By Ayomide Otitoju
The African Airlines Association (AFRAA) has announced the full operational rollout of Free Route Airspace (FRA) across the Western and Central Africa (WACAF) region, effective 30 October 2025 — a development expected to significantly boost efficiency and sustainability in African aviation.
The milestone follows successful FRA trials that began in November 2023. Under the new system, airlines will be able to plan and fly direct User Preferred Routes (UPRs) rather than adhere to fixed air corridors. UPRs provide pilots with the flexibility to select the most efficient path based on weather and wind conditions, resulting in shorter flight times, reduced fuel consumption and lower carbon emissions.
Afreximbank has supported the FRA initiative since the trial phase began, in line with its memorandum of understanding with AFRAA and guidance from the International Civil Aviation Organization’s Global Air Navigation Plan and the Africa-India FRA Planning and Implementation Regional Group.
The implementation represents a coordinated effort between air operators and regional air navigation service providers (ANSPs). The decision to move from trials to full deployment was reached at a joint workshop in Dakar, Senegal.
“This is a game-changer for African aviation,” AFRAA Secretary General Abdérahmane Berthé said. “By cutting flight times and fuel consumption, we are boosting airline competitiveness while strengthening our environmental commitment.” He expressed appreciation to Afreximbank and regional partners, including ASECNA, GCAA, NAMA, RVA, Roberts FIR, IATA, ICAO and CANSO.
Afreximbank Executive Vice President for Intra-African Trade and Export Development, Mrs. Kanayo Awani, said efficient air services are essential to advancing intra-African trade, tourism and connectivity under the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). She reaffirmed the bank’s commitment to strengthening the aviation sector through financing and trade facilitation tools, including its aircraft leasing platform.
During the trial phase, six major African airlines — Ethiopian Airlines, Kenya Airways, EGYPTAIR, Royal Air Maroc, RwandAir and ASKY Airlines — received approval to operate UPRs across 30 key city pairs. The shift is projected to save more than 1,393 cumulative flight hours annually, cut 5,000 metric tonnes of fuel consumption, avoid an estimated 16,000 metric tonnes of CO₂ emissions, and reduce fuel costs by about $15 million per year.
Beginning 30 October 2025, all airlines will be able to file UPRs in WACAF airspace, with ANSPs committing to approve new route requests within 48 hours. By mid-2026, once administrative processes across the 24 WACAF states are completed, airlines will no longer require formal approval for new UPR submissions.
With the WACAF rollout now secured, regional bodies will shift focus to Eastern and Southern Africa (ESAF) in 2026, aiming to complete FRA trials and achieve similar implementation. Plans are also underway to develop a web-based coordination platform to support airlines and ANSPs across the continent.
