(Posted 15th July 2024)
Courtesy of Aero Trail Ltd and Mr. Alex Koech
In the first half of 2024, airlines have expanded their network connectivity within and outside the African continent. Below is an overview of the routes that have been started or reinstated:
hashtag#Intercontinental (Outside of Africa)
Fifteen new passenger intercontinental routes were started in the first half of 2024, while three routes were discontinued. Notable new routes include:
? LAM – MOZAMBIQUE AIRLINES: Reinstated Maputo – Lisbon service after a 12-year hiatus.
? Hainan Airlines: Reintroduced Beijing – Cairo flights after a 13-year lull.
? Brussels Airlines: Reconnected with Nairobi after almost 10 years.
? Air Peace: Launched Lagos – London service, marking its European debut.
? conviasa: Began operations to Algeria, marking its debut in Africa.
? ITA Airways: Initiated its first Sub-Saharan operation with Ghana service.
Discontinued routes:
? EL AL Israel Airlines: Suspended Tel_Aviv – Johannesburg operations.
? RwandAir Ltd: Ended Mumbai schedules.
? flydubai: Ceased operations to Mogadishu.
In addition to passenger routes, new cargo routes were introduced, with East African carriers like Ethiopian Airlines, AIR TANZANIA COMPANY LIMITED, Kenya Airways, Astral Aviation Ltd, and RwandAir Ltd leading the charge.
Intra_Africa Routes
Seventeen new intra-African routes were launched in the first half of 2024. Some notable routes include:
? Eswatini Air: Introduced Mbabane – Harare service.
? Air Côte d’Ivoire: Started operations toCasablanca, Morocco.
? Ethiopian Airlines: Launched services to Freetown, Sierra Leone, and Maun, Botswana.
? CemAir (Pty)Ltd: Began operations to Harare, Zimbabwe.
Domestic Routes
Several domestic routes were reinstated or started:
? Ethiopian Airlines: Resumed flights toDembi_Dolo andNekemte.
? Kenya Airways: Reinstated flights to Eldoret.
? FlyNamibia: Started services between Windhoek and Walvis_Bay.
In total, we identified seven domestic scheduled routes.
Cargo Routes
New cargo routes were challenging to track due to the ad-hoc nature of operations. However, a notable new intra_africa route is the Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to Casablanca, Morocco service, started on January 9, 2024.
The attached presentation provides a detailed overview of route developments that took place in the first half of 2024, based on our research.
