Postcolonial Sovereignty Meets Personal Independence: Air Afrique in the Era of Women’s Liberation

With a focus on Air Afrique, Francophone Africa’s multinational airline, this paper tours the myriad ways that the air travel and tourism industries collectively undertook to transform the decolonizing world for nations and citizens alike. At the national level, Air Afrique offered a pathway to economic development as well as a means to craft national and regional “brands” that could be marketed to both local and global consumers. At the individual level, it promised both novel career paths and new leisure opportunities. With the help of mass media, Air Afrique worked to shift the collective understanding of what kinds of mobility were possible in the era of independence. By boarding Air Afrique’s jets, citizens of postcolonial nations could make their way through the world with a range of novel identities. For women, in particular, careers in civil aviation and tourism held a special appeal, allowing them to combine beauty, movement, and modernity with their own take on female liberation. Careers in the air generated extensive media attention in the post-1960 era, including countless magazine and newspaper profiles of flight attendants, hostesses, air traffic controllers, and travel agents. By exploring this media, I will consider the ways that Air Afrique promoted both national and personal independence.