Royal Air Maroc is the main link between Europe and Africa
Royal Air Maroc aims to become the main transport hub on the African continent. Morocco's state-owned airline has presented its development plan at an event in Tunis, where it announced a series of initiatives that should see it take a step forward and lead the market in a fifteen-year plan, according to the airline's forecasts.
How much will Royal Air Maroc grow?
The idea is to grow its fleet to 200 aircraft to complete a network of 143 destinations, according to the company's regional representative in Tunisia, Mohamed Issam Mosaddeq, who spoke at the event. In this way, they intend to take a major leap forward to compete for regional leadership, especially with the implementation of new medium and long-haul routes. This intention is driven by the changes in the Moroccan government, which intends to commit to a policy of open skies.
The event also put the spotlight on the potential investments that collaboration with Tunisia could bring. Mosaddeq himself assured that, within the strategy that his company is developing, "there are great possibilities for collaboration in the tourism sector, associated travel agencies and clients".
With its strategic hub in Casablanca, Royal Air Maroc aims to create an optimal network of connections for the entire continent, focusing a large part of its efforts on improving air traffic with Tunisia. For this reason, they want to turn the Moroccan city into a modern hub with a great capacity to absorb the market and, above all, to continue to boost its prominence by taking advantage of the prominence it has already gained with the future organisation of the 2030 World Cup.
An opportunity to establish itself as a regional leader
Morocco has an important opportunity because regional competition is much lower than in the Middle East. While Dubai, Manama, Doha and Muscat compete to be the gateway to Central Asia, the Alawi kingdom has a much more favourable context in which to establish itself as one of the major leaders in connecting Europe and Africa.
Moreover, as a state-owned airline, Royal Air Maroc is part of Morocco's ongoing strategies, such as the "Meet Maroc" and "Meet Africa" brands. The Akhannouch government is committed to the airline's growth, increasing the company's capital to 370 million dollars in 2019 (98% state-owned).
What's more, there are no limits to the company's growth expectations. They hope to compete directly with the Dutch airline KLM and the German airline Lufthansa, established in the sector and of great relevance at the European level. They do not intend to give up their leadership in Africa, or even in becoming the gateway to Europe, they are also willing to compete with the larger airlines on medium and long haul flights.