Africa's aviation market
Monthly airline data updates for the African market
October 2026
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How much airline capacity does Africa have in 2026?
Monthly scheduled capacity: October 2025 vs October 2026
Capacity to/from North Africa is the largest market with 7.6m seats, growing by 748,100 seats vs last year.
Capacity to/from Western Europe is the second largest market with 4.8m seats and grew by 359,400 seats vs last year.
Capacity to/from Central/Western Africa grew by 19.6% (582,100 additional seats).
Are low cost carriers growing in Africa?
Mainline carriers represent 79% of the market and capacity increased by 8.1% vs October 25. LCCs grew by 11.4% vs last year to 5.5m seats.
Mainline vs low-cost
Which African country has the most airline seats?
Egypt remains the largest country market in Africa with 3.2m seats in October 26, an increase of 9.6% vs last year.
With the Top 10 countries, capacity grew at the fastest rate again in Nigeria, with a 44.5% increase vs October 25 (414,900 additional seats). This is driven by currency reforms, a new aircraft leasing agreement, and growing confidence from airlines looking to fly to Nigeria.
Top 10 countries by seat capacity
Capacity changes by country · October 2025 vs October 2026
All ten of Africa’s largest country markets added seat capacity in October 2026 vs October 2025; none removed capacity. Nigeria added the most seats (+414,900, +44.5%), followed by Egypt (+282,800, +9.6%) and Morocco (+216,900, +11.0%). South Africa added the fewest (+18,800, +0.8%), followed by Ghana (+32,100, +11.6%) and Tunisia (+46,400, +6.9%).
| Country | Oct 2025 seats | Oct 2026 seats | Change | YoY % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nigeria | 932,300 | 1,347,300 | +414,900 | +44.5% |
| Egypt | 2,933,200 | 3,216,000 | +282,800 | +9.6% |
| Morocco | 1,963,900 | 2,180,900 | +216,900 | +11.0% |
| Algeria | 972,100 | 1,061,000 | +88,900 | +9.1% |
| Kenya | 855,300 | 921,800 | +66,500 | +7.8% |
| Tanzania | 653,900 | 707,700 | +53,800 | +8.2% |
| Ethiopia | 1,356,600 | 1,409,500 | +52,900 | +3.9% |
| Tunisia | 674,200 | 720,600 | +46,400 | +6.9% |
| Ghana | 276,200 | 308,300 | +32,100 | +11.6% |
| South Africa | 2,423,900 | 2,442,700 | +18,800 | +0.8% |
Which African country has the most domestic flights?
South Africa continues to be the largest Domestic market in Africa, with 1.6m seats this month.
Domestic capacity increased by 54.6% in Nigeria to 1m seats in October 26 (362,600 additional seats).
Domestic capacity grew by 49.7% in Congo and 19.9% in Algeria vs last year. The former remains a small market with 144,200 seats in October. 26.
Top 10 domestic markets by seat capacity
Which is the biggest airline in Africa?
Ethiopian Airlines remains Africa's largest carrier, operating 2.1m seats in October 26, an increase of 6% (118,000 additional seats).
Within the Top 10, easyJet grew at the fastest rate in the region of 23.2% (72,500 additional seats), followed by Royal Air Maroc increasing by 20.6% (139,700 seats) vs last year.
Seat capacity by airline
| No | Airline | Oct 2025 seats | Oct 2026 seats | YoY % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Ethiopian Airlines | 1,951,982 | 2,069,965 | +6.0% |
| 2. | Safair | 1,042,407 | 1,023,624 | -1.8% |
| 3. | Egyptair | 880,251 | 911,407 | +3.5% |
| 4. | Royal Air Maroc | 677,577 | 817,323 | +20.6% |
| 5. | Air Algerie | 674,062 | 757,522 | +12.4% |
| 6. | Airlink | 530,130 | 580,351 | +9.5% |
| 7. | Ryanair | 471,081 | 507,832 | +7.8% |
| 8. | Emirates | 398,536 | 442,651 | +11.1% |
| 9. | Air Cairo | 343,120 | 409,004 | +19.2% |
| 10. | easyJet | 312,992 | 385,484 | +23.2% |
easyJet enters the top 10 at #10 with 385,484 seats (+23.2%), the fastest growth of any top 10 carrier. Air Peace drops out of the top 10 this month. Safair is the only top 10 carrier to reduce capacity, down 1.8% to 1,023,624 seats.
What is the busiest airport in Africa?
Cairo remains the largest airport in the continent with 1.8m seats in October 26, capacity increased by 8.2% vs October 25.
Fastest growth within the Top 10 largest airports in Africa came again from Lagos, with an increase of 29.7% (119,200 seats). Followed by Casablanca, Morocco, where it grew by 13.6% (86,800 seats).
| No | Code | Airport | Seats | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | CAI | Cairo | 1.78m | +8.2% |
| 2. | ADD | Addis Ababa | 1.19m | +3.2% |
| 3. | JNB | Johannesburg | 1.16m | +0.2% |
| 4. | CMN | Casablanca | 0.73m | +13.6% |
| 5. | RAK | Marrakech | 0.62m | +12.0% |
| 6. | CPT | Cape Town | 0.62m | +4.4% |
| 7. | ALG | Algiers | 0.58m | +7.4% |
| 8. | HRG | Hurghada | 0.55m | +12.8% |
| 9. | NBO | Nairobi | 0.53m | +8.2% |
| 10. | LOS | Lagos | 0.52m | +29.7% |
Source: OAG · hover chart or click a table row to cross-highlight
Where do African airlines fly internationally?
Capacity to Europe remains the largest International destination region, with 10.4m seats (791,200 additional seats vs October 25).
Capacity to the Middle East and within Africa are a close second and third largest market with 4.54m seats and 4.35m seats respectively in October 26.
Capacity by destination region
Capacity to the Middle East and within Africa are a close second and third largest market with 4.54m seats and 4.35m seats respectively in October 26.
Africa aviation: frequently asked questions
How much airline capacity is there in Africa? Find out with new data each month. Data is sourced from OAG's Schedules Analyser.
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Total capacity across Africa this month has increased by 8.8% vs October 25 to 26.6m seats. International capacity represents 77% of total capacity and is up by 7.9% vs October 25. Domestic capacity increased by 11.9%.