Transport in Chad north of Lake Chad, are practically nonexistent; it is easier to reach Niger via Cameroon and Nigeria. Chad had an estimated 58 airports, only 9 of which had paved runways. Air Tchad (60 percent state owned) provides internal service to 12 locations but suffers from lack of fuel and equipment. The international airport at N’Djamena was damaged in fighting in 1981, but is now served by several international carriers including Air Afrique, which is partly owned by Chad. Another major airport, developed as a military staging area, is located at Sarh. In 2003, scheduled airlines in Chad carried about 46,000
Niger far east as western Niger. The Kanem-Bornu Empire was an empire that existed in modern-day Chad, Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger and Libya. The empire first existed and prospered as the Kanem Empire as early as the 9th century and later as the Kingdom of Bornu until 1900. In the 19th century, contact with Europe began with the first European explorers—notably Monteil (French) and Barth (German)—to travel to Niger. Following the 1885 Berlin conference during which colonial powers outlined the division of Africa into colonial spheres, French military efforts to conquer existing African states were intensified in all French colonies including Niger.