Air cargo flying high in Africa

African airlines are reporting faster growth in air cargo volumes than operators elsewhere in the world, according to the International Air Transport Association (Iata). In August African airlines reported the strongest growth of air cargo demand with a 9.2% year-on-year expansion. Although this is the second consecutive month of strong growth, the volatility of African data, coupled with the slowdown in key African economies such as South Africa, means it is too soon to understand the extent to which this represents a real and sustainable acceleration. Capacity grew 4.2%, says Tony Tyler, Iata’s director general and CEO. “The outlook for air cargo is clearly getting better. However, there are some limiting factors on the extent of potential gains. Demand for air cargo is growing more slowly than global economic activity. Businesses are reported to have more confidence in the future, but the list of political and economic risks continues to moderate how that confidence translates into actual activity,” said Tyler. Six of Africa’s top airports are in South Africa, according to the 2014 World Airports Awards. Research by Skytrax lists the top 10 African airports as: Africa’s top airport 1 Johannesburg OR Tambo Int’l Airport South Africa 2 Cape Town International Airport South Africa 3 Durban King Shaka Int’l Airport South Africa 4 Mauritius International Airport Mauritius 5 Cairo International Airport Egypt 6 East London Airport South Africa 7 Port Elizabeth Airport South Africa 8 Bloemfontein Airport South Africa 9 Addis Ababa Bole Int’l Airport Ethiopia 10 Marrakech Menara Int’l Airport Morocco