (-8.1 percent).”

Capacity (measured in available cargo tonne-kilometres, ACTK) increased 9.9 percent YoY. “The strong uptick in ACTKs reflects the addition of belly capacity as the passenger side of the business continues to recover.”

Willie Walsh, Director General, IATA says: “Air cargo had a volatile first quarter. In March, overall demand slipped back below pre-Covid-19 levels and most of the indicators for the fundamental drivers of air cargo demand are weak or weakening. While the trading environment is tough, there is some good news. Airlines are getting help in managing through the volatility with yields that have remained high and fuel prices that have moderated from exceptionally high levels. Looking ahead, with inflation reducing in G7 countries, policy makers are expected to ease economic cooling measures and that would stimulate demand.”

Regional performance

Asia-Pacific airlines saw their air cargo volumes decrease by 7.3 percent in March 2023 compared to the same month in 2022. This was a slight decrease in performance compared to February (-5.4 percent). “The drop in demand suggests that air cargo traffic in the region has not yet stabilised following China’s reopening in January. Available capacity in the region increased by 23.6 percent compared to March 2022 as more belly capacity came online from the passenger side of the business.”

North American carriers posted the weakest performance of all regions with a 9.4 percent decrease in volumes compared to the same month in 2022.

“The transatlantic route between North America and Europe saw traffic declining at an accelerated pace throughout March. Capacity increased 0.4 percent compared to March 2022.”

European carriers saw the most substantial improvement in demand in March over the previous month. Airlines in the region saw volumes decrease by 7.8 percent in March 2023 compared to the same month in 2022. This was an improvement in performance versus February (-15.9 percent). “Airlines in the region continue to be most affected by the war in Ukraine. Capacity increased 8.8 percent in March 2023 compared to March 2022.”

Middle Eastern carriers experienced a 5.5 percent year-on-year decrease in volumes in March 2023. “This was also an improvement to the previous month’s decline (-7.1 percent). The demand on Middle East-Europe routes has been trending upward in recent months. Capacity increased 9.7 percent compared to March 2022.”

Latin American carriers had the strongest performance of all regions in March despite posting a decline in performance over the previous month. “Carriers in the region reported a 5.3 percent decrease in cargo volumes in March 2023 compared to March 2022. This was a drop in performance compared to February which saw a 2.9 percent decline. Capacity in March was up 12.9 percent compared to the same month in 2022.”

SOURCE: ATQ News

The airline started service to the country nearly 60 years ago.

After a hiatus of nearly two decades, Ethiopian Airlines restarted service to Pakistan this week. With 110 passengers onboard, the flight arrived in Karachi on Monday, formally completing the prerequisites to re-launch the service.

The airline will operate multiple flights per week between Addis Ababa and Karachi. Jamal Bakir Abdullah, the Ambassador of Ethiopia, said the service promotes trade and tourism between both countries.

A warm welcome

According to SAMAA, Ethiopian officials, diplomats, and a trade delegation flew in on Monday’s flight that completed the prerequisites. They were welcomed by Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and his team, as well as other Pakistani officials, including Sharjeel Memon, Nasir Shah, Ikramullah Dharejo, and Murtaza Wahab.

The new flights come as several foreign airlines have faced challenges operating in Pakistan. Ethiopian Airlines CEO Mesfin Tasew spoke about the airline returning to Pakistan.

Improving trade and the economy

The resumed service is expected to strengthen the relations between both countries and boost the economy. The airline will operate four flights per week, according to ARY News.

“As the only flight connecting Pakistan with Africa, the planned service to Karachi will have a significant contribution in strengthening the diplomatic and economic relations between the two regions,” Tasew said to ARY News.

Nearly 40 destinations in Asia

Ethiopian’s Foreign Minister will reportedly fly to Karachi on the first flight of the regular operation on Tuesday. Abdulla mentioned that Ethiopia is a significant market and attracts trade from several diverse sectors in Pakistan, such as pharmaceuticals, surgical instruments, etc.

To celebrate the resumed flights, Ethiopian Minister of Foreign Affairs Misganu Arega and the delegation will visit Pakistan for two days. During the visit, both Arega and Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Hina Rabbani Khar, are expected to open the Embassy of Ethiopia from Islamabad, according to ARY News.

Karachi is the airline’s 37th destination in Asia. In March, the carrier finalized preparations to begin the flights. In July 1966, Ethiopian Airlines inaugurated service to Karachi and served the city until December 1971. Service then resumed in June 1993 and lasted until 2004. Currently, the carrier serves more than 145 domestic and international cargo destinations.

SOURCE: SAMAAH

The Kenyan Government is seeking a Private Public Partnership (PPP), to build both a second runway and a new terminal building aimed at doubling the airport’s passenger handling capacity.

According to centreforaviation.com, slowly but surely Africa is starting to attract more external investment and management expertise into its airports, despite all the actual and perceived negatives about participating there.

Qatar Airways is involved with a new airport in Rwanda, and VINCI has multiple concessions across the Cape Verde archipelago. Chinese companies are thereabouts, always looking out for the main chance.

In Kenya the state airline tried to take operational control of Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, the continent’s 11th busiest, in 2022. As the airport is the airline’s main base, Kenya Airways must have been concerned that two separate attempts to build a second runway there had floundered, the second one supported by the African Development Bank.

Now the government is seeking partners in a PPP to build both a second runway and a new terminal building. But such a commitment might not be attractive to many potential investors when traffic numbers remain low by international standards, and while concerns about political opaqueness remain.

This is part one of a two-part report.

New terminal and second runway to be built at Nairobi’s main airport; government hopes for PPP agreement.

Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Roads, Transport, and Public Works Kipchumba Murkomen said that the government intended to construct a new ‘state of the art’ passenger terminal at Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).

Mr Murkomen added that the government was seeking a public private partnership (PPP) model for the works, which would include a new runway. The project will aim to double the airport’s passenger handling capacity.

Mr Murkomen said that this would solve the challenge facing the airport in terms of its capacity to serve passengers, which has led to “inefficiencies and breakdown in systems.” He also noted that it would “provide jobs, boost tourism, trade and investment, and enhance regional integration”.

He then went on to say that with the airport being a key port of entry for Kenya, it would be critical that the government worked on a PPP model that would facilitate the expansion of JKIA and “move to the list of the best airports in the world”.

He urged the board to work with the government, stakeholders and investors to achieve the plan, and asked the board to review the KAA Act 1991 so that it could “concur with current developments in the aviation sector”.

He concluded that there was a need to enhance security at JKIA and other airports in the country, both physical and cyber.

Need to reposition the airport as the main East Africa gateway and to tap into increased investor interest in the continent.

There are two factors in play here. Firstly, a need to reposition Nairobi Airport so that it can challenge others in East Africa – notably the existing and new Addis Ababa airports in Ethiopia – as the regional gateway, and secondly, so that it can tap into a small but viable increase in interest in investing in African aviation from outside the continent – such as Qatar Airways’ investment in the new airport at Kigali, Rwanda.

Steady traffic growth before the pandemic; capacity slowly recovering Passenger traffic grew steadily – if not spectacularly – at Nairobi from 2014 to 2019, before succumbing, like everywhere else, to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019.

Capacity has not yet retrieved the position of 2019 but is narrowing the gap. As of the week commencing 17-Apr-2023, it stands at around 88% of what it was in the same week of 2019.

Kenya Airways and its LCC are dominant, hence also SkyTeam. The national carrier Kenya Airways is the dominant airline, with 49% of capacity and between 46% and 50% of movements between peak and off-peak.

The second largest airline by capacity is its fully owned LCC subsidiary Jambojet (15%).

Jambojet was established to help meet rising competition in Kenya Airways’ core markets from new independent LCCs.

Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta International Airport: system seats by airline, week commencing 24-Apr-2023

The LCC model is better established in East Africa than in other regions of the country but even so, in Kenya only 2.7% of international seats are ‘low cost’ and the domestic market accounts for just 6.5% (Jan-Apr-2023). The figures are marginally higher in East Africa as a whole.

At JKIA 16.55% of seats are presently offered by LCCs, which is an unexpectedly high amount, but even so it is not a burgeoning demand for budget travel that necessitates a new terminal building and runway.

A broad north-south network but remains weak to the Americas and Asia Pacific.

As expected, most of the capacity is on East African routes, followed by the Middle East and Western Europe. Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta International Airport: network map for the week commencing 24-Apr-2023

The single international country with the highest capacity is the UAE, followed by Tanzania, South Africa, the UK and Ethiopia. That suggests quite a broad network at Nairobi, and that is certainly the case, or at least it is on a north-south axis as the below map details.

There are many routes in East Africa and the Middle East and an adequate network in Europe for passengers via the main gateways, and for cargo.

Within recent memory there were few east-west routes across Africa, often necessitating a journey to a European or Middle East transit point to get between the two, but Nairobi does now have five destinations in that region.

The weak links are undeniably the Americas – with only one trans Atlantic service, to New York – and Asia Pacific, with two services to India (Delhi, Mumbai) and two Chinese ones (Changsha and Guangzhou, which began in Apr-2023).

Despite the airport’s elevation, at over 5,000ft (1524m), the single 4,200m runway should be adequate to handle most long-haul flights out of Nairobi, and that is another reason why ‘a second runway is needed’ can be discounted.

On the other hand, there are concerns about what happens when that runway is closed, as revealed later.

The only substantially longer routes that might be flown (that are not now) would be to the west coast of the US and Canada, to South Korea and Japan, and to Iceland (the two countries are coincidentally connected by the fishing industry, Iceland selling its advanced technology widely to African countries).

So the two main concerns behind this expansion seem to be capacity and planning for future growth.

Current utilisation of existing facilities is high on most days

Where capacity is concerned, usage is high. The chart below is for Thursday 27-Apr-2023 and shows all but one of the 24-hour blocks in use for departing and/or arriving flights (as measured by their seat capacity). Most other days are much the same.

All three major airlines alliances are present

JKIA also benefits from the presence of all three of the major airline alliances, and particularly SkyTeam (by way of Kenya Airways), which has 55% of the capacity – its main competitor in the region, Addis Ababa Bole Airport, has 97% of capacity on one alliance, Star.

There are two terminals. Terminal 1 is arranged in a semi-circular manner and is divided into four distinct parts rather than concourses.

Terminals 1A, 1B, 1C, and 1E are used for international arrivals and departures, and 1D is used for domestic departures and arrivals.

Terminal 2 is used by low-cost carriers, and right now is tiny by comparison, with less than 1,000 seats of capacity for the whole of the week commencing 24-Apr-2023.

SOURCE: ATQ News