For many in the developed world, North Africa is an almost forgotten place between West Africa and Europe, or perhaps the Middle East.

For Algeria, a vast former French-occupied territory in the Maghreb, there is not even much tourism putting it on the map-unlike its neighbors’ Morocco and Tunisia.

The so-called Arab Spring of 2011 was a seminal moment for Algeria, if less so than for Egypt.

As with the rest of the region, Algeria still reverberates with the memories and implications of that time, and the suggestion from the West that all such nations should democratize.

This perhaps explains why it is a place that feels untrusting of outside visitors. It is perhaps weary of revolutions and didn’t quite want to grasp the latest one, having succeeded in a long struggle against the French in 1952 and then seen a push for democracy in 1988 (resulting in a civil war in the 1990s after the then president was assassinated), and then more recently having been on the doorstep of Libya as regime change was enforced with the help of Western powers.

With radical Islam always bubbling beneath the surface (having been suppressed in the late 1990s) the immediate needs of security and stability seem to take precedence over a headlong rush for economic expansion.

The president is Abdul-Aziz Bouteflika, who gained 90% of the vote in April 2009 presidential election. He has been president since 1999, so is in his third five-year term (there is no limit on number of terms).

With the official national language being Arabic and French ,both widely spoken with few having more than a few words of English, there is a sense of direction that points to the Middle East and away from France ,despite so many Algerians living in France.

Algerians are still seeking their independent identity; stuck in an identity crisis with an attitude to France reminiscent of Zimbabwe’s towards Britain, which resulted in such an economic disaster: France can help Algeria still but it will be an uneasy relationship for a long time to come.

Algeria has an economy which, due to reliance on oil and gas, has not tended to develop manufacturing .This is certainly the case for aerospace.

Its airline industry has been established predominantly on the back of French ties and the requirements of the oil and gas sector, needing to transport personnel into the vast swathes of desert inland.

Main Market

The main examples are respectively Aigle Azur,the Paris-Orly based airline ( and operator of 12 A320-family aircraft) ,whose main market is Algerians living in France, and Tassili Airlines ,the domestic carrier owned by Algeria’s national oil company,Sonatrach ( the airline has been operating since 1999).

Sonatranch is Algeria’s largest company and probably the biggest in Africa. It generates around 30% of the country’s gross national product.

It is Air Algerie and its Algiers base, however; that represents the core of the aviation sector and for now the national carrier holds sway.

Although it relinquished its 49% stake in Tassili to Sonatrach in 2005, it is relatively friendly competition compared to low-cost carriers.

The Easy Jets, Ryan airs and Fast Jet of the world have not yet arrived but are a threat, which has been partly responsible for Air Algerie deciding to put together a new five-year plan to renew its ageing fleet.

Various international carriers, such as British Airways and Qatar Airways, also operate to Houari Boumediene International Airport.

Air Algerie president and CEO Mohamed Salah Boultif, said the country’s ambition was for Algeries to become an important international hub. The airlines five-year plan ,running from 2013-2018 ,has 10 key points ,including replacing its long -haul fleet of Boeing 767s ,and its Boeing 737 fleet ( three 737-300s,five -600s and 14-800s ) with more modern aircraft.

“I agree with IATAs Tony Tyler about the potential for a hub in North Africa,” he said.”As far as Air Algerie is concerned, it is one of our objectives: we are trying to make a partnership with the airport and authorities. We are trying to identify all the connecting flights in order to build a very integrated scheduled. Then we will try to define a fair policy regarding the sixth freedom traffic.”

The state-controlled carrier currently operates three 767-300s and five Airbus A330-200s, all powered by GE CF6 engines. It also has a regional fleet of 12 68-seat ATR 72 turbo props from Toulouse, France-based manufacturer ATR, and would like to modernize this fleet too.

Boultif also said that the plan is to restructure the airline to create more distinct divisions covering catering, ground handling and maintenance.

The airline also wants to expand its route network, especially in Africa, to fit in with its hub plan alongside the encouragement of transit passengers at Algiers.

In August it announced intentions to start a new training school .Construction “will start next year.” He added: “We are ambitious to do a lot of things but to do this we need joint ventures.”

Mohamed said the ATRs are maintained in a designated part of the hangars that create a single space due to the sidewalls being left out. The turbo props were acquired in the 1990s, he said,” and we got more from Khalifa when they went bankrupt, so now we have 12 all together.”

Another part of the hangar is dedicated to 737NG maintenance: there is a C-130 area (the airline operates one and there are many in the region) and then another part for maintaining the larger aircraft, 767s and A330s.

The hangar, which is described as “huge” (25,000sqm) could actually accommodate four 747s, or 12 737s, simultaneously, according to the airline.

He noted that Air Algerie does not maintain Tassilis aircraft (it operates 737s and Dash 8s) and that the airline is now “going international, with Rome first…………. And they’re going to buy new aircraft. So we will be competing.”

Air Algerie purchased its aircraft with the help of the national bank and does not lease any, said Mohamed.

Fully-Equipped

The airline has a fully-equipped ,8,800 sq m engine shop, which can test engines up 65,000lb thrust-the airline has CFM56-3/7 and CF6-80E3/C2 engines-plus a separate rig to test the Allison (Rolls Royce) T56 turboprops that power Lockheed C130 Hercules.

A current project will soon mean it can test the ATRs Pratt & Whitney Canada PW 127 engines, said test cell manager Abdel Khalifi.The project involved SANCO,dynamometer specialist Frood Consine and P&WC ,while the jet cell was developed in association with General Electric .It will soon be able to test the CF6-80E1 that powers the airlines A330s as well.

Air Algerie is involved in the MRO task force of the African Airlines Association (AFRAA), which is looking into the feasibility of joint pooling of inventory, collective purchases and optimal use of MRO facilities. Those involved in the initiative include Air Algerie Technics, Egypt Air, Ethiopian Airlines, Libyan Aircraft Engineering and Maintenance, Royal Air Maroc, SAA Technical, Snecma Engine Services, Tunis air Technics, TAAG Angola, Air Mauritius and Kenya Airways.

Air Algerie hosted MRO Africa in 2010, in conjunction with AFRAA, and hopes to do so again: it will be holding an event in 2013 at its facilities, while the main MRO Africa will next take place in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Anthony A Juma is the Editor and Director Commercial & Flights Operations at Wings Over Africa Aviation Limited. This is an Air Charter Company that specializes on Domestic & Regional Scheduled Air Flights Algeria & Africa. The website has guided thousands of travelers to achieve their dream holiday. For more information and guidance, visit the site http://www.wingsoverafrica-aviation.com/index.php/sheduled-flights.html

Anthony A Juma is the Editor and Director Commercial & Flights Operations at Wings Over Africa Aviation Limited. This is an Air Charter Company that specializes on Domestic & Regional Scheduled Air Flights Algeria & Africa. The website has guided thousands of travelers to achieve their dream holiday. For more information and guidance, visit the site http://www.wingsoverafrica-aviation.com/index.php/sheduled-flights.html

Author Bio: Anthony A Juma is the Editor and Director Commercial & Flights Operations at Wings Over Africa Aviation Limited. This is an Air Charter Company that specializes on Domestic & Regional Scheduled Air Flights Algeria & Africa. The website has guided thousands of travelers to achieve their dream holiday. For more information and guidance, visit the site http://www.wingsoverafrica-aviation.com/index.php/sheduled-flights.html

Category: Travel
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