Harrison EDEH
AIR Peace has recorded the fastest growth in scheduled seat capacity among Africa’s top 10 airlines, underlining the aggressive expansion of the Nigerian carrier’s operations.
According to the latest African aviation market data from aviation analytics firm OAG, Air Peace scheduled 354,804 seats in September 2026, compared with 229,412 seats in September 2025.
That represents an increase of 125,400 seats, or 54.7 per cent, year-on-year.
Accordingly,the increase also pushed Air Peace back into Africa’s top 10 airlines by scheduled seat capacity, placing it 10th on the continent.
It would be recalled that the airline had dropped out of the ranking in August but returned in September, displacing Kenya Airways.
Furthermore,Air Peace’s growth was significantly higher than that of the other airlines in the top 10.
Notably,Royal Air Maroc, which recorded the second-fastest growth, increased its capacity by 19.2 per cent, while Air Cairo grew by 14.9 per cent and Air Algerie by 13.3 per cent.
But while Air Peace recorded the fastest growth, Ethiopian Airlines remains Africa’s largest airline by scheduled seat capacity, with 2.09 million seats in September.
In a similar vein,Safair and EgyptAir followed with 1.08 million and 890,773 seats respectively.
The OAG figures also show that Nigeria is becoming an increasingly important aviation market.
The country recorded 1.19 million scheduled seats in September, up 37.4 per cent from the same month last year, making Nigeria the fastest-growing country among Africa’s top 10 aviation markets.
The numbers are significant for Air Peace, which has been steadily expanding its fleet and route network.
The airline added a Boeing 737-800NG in May and received its first Embraer 190 in June, additions that have supported the expansion of its domestic, regional and international operations.
Africa’s overall scheduled airline capacity also rose by 9.4 per cent year-on-year to 25.8 million seats in September, according to OAG. Domestic capacity grew faster, at 11.6 per cent, while international capacity increased by 8.9 per cent.
For Market watchers, the latest data is an indication that Airpeace is currently growing faster than the continent’s established giants.
A 54.7 per cent increase in available seats in one year is a substantial expansion and could further strengthen the airline’s position as Nigeria’s most ambitious indigenous carrier.
