- African airlines have delivered the strongest passenger-demand growth globally in March 2026 at 19.2pc.
- Etihad Airways has launched six routes to Africa starting at the end of 2026.
- Virgin Atlantic has stepped up capacity to Johannesburg and Cape Town with increased flight frequencies.
- The United States has been pushing for participation in Ethiopia’s Bishoftu airport project valued at $12.5bn.
- Ethiopian Airlines has converted options for six B787-9s into firm orders with Boeing.
African airlines have delivered the strongest passenger-demand growth globally in March 2026, with international demand up 19.2pc year-on-year, while capacity has risen by 4.2pc and the load factor has reached 77.7pc, up 9.8 points from March 2025. The global average for demand growth has been only 2.1pc, constrained by capacity limitations and geopolitical disruption, while Africa has led all regions in 2025 with 9.4pc demand growth and 8.3pc capacity growth, and the continent has recorded a 75.3pc load factor. Etihad Airways has been leading the Africa push with the launch of six routes to the continent starting at the end of 2026, including services to Asmara in Eritrea from 7 November, followed by Accra, Kinshasa, Lagos, Harare, and Lubumbashi.
Virgin Atlantic has been increasing its presence in the region by stepping up capacity to Johannesburg and Cape Town, with the carrier set to operate 10 flights per week to Johannesburg and 11 flights per week to Cape Town from 25 October to 27 March. The increased services have been designed to offer customers greater flexibility and connectivity, with the airline deploying its Airbus A350-1000 to support the additional demand for Johannesburg and a Boeing 787 on the Cape Town routes. Qatar Airways has similarly updated its African network, resuming services to Seychelles, Kigali, and Marrakech, and operating three flights weekly to Port Sudan.
The United States has been pushing to secure strong participation in the construction of Ethiopia’s new Bishoftu International Airport, a project valued at $12.5bn, with the airport located about 45 km outside Addis Ababa. Ethiopian Airlines Group has completed the prequalification stage for the engineering, procurement, construction, and financing contracts covering the four main work packages of the planned facility. The airline has recently converted options for six B787-9s into firm orders with Boeing and has eight B777-9s on order, while the groundworks on the airport project started in January 2026 with $610m worth of earthworks to be completed this year.
Antonoaldo Neves shared: “Demand for air connectivity across key African markets is outpacing existing supply, particularly in cargo and trade-linked sectors. This expansion is a direct response to that structural opportunity.”
Mark Mitchell shared: “We’re excited about what that airport’s expansion portends for the airline’s growth, meaning more Boeing aircraft powered by GE Aerospace engines connecting Africa to the world further.”
