Several foreign and local companies are fighting for a slice of the African skies, which only account for about 2,5% of the global air traffic and witnessed an ”annus horribilis” in 2001.
The battle is further complicated by national interests, pan-African pride and the demise of Air Afrique, jointly owned by 11 African countries. The airline filed for bankruptcy this year after accumulating debts of 510 million euros (then 464 million dollars).
The after-effects of the September 11 terror attacks in New York and Washington have further exacerbated an already abysmal situation.
The Dakar-based Agency for Air Traffic and Security in Africa (ASECNA), which groups 16 Francophone countries as well as France, has stated that 2001 was a ”difficult year.”
Air traffic has noticeably decreased after the liquidation of Swissair and Sabena. The Belgian carrier served Africa since 1925.
However, Sabena’s successor, SN Brussels Airlines, has resumed flights to Africa since the end of April.
A living proof of Africa’s woes is the case of Abidjan, whose state-of-the-art airport, replete with marble, electronic wizardry and a new runway has miserably failed in its objective of turning Ivory Coast’s economic capital into a hub for west Africa.
Six of the nine international carriers which served Abidjan stopped services by 2001, after falling victim to the country’s political instability following a 1999 coup.
British Airways and Lufthansa were among the carriers that stopped flying to Ivory Coast.
Meanwhile, the 11 states jointly owning bankrupt airline Air Afrique have set themselves a July 15 deadline for relaunching the company, which folded up after years of mismanagement.
Set up in 1961 by 10 newly independent states — Benin, Burkina Faso, the Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Ivory Coast, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal and Togo — Air Afrique was hailed as a symbol of continental integration. Mali joined in 1992.
Now it is trying to take off again. But whether Air France will sign up as a strategic partner is unclear. The French airline has recently enjoyed a clear edge in central and west Africa with the disappearance of several competitors.
The indifference of the member states to Air Afrique’s fate — attested by the poor attendance of the heads of state to interminable summits on the airline’s future — point to the fact that the African Union being forged in Durban does not necessarily apply to continental skies.
Another proof of this apathy is the fact that several new companies have been launched or re-started in sub-Saharan Africa after Air Afrique’s liquidation including Air Ivoire, Air Burkina, Air Senegal and Togolese carrier Transtel.
Air Niger has also started with … the presidential Boeing.
But the new carriers have at best a sub-regional network.
A notable exception is Ethiopian Airlines — one of the continent’s oldest carriers — which flies across Africa.
Air traffic is heavily compartmentalised with few links to other regions. Tourist destinations such as South Africa and Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia are mainly interested in connections to Europe.
Flights overseas are heavily influenced by the colonial legacy. Therefore Air France serves west Africa but does not fly to Kenya. And British Airways only flies to Ghana and ignores the rest of the region.
African lines follow the same pattern with national carriers of Francophone countries focusing on Paris and the Anglophone ones, such as Air Zimbabwe, Nigeria Air and Uganda’s newly-formed AfricaOne, flying out to London.
There is a tremendous potential. Air traffic in France is 20 times greater than the whole of Africa put together.
This has led some foreign players to enter into partnerships in the hope of dominating regional traffic. Air France holds 51 percent stake in Air Ivoire; Royal Air Maroc holds 51% equity in Air Senegal international and Dutch carrier KLM is the strategic partner of Kenya Airways.
The sole airline to be left out of all this is South African Airways, which serves some 15 sub-Saharan countries and is by far the leading African airline in terms of service, flights, fleet and passengers.
SAA’s lack of interest in other regions is partly explained by the fact that Johannesburg is Africa’s busiest airport, accounting for 11,2-million of the 86-million passengers travelling in the continent last year. – AFP
