African airlines are plagued by a range of expenses including high operational costs, large statutory charges, unstable and soft home currencies, delays in receiving new aircraft and rising jet fuel prices. These costs, along with the lack of affordable available finance (due to the small size of the market) mean that growth for the industry on the continent is stunted.
African airlines have a relatively high operational cost base, but Africa has limited disposable income and thus there is low propensity to spend on air travel, says Joachim Vermooten , University of Johannesburg Aviation Economist and Researcher. He was echoing the concern expressed by IATA in its Airline Profitability Outlook for 2024.
Operational costsAfrica has a rapidly growing population and only accounts for about 2% of the global aviation market, explains Linden Birns , MD of PR consultancy Plane Talking.
