Over the last decade, the aviation industry in the Middle East & Africa has become a core contributor to the area’s economy. After the pandemic, the demand for travel and tourism soared through the roof and has been growing ever since. 2023 was an exceptional year for the aviation sector as figures are decisively catching up to pre-COVID numbers. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) reports a 33.3% increase in traffic for Middle Eastern airlines and an impressive 38.7% rise for African ones, compared to 2022, indicating a strong recovery.
However, the future of aviation is uncertain with current problems like geopolitical conflicts, increased fuel prices and staff shortages, just to name a few. These, among many other variables, are costing the industry and travellers time and money as a result of many delayed and canceled flights.
The BestBrokers team wanted to find out which airlines and airports stood out as the most punctual ones last year and which ones couldn’t keep up with 2023’s dynamic events. We analysed flight statistics for the past year from air travel information company OAG and discovered that the least dependable airline in the Middle East & Africa for 2023 is Tunisair with a total of 58.57% delayed or canceled flights and the least punctual airport is Kuwait with 53.16% of delays and cancelations.
The Middle East & Africa region is positioned in the heart of the Israel-Hamas war which also limits some of the air space in the area, leading to longer waits, possible delays and weary travelers, a lot of which postpone their trips until the conditions are calmer. Since the start of the current geopolitical conflict, military presence at airports in the region has increased and local air traffic control is diverting routes to avoid air space over Israel.
Another rising concern is the worldwide shortage of aviation personnel, which in the Middle East & Africa is estimated to be about 13% or a deficit of 300,000 employees over the next 10 years. The region has perhaps the fastest-developing aviation industry globally and the staffing issue is expected to be a priority on their agenda.
The worst performance by an airport in the region, based on our findings, goes to Kuwait International Airport with a whopping 52.45% of its flights delayed and 0.70% canceled. Last year, Kuwait experienced a 26% rise in passenger traffic, along with 23% more outbound aircraft compared to 2022, which alone was a solid predisposition for more delays and cancellations.
To alleviate congestion and overcrowding, the country is currently building a second terminal at the Kuwait International Airport which is in its final phase of construction.
The Tunis-Carthage International Airport finished 2023 as the second-worst one in the Middle East & Africa with 45.69% delayed or canceled flights. Tunisia is another country that saw an increase in passenger traffic of 21.9% for the first 10 months of 2023. As with many other airports, new routes were introduced in January 2023. This, paired with the recent armed conflict in the area has increased the air traffic furthermore, leading to delays and plane diversion.
Turkey’s Antalya airport also ended the year with one of the lowest rankings with 43.92% delayed or canceled flights. Last February, the country was hit by a destructive 7.8 earthquake, which claimed many lives but also affected the region’s economy. The aviation sector was no exception with some airports re-directing traffic, some closing completely and many passengers postponing their travels until the situation cleared out.
Methodology
To come up with the list of best and worst airlines the team at BestBrokers analysed OAG’s On-time performance (OTP) data from January-December 2023. We calculated the shares of delayed and canceled flights for all airlines with over 20,000 flights last year, comparing them to the total number of flights each one had to come up with the ranking for the best and worst-performing airlines in 2023.
Furthermore, we looked into the busiest airports in the Middle East & Africa with over 20,000 flights for 2023 and ranked them based on delays and on-time departures to establish the best-operating ones. Additional information was sourced from the IATA and the official websites of airlines and airports.