Business aviation took a step forward in North Africa this week, with the second edition of the MEBAA Morocco trade show taking place for the first time in Marrakech. The Moroccan government has thrown its weight behind the industry, with tourism minister Mohammed Sajid officially opening the show on Tuesday, organized by the Dubai-based Middle East Business Aviation Association.
Swissport Executive Aviation officials told AIN that all four FBOs it has won licenses for in Morocco would “open by October 2018.” Jetex Flight Support said a total of 11,000 movements a year countrywide justified its decision to set up five FBOs in Morocco, which are set to open soon.
“The hotel industry is also key. There are 4,000 movements in Marrakech, and there is a very sound [organization] here to support the general aviation business: hotels, logistics, infrastructure and restaurants. For FBOs in Dubai and Marrakech, the infrastructure is very strong,” said Jetex CEO Adel Mardini.
Marrakech is Morocco's main business aviation hub, ahead of Casablanca, the nation’s economic capital, where the first MEBAA Morocco Show took place in 2015.
The government of Morocco recognizes the value of business aviation and is using its influence to create a friendly environment for the industry. That was the message delivered last month at the MEBAA Morocco Conference in Marrakech. Zouhair El Aoufir, CEO of the Office National des Aéroports (ONDA), gave the 100 participants at the conference a detailed overview on the outlook for bizav and airports in the kingdom, as the Moroccan government throws its weight behind the future of business aviation.
“Being an air junction between Europe, Africa, North and South America, and the Near and Middle East, Morocco enjoys a privileged situation and an undeniable competitive advantage, which makes it a serious candidate for the development of business aviation,” El Aoufir said. “ONDA has therefore mandated an international firm to study the development potential of this activity and also recommend the necessary investments as well as the best model for its realization and management.”
Among those investments is opening Tit Mellil Airport as a business aviation airport in 2025. As yet there are no bizav operations at Tit Mellil Airport, but it is serving as a training facility, Ali Alnaqbi, chairman of the Middle East Business Aviation Association (MEBAA), initiator of the conference and airshow, told AIN . He said he hopes it will come into operation sooner than 2025. “This is a training center. It is located between Rabat and Casablanca, some 25 minutes from Casablanca city center. We hope [commissioning will take place earlier than currently planned].”
In addition, work is under way to complete nine FBOs in Morocco at its main airports in Casablanca, Rabat and elsewhere, after ONDA issued 10 authorizations in the past two years, among them five for Jetex Flight Support and four for Swissport Maroc, with Jetex expected to complete work by the end of next year and Swissport claiming that construction of its FBOs will be complete by the end of October next year.
“This is our agreement with ONDA, but we are already active [in temporary facilities],” Christophe de Figueiredo, director general and CEO of Swissport Maroc, told AIN. “Although we operate all over the globe, this will be the first time that we open four FBOs in one country.”
Both Jetex and Swissport will operate FBO facilities at Casablanca, the capital Rabat and Marrakech. “In Casablanca we need to refurbish the existing building. In the meantime, we will use a temporary lounge. In Marrakech, we are reviewing the architects’ plans. In Tangier we are alone, [while] Jetex is alone in Agadir and in Dakhla,” said de Figueiredo.
El Aoufir said the volume of bizav activity in Morocco is "relatively low" at 11,450 movements in 2015 and forecast a fall to 10,600 movements this year, apparently attributable to the exit of local air taxi and charter players from the market in the past two years.
Adel Mardini, CEO of Jetex Flight Support, said that the Moroccan market consists of a number of wealthy individuals who keep aircraft for their own use, without putting them out for charter. “You can see many private individuals [in the market]. There are many AOC holders in Morocco and this will be good for our business. [There are] not really [charter operations in Morocco].”
Asked if there is an element of risk in opening FBOs in Morocco given the lack of charter opportunities, he said: “The business is already there. Marrakech alone has 4,000 movements.”
Fleet Expectations
Official data provided by WingX show that the leading aircraft OEMs by departures in Morocco recently have been Cessna, Dassault, Beechcraft, Gulfstream and Bombardier. Top five aircraft in the kingdom by departures are the Citation III/VI/VII, with 381; Citation Excel/XLS; King Air 350; Falcon 900; and GV/G550. Honeywell's 2016 Business Aviation Middle East and Africa assessment put the total size of the regional fleet at 4 percent of the world fleet. Average age of business jets in the region was 17 years.
In terms of activity by airport, Morocco’s top five business aviation airports today are Marrakech Menara, Rabat-Salé, Casablanca’s Mohammed V Airport, Tangier Ibn Battuta and Fez-Saiss. Global connections by departure through the end of July saw Africa as the most popular destination, with 55 percent, Europe with 40 percent and the rest of the world with 5 percent.
The fleet in Morocco grew at an average annual rate of 2 to 3 percent over the last five years, but this will fall to 1 or 2 percent through 2021. “Recent fleet growth slowed as predicted because of political instability and migration of aircraft from the region. The fleet was nearly static in 2015,” said Raghed Talih, director, Middle East and Turkey, commercial aviation, Honeywell.
The major preference in the market is for large cabin-long range jets, accounting for around 80 percent of units and 95 percent of value, he said. There is virtually no interest in small-cabin aircraft, the survey showed.
Middle East and African bizav operators are expected to contribute 3 or 4 percent of global demand over the period 2016-21. “Purchase expectations rose five percentage points globally to 21 percent in 2015," he said, meaning 21 percent of companies expect to make aircraft purchases over the next five years.
Show organizer Dubai's F&E said the bizav fleet size in the region has doubled over the past 10 years. “Africa is forecast to receive aircraft deliveries worth $7 billion over the next ten years with 80 percent of these predicted to be in the light or medium categories," according to the Bombardier Business Aircraft Market Forecast 2016-2025. The same report predicts compound annual fleet growth of 3.2 percent.
Air Ocean Maroc was the sole bizjet operator in Morocco today in attendance at the Marrakech show. The company offers private flights on charter for up to eight passengers, as well as medevac to Africa and Europe. Based at Mohammed V Airport in Casablanca and Rabat-Salé, it uses Binslimane Airport, also near Casablanca, for MRO. Today, it operates three aircraft: a Citation VI, King Air 200 and a Cessna 404 Titan.
“The business plan is to run a total of four jets in the next five years [three Citation 650s and a Falcon 50],” Mohammed El Masaoudi, CEO of Air Ocean Maroc, told AIN at the show.
Anecdotal evidence points to the fact that there are no more than 10 private jets operating in Morocco, and one source said the number could be as small as five or six. “We are expecting more AOC applications will be presented to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation,” Alnaqbi told AIN. “Having more local players will expand the charter business. It needs more investment to encourage more AOC holders to come here. This will help private aviation grow. Having more AOC operators is very important. There are a good number of AOC holders but most of the owners here fly their airplanes for private use,” Jetex’s Mardini told the conference.
Alnaqbi said Moroccan officials he met at the show would “seek the opinion of MEBAA for any new business aviation venture in Morocco. In Morocco, when it comes to relations with the civil aviation authority, there is an element of complexity. Our close relationship with the civil aviation authorities will override this, close that gap,” said Alnaqbi.
“Remember Saudi Arabia. Earlier, there was no relationship in Saudi Arabia between the General Authority for Civil Aviation [GACA] and the operators. Now the relationship is extremely good. Everybody is happy with GACA’s attitude. The UAE was the same. MEBAA is committed to changing the relationship between the operators with the authorities in each country in the region individually.”
In partnership with RFIB, a London-market reinsurance broker, and Surety Global, a UK-based risk management consultancy, and backed by London reinsurer Tokyo Marine Kiln, MEBAA announced the launch of insurance products for association members, offering coverage in a number of areas, including cyber security, hull and medical.
On static display at Marrakech were a G550, a Challenger 650 and a Citation M2. The next MEBAA Show Morocco will take place at Marrakech Menara Airport on Sept. 17-18, 2019.