Kenya Airways suggests merger with Ethiopian and South African as part of push for greater unity

African airlines are calling for greater unity among themselves to better compete against much bigger foreign airlines in their own skies and for African governments to liberalise the continent's air space.

Kenya Airways believes a merger between itself, Ethiopian Airlines and South African Airways is necessary to create a single large carrier representing Africa and able to compete globally. And Africa's numerous regional airlines are looking to these three big carriers to support their growth and improve the industry's safety performance on the continent.

But first, protective governments need to be persuaded of the benefits of open skies, while smaller carriers fear for the futures if big carriers are given greater freedoms.