African carriers move maintenance closer to home as ferry costs bite

The arithmetic is straightforward: a C-check flown to Europe carries ferry fuel, crew positioning and days of lost revenue before the first panel opens. As continental capability has deepened — Addis Ababa, Casablanca, Johannesburg and Cairo all run widebody-capable bays — the ferry premium has become harder to justify. The constraint that remains is components: continental shops still send the majority of rotables abroad for overhaul, which is where the next round of investment is pointing. The operators moving first are those with young fleets and predictable check calendars.