Air transport in Africa: a statistical physics approach

Within the last few decades, concepts from statistical physics have been leveraged to shed light on different aspects of air transport, from its connectivity structure to the dynamics of delay propagation. While countless studies have been published for large markets like the US, Europe and China, much less attention has been devoted to Africa, in spite of the relevance of this transportation mode in this continent. We here analyse the African air transport system from three complementary viewpoints: the structure of the airport network; the structure created by delay propagation; and the micro-scale dynamics of delays at individual airports. These three aspects are analysed through time, from 2020 to 2024; and further compared with what is observed in the US system. The resulting scenario is highly heterogeneous, with the US and African systems having important macro-scale differences, but also similarities at a local level. We further discuss the importance of these findings, and how similar scientific endeavours could benefit from higher-quality data.