Data from Airbus revealed limited fleet renewal among Libyan airlines amid ongoing political division and internal conflict, which has resulted in a significant gap between recorded orders and the number of aircraft actually in service with Libyan carriers.

Orders by Libyan Airlines

The data, reported by the French magazine Jeune Afrique, showed that Afriqiyah Airways (state-owned) placed 27 orders for Airbus aircraft and took delivery of 17, but only 11 remain in service. Libyan Airlines also has 17 orders and 11 deliveries, compared to only five aircraft in operation.

In contrast, the private airline Berniq, one of the new entrants in the Libyan market, still has six aircraft on order without having received any of them so far.

The data indicated that political fragmentation, damage to infrastructure caused by the conflict, and rising insurance and leasing costs are undermining the ability of Libyan airlines to operate their fleets and expand their operations, despite existing purchase orders on file with manufacturers.

The African aviation market

Airbus said that the African aviation market is witnessing significant disparities between countries and companies, noting that it has recorded 337 orders from African airlines, compared to 267 deliveries and approximately 305 aircraft currently in operation.

The magazine quoted Airbus Africa’s Director of Airline Marketing, Joep Ellers, as saying that the African market “is not uniform,” explaining that each airline faces different circumstances, which is reflected in sales and financing mechanisms and competition with Boeing.

In North Africa, Egypt has cemented its position as one of Airbus’s most important markets on the continent; EgyptAir has 75 orders and 61 delivered aircraft, including 29 in service, while Cairo Air is expanding its fleet of single-aisle aircraft.

In East Africa, Ethiopian Airlines continues to strengthen its partnership with Airbus, having ordered 39 aircraft and taken delivery of 22, with a strong focus on the wide-body A350.

Airbus Profit Decline

In a related development, Bloomberg reported that Airbus’s profits fell by 52% to €300 million during the first quarter of the year, with aircraft deliveries dropping to their lowest levels since 2009 due to ongoing supply chain disruptions.

In contrast, Boeing continued to improve its operational performance after increasing production rates and stabilizing its operations in the defense and services sectors, outpacing Airbus in the number of aircraft delivered during the same period this year.