Tonne-kilometers of air freight in South Africa
South Africa: Tonne-kilometers of air freight was 59.67 million million ton-km in 2023. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2023)
59.67 million million ton-km
Change on year
down 58.4%
World rank
70th
of 180 countries
All-time high
1.23 billion million ton-km
in 2006
All-time low
15.13 million million ton-km
in 2021
Years of data
54
1970–2023
Tonne-kilometers of air freight in South Africa, 1970–2023
Source: International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in million ton-km.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 59.67 million million ton-km for tonne-kilometers of air freight in 2023.
The figure is down 58.4% on the previous year and down 94.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, tonne-kilometers of air freight in South Africa peaked at 1.23 billion million ton-km in 2006 and was at its lowest, 15.13 million million ton-km, in 2021.
South Africa ranks 70th of 180 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Tonne-kilometers of air freight in South Africa, year by year
| Year | million ton-km | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 56.80 million million ton-km | — |
| 1971 | 63.90 million million ton-km | +12.5% |
| 1972 | 75.80 million million ton-km | +18.6% |
| 1973 | 112.70 million million ton-km | +48.7% |
| 1974 | 143.60 million million ton-km | +27.4% |
| 1975 | 142.30 million million ton-km | -0.9% |
| 1976 | 146.30 million million ton-km | +2.8% |
| 1977 | 173.80 million million ton-km | +18.8% |
| 1978 | 222.10 million million ton-km | +27.8% |
| 1979 | 237.00 million million ton-km | +6.7% |
| 1980 | 251.20 million million ton-km | +6.0% |
| 1981 | 311.40 million million ton-km | +24.0% |
| 1982 | 318.20 million million ton-km | +2.2% |
| 1983 | 367.30 million million ton-km | +15.4% |
| 1984 | 442.90 million million ton-km | +20.6% |
| 1985 | 391.80 million million ton-km | -11.5% |
| 1986 | 308.20 million million ton-km | -21.3% |
| 1987 | 268.10 million million ton-km | -13.0% |
| 1988 | 238.30 million million ton-km | -11.1% |
| 1989 | 205.60 million million ton-km | -13.7% |
| 1990 | 179.20 million million ton-km | -12.8% |
| 1991 | 191.00 million million ton-km | +6.6% |
| 1992 | 263.20 million million ton-km | +37.8% |
| 1993 | 332.90 million million ton-km | +26.5% |
| 1994 | 276.50 million million ton-km | -16.9% |
| 1995 | 263.10 million million ton-km | -4.8% |
| 1996 | 328.50 million million ton-km | +24.9% |
| 1997 | 420.40 million million ton-km | +28.0% |
| 1998 | 535.60 million million ton-km | +27.4% |
| 1999 | 688.40 million million ton-km | +28.5% |
| 2000 | 687.57 million million ton-km | -0.1% |
| 2001 | 755.52 million million ton-km | +9.9% |
| 2002 | 783.84 million million ton-km | +3.7% |
| 2003 | 891.47 million million ton-km | +13.7% |
| 2004 | 928.99 million million ton-km | +4.2% |
| 2005 | 923.38 million million ton-km | -0.6% |
| 2006 | 1.23 billion million ton-km | +33.5% |
| 2007 | 939.20 million million ton-km | -23.8% |
| 2008 | 760.89 million million ton-km | -19.0% |
| 2009 | 676.41 million million ton-km | -11.1% |
| 2010 | 1.03 billion million ton-km | +51.6% |
| 2011 | 1.07 billion million ton-km | +4.6% |
| 2012 | 1.17 billion million ton-km | +9.5% |
| 2013 | 1.12 billion million ton-km | -4.4% |
| 2014 | 1.04 billion million ton-km | -7.1% |
| 2015 | 892.73 million million ton-km | -14.4% |
| 2016 | 767.27 million million ton-km | -14.1% |
| 2017 | 833.35 million million ton-km | +8.6% |
| 2018 | 696.73 million million ton-km | -16.4% |
| 2019 | 565.21 million million ton-km | -18.9% |
| 2020 | 102.39 million million ton-km | -81.9% |
| 2021 | 15.13 million million ton-km | -85.2% |
| 2022 | 143.31 million million ton-km | +847.1% |
| 2023 | 59.67 million million ton-km | -58.4% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 59.67 million million ton-km is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 25.07 million million ton-km, 2.4× the median. (52 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 59.67 million million ton-km is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 639,841 million ton-km, 93.3× the median. (44 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Tonne-kilometers of air freight in South Africa changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | +847.1% | 15.13 million million ton-km | 143.31 million million ton-km |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 137.43 million million ton-km | 56.80 million million ton-km | 237.00 million million ton-km | 10 |
| 1980s | 310.30 million million ton-km | 205.60 million million ton-km | 442.90 million million ton-km | 10 |
| 1990s | 347.88 million million ton-km | 179.20 million million ton-km | 688.40 million million ton-km | 10 |
| 2000s | 858.03 million million ton-km | 676.41 million million ton-km | 1.23 billion million ton-km | 10 |
| 2010s | 919.42 million million ton-km | 565.21 million million ton-km | 1.17 billion million ton-km | 10 |
| 2020s | 80.12 million million ton-km | 15.13 million million ton-km | 143.31 million million ton-km | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More reference data data for South Africa
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5111 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 8.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 13.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.7468 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 13.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.49 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 41.1 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 63.65 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 4.07 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is tonne-kilometers of air freight in South Africa?
- Tonne-kilometers of air freight in South Africa was 59.67 million million ton-km in 2023, according to International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest tonne-kilometers of air freight recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 1.23 billion million ton-km in 2006.
- What is the lowest tonne-kilometers of air freight recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 15.13 million million ton-km in 2021.
- How does South Africa rank for tonne-kilometers of air freight?
- South Africa ranks 70th out of 180 countries with data for 2023.
- Is tonne-kilometers of air freight rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 94.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Tonne-kilometers of air freight. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 54 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Air freight is the volume of freight, express, and diplomatic bags carried on each flight stage (operation of an aircraft from takeoff to its next landing), measured in metric tonnes times kilometers traveled.