We conclude our global aviation market summary for November with the update about Africa and the Middle East. To see the other editions, please click on the following links:

• United States and Canada – November 2023.
• Latin America – November 2023.
• Europe – November 2023.
• Asia and Oceania – November 2023.

During the Dubai Airshow, which took place this year from November 13-17, an airline made a major announcement regarding its fleet, entering long-range aircraft for the first time.

flydubai ordered a total of 30 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner planes valued at USD 11 billion, to be delivered starting in 2026.

In addition to flydubai, considering the UAE, Emirates placed a large order for Airbus and Boeing aircraft. The airline ordered an additional 90 Boeing 777-9s, 777-8s and 5 787s, worth $52 billion, and an additional 15 Airbus A350-900s, worth $6 billion. Emirates now has a total order backlog of 310 widebody planes and will continue to take deliveries of new aircraft until 2035.

As for routes, Royal Air Jordanian confirmed the resumption of operations between Amman and Manchester from the second quarter of 2024. Currently, both cities do not have non-stop services, with London being the only UK connection to Jordan. Furthermore, with the start of the 2024 summer season, airlines are beginning to announce new routes, which will begin between April and June of next year.

Air Algérie

The company confirmed it will open a new route to Europe as of March 31st, 2024. Air Algérie will operate seven times a week between Algiers and London Gatwick with Boeing 737-800 aircraft configured for 148 passengers.

Daily except Thursday

• AH 2058  Algiers ALG 09:25 · 11:55 LGW London Gatwick
• AH 2059  London Gatwick LGW 12:55 · 15:40 ALG Algiers

Thursday

• AH 2058  Algiers ALG 09:30 · 12:00 LGW London Gatwick
• AH 2059  London Gatwick LGW 13:25 · 16:10 ALG Algiers

In addition to Gatwick airport, the airline currently offers the following schedule to London Heathrow from the Algerian capital:

Monday

• AH 2054  Algiers ALG 15:10 · 17:20 LHR London Heathrow
• AH 2055  London Heathrow LHR 18:25 · 22:20 ALG Algiers

Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday

• AH 2054  Algiers ALG 10:20 · 12:30 LHR London Heathrow
• AH 2055  London Heathrow LHR 14:00 · 17:55 ALG Algiers

Between Algiers and Heathrow, Air Algérie operates with Airbus A330-200s and Boeing 737-800s.

Ethiopian

Last November 15th, the carrier inaugurated its flights between Addis Ababa and Bangui. Initially, Ethiopian scheduled these operations with a stopover in Juba in both directions, but they ended up being non-stop. Ethiopian Airlines will operate three weekly services on Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft.

Wednesday, Friday and Sunday

• ET 959  Addis Ababa ADD 10:00 · 11:40 BGF Bangui
• ET 958  Bangui BGF 13:40 · 19:00 ADD Addis Ababa

Addis Ababa, Douala, Entebbe, Nairobi and Yaounde are the destinations from Bangui Airport, Central African Republic.

Etihad

The carrier will begin flights between Abu Dhabi and Nice as of June 15th, 2024. Being seasonal, services are planned until mid-September 2024, with the following schedule:

Wednesday and Saturday

• EY 37  Abu Dhabi AUH 03:10 · 07:40 NCE Nice
• EY 38  Nice NCE 11:15 · 19:15 AUH Abu Dhabi

At present, in the UAE-France market, the airline operates between Abu Dhabi and Paris with Airbus A350-1000 and Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner jets.

Daily

• EY 31  Abu Dhabi AUH 02:40 · 07:05 CDG Paris
• EY 32  Paris CDG 09:25 · 19:00 AUH Abu Dhabi

flydubai

During the Dubai Airshow 2023, flydubai announced that it will enter the widebody market after ordering Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners for its fleet. The 787s, which will be 30 for now, will commence service for the airline effective 2026, joining the current order for 130 Boeing 737 MAX 8s, to be delivered over the next few years. The flydubai fleet consists of the following:

• Boeing 737-800: 30
• Boeing 737 MAX: 8: 48
• Boeing 737 MAX 9: 3

FlyEbril

The carrier launched two new routes to Dubai from Iraq between late October and early November. Both will be carried by UR Airlines’ Airbus A320-200 aircraft, configured for 180 passengers.

Baghdad

Thursday

• UD 137  Baghdad BGW 08:00 · 11:10 DXB Dubai
• UD 138  Dubai DXB 12:30 · 13:45 BGW Baghdad

Sunday

• UD 137  Baghdad BGW 17:20 · 20:25 DXB Dubai
• UD 138  Dubai DXB 22:00 · 23:15 BGW Baghdad

Erbil

Tuesday

• UD 237  Erbil EBL 14:00 · 17:35 DXB Dubai
• UD 238  Dubai DXB 18:35 · 19:40 EBL Erbil

FlyNamibia

On October 29th, the company inaugurated its flights between Walvis Bay and Cape Town. FlyNamibia will operate four times a week on Westair Aviation’s Embraer 145s with capacity for 48 passengers.

Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday

• 4Z 8146  Cape Town CPT 10:20 · 12:20 WVB Walvis Bay
• 4Z 8145  Walvis Bay WVB 15:00 · 17:00 CPT Cape Town

Walvis Bay airport has flights to Cape Town, Johannesburg, Saint Helena and Windhoek.

flynas

Starting in December, flynas will commence six routes from Madinah, Saudi Arabia. The airline will operate with Airbus A320-200 and Airbus A320neo aircraft.

Four will be international and the remaining routes will be cabotage:

Saudi Arabia

• Madinah (MED) – Abha (AHB): 3 weekly · Dec 2nd
• Madinah (MED) – Tabuk (TUU): 3 weekly · Dec 1st

International

• Madinah (MED) – Amman (AMM): 2 weekly · Dec 5th
• Madinah (MED) – Baghdad (BGW): 3 weekly · Dec 1st
• Madinah (MED) – Dubai (DXB): 3 weekly · Dec 2nd
• Madinah (MED) – Istanbul (SAW): 3 weekly · Dec 1st

Ibom Air

The Nigerian carrier began international operations in mid-October with the launch of flights to Ghana. Services will be performed from Lagos using Airbus A320 and CRJ-900 planes.

Daily

• QI 600  Lagos LOS 07:00 · 07:00 ACC Accra
• QI 601  Accra ACC 08:00 · 10:00 LOS Lagos

Daily

• QI 602  Lagos LOS 16:30 · 16:30 ACC Accra
• QI 603  Accra ACC 17:30 · 19:30 LOS Lagos

Ibom Air’s routes

Abuja

• Calabar (CBQ)
• Enugu (ENU)
• Lagos (LOS)
• Port Harcourt (PHC)
• Uyo (QUO)

Lagos

• Abuja (ABV)
• Accra (ACC)
• Calabar (CBQ)
• Enugu (ENU)
• Port Harcourt (PHC)
• Uyo (QUO)

Kenya Airways

Beginning February 14th, 2024, Kenya Airways will fly to Somalia, with the new connection between Nairobi and Mogadishu. At the time of publication, the airline will operate three weekly on Embraer 190 aircraft.

Monday, Thursday and Saturday

• KQ 362  Nairobi NBO 14:00 · 15:45 MGQ Mogadishu
• KQ 363  Mogadishu MGQ 16:35 · 18:20 NBO Nairobi

This route is currently operated by Daallo Airlines on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays with Boeing 737-400s.

LAM Mozambique

The company will start flights to Cape Town as of December 12th. According to its website, LAM will serve three times a week between Maputo and Cape Town with CRJ jets.

Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday

• TM 365  Maputo MPM 18:00 · 20:30 CPT Cape Town

Monday, Wednesday and Friday

• TM 366  Cape Town CPT 07:00 · 08:30 MPM Maputo

LAM currently flies to Johannesburg from four cities in Mozambique:

• Beira (BEW): 4 weekly
• Inhambane (INH): 1 weekly
• Maputo (MPM): 20 weekly
• Vilankulo (VNX): 2 weekly

Nouvelair Tunisie

As of April 2nd, 2024, Nouvelair will inaugurate operations between Tunis and Casablanca. Flights will be carried out on Airbus A320-200 aircraft with capacity for 180 passengers.

Tuesday

• BJ 170  Tunis TUN 18:00 · 20:50 CMN Casablanca
• BJ 171  Casablanca CMN 21:50 · 00:20+1 TUN Tunis

Thursday

• BJ 170  Tunis TUN 20:30 · 23:20 CMN Casablanca

Friday

• BJ 171  Casablanca CMN 00:20 · 02:50 TUN Tunis

Saturday

• BJ 170  Tunis TUN 20:45 · 23:35 CMN Casablanca

Sunday

• BJ 171  Casablanca CMN 00:35 · 03:05 TUN Tunis

Casablanca will be the airline’s first destination to Morocco from Tunisia.

Pakistan International

Pakistan International Airlines plans to start services between Karachi and Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, from December 1st. The carrier had intended to resume operations on November 24th, but the first flight was canceled.

Friday

• PK 227  Karachi KHI 23:40 · 01:00+1 SHJ Sharjah

Saturday

• PK 228  Sharjah SHJ 02:15 · 05:15 KHI Karachi

Qatar Airways

Qatar made its last service, so far, between Doha and Windhoek, Namibia, last November 22nd. The company had three weekly services on the 218-seat Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner.

Namibia lost its non-stop operations to Doha, in addition to possible connections to and from the airline’s hub.

Regarding new routes, Qatar Airways plans to start flights between Doha and Neom Bay, Saudi Arabia, effective December 9th. The operations are subject to government approval, but are available for sale on the airline’s website.

Services will be performed twice weekly with Airbus A320-200 aircraft:

Thursday

• QR 1204  Doha DOH 06:35 · 09:50 NUM Neom Bay
• QR 1205  Neom Bay NUM 11:05 · 13:40 DOH Doha

Saturday

• QR 1204  Doha DOH 06:55 · 10:10 NUM Neom Bay
• QR 1205  Neom Bay NUM 11:25 · 14:00 DOH Doha

The company currently offers seven routes between Qatar and Saudi Arabia:

• Al Ula (ULH): 2 weekly
• Al-Qassim (ELQ): 5 weekly
• Dammam (DMM): 35 weekly
• Jeddah (JED): 28 weekly
• Medina (MED): 14 weekly
• Neom Bay (NUM): 2 weekly – new
• Riyadh (RUH): 28 weekly
• Taif (TIF): 5 weekly

Royal Jordanian

Starting in April 3rd, 2024, the airline expects to resume flights between Amman and Manchester for the high season. Operations are not for sale, but there is a tentative schedule:

Wednesday and Saturday

• RJ 115  Amman AMM 11:00 · 14:35 MAN Manchester
• RJ 116  Manchester MAN 15:35 · 22:40 AMM Amman

Jordan’s capital city has services to London, being its only connection to the United Kingdom. British Airways and Royal Jordanian operate from Heathrow, while Wizz Air UK from Gatwick.

• British Airways: 4 weekly · Airbus A320neo
• Royal Jordanian: 7 weekly · Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner
• Wizz Air UK: 4 weekly · Airbus A321neo

Rwandair

The carrier restarted in November flights between Kigali and Mumbai with a stopover in Entebbe, Uganda. According to its website, Rwandair will operate twice weekly on Boeing 737-800 jets.

Wednesday and Friday

• WB 500  Kigali KGL 23:40 · 01:30+1 EBB Entebbe
• WB 500  Entebbe EBB 02:20 · 11:30 BOM Mumbai

Friday and Sunday

• WB 501  Mumbai BOM 00:30 · 04:50 EBB Entebbe
• WB 501  Entebbe EBB 05:50 · 05:50 KGL Kigali (each in local time)

South African

Effective December 13th, South African will inaugurate flights between Johannesburg and Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth). The company will offer twice-daily services with SunExpress Boeing 737-800s.

Daily

• SA 405  Johannesburg JNB 11:25 · 13:00 PLZ Port Elizabeth
• SA 410  Port Elizabeth PLZ 13:30 · 15:05 JNB Johannesburg

Daily

• SA 419  Johannesburg JNB 16:00 · 17:35 PLZ Port Elizabeth
• SA 422  Port Elizabeth PLZ 18:05 · 19:40 JNB Johannesburg

Airlink, CemAir and FlySafair currently operate this route, offering almost 90 weekly flights between the three airlines.

TAAG

In the last edition we published that TAAG had planned to start flights between Angola and Ghana in December. Finally, the state-owned airline made changes to its schedule, eliminating its new route to Accra.

TAAG originally programmed two flights per week with Boeing 737-700 aircraft from Luanda.

Following this cancellation, the company’s international network is now as follows:

Brazil

• Sao Paulo (GRU): 5 weekly

Congo

• Pointe Noire (PNR): 1 weekly

Democratic Republic of the Congo

• Kinshasa (FIH): 4 weekly

Mozambique

• Maputo (MPM): 4 weekly

Namibia

• Windhoek (WDH): 5 weekly

Nigeria

• Lagos (LOS): 3 weekly

Portugal

• Lisbon (LIS): 14 weekly

Sao Tome and Principe

• Sao Tome (TMS): 1 weekly

South Africa

• Cape Town (CPT): 7 weekly
• Johannesburg (JNB): 7 weekly

Spain

• Madrid (MAD): 2 weekly

Turkish Airlines

Starting July 9th next year, Turkish intends to boost its flight frequency between Istanbul, Port Louis and Antananarivo. The carrier serves this route, to Mauritius and Madagascar, twice a week with Airbus A330-300 planes.

Thursday and Saturday

• TK 160  Istanbul IST 02:15 · 13:05 MRU Port Louis
• TK 160  Port Louis MRU 14:05 · 15:05 TNR Antananarivo

• TK 161  Antananarivo TNR 16:25 · 19:20 MRU Port Louis
• TK 161  Port Louis MRU 20:35 · 06:00+1 IST Istanbul

The airline will add a new flight on Tuesdays.

Cover photo: Martin Le Penven – JetPhotos (Antananarivo, Madagascar).