Advances in Airline Economics – serie

This is the first in a new series of books on the economics of the airline industry. The series is a collection of original, cutting-edge research papers from an international panel of distinguished contributors. Volume 1 will focus on topics related to competition policy and antitrust, such as the economic impact of airline alliances (both international and domestic), predation, and incumbent responses to low cost entry. Part of a "New Series", this volume focuses on competition policy and antitrust. Its contributors are international experts in the field.

This is the second in a new series of books on the economics of the airline industry. The series is comprised of a collection of original, cutting-edge, research papers from an international panel of distinguished contributors. Volume 2 focuses on topics related to the economics of airline institutions (i.e., airports, air traffic control, labor), operations and marketing. It provides an up-to-date collection of articles covering recent developments in the airline industry. It is written by an international panel of distinguished contributors.

Stepped-up competition in the airline industry over the past 40 years profoundly changed how carriers set fares. Chapters in this volume contribute to our understanding of fare determination in this industry by examining carrier pricing behavior, such as non-linear pricing, pricing decisions associated with strategic alliances, competition from low cost carriers, and the challenges faced by carriers experiencing financial distress. These contributions present nuanced analyses of fare determination that include new ways of examining whether the prices charged by carriers are consumer welfare-enhancing. Examination of airline carrier pricing only tells part of the story of firm behavior, as analysis of carriers' ability to provide quality services is also significant in understanding the economics of this industry. This volume includes chapters examining non-price characteristics of business operations, such as frequency of service, passenger safety, availability of aircraft types for different transportation services, and the geographic distribution of air transportation-related noise by aircraft departures and arrivals at airports.

Liberalization of regulatory policy on international air transportation through the use of bilateral and multilateral open skies agreements contributes to a business environment that presents air carriers with the opportunity to take advantage of greater access to aviation markets world-wide. Chapters in this volume of Advances in Airline Economics provide in-depth analysis of open skies agreements. In addition, contributions present empirical analysis of the effect of greater availability of international air transportation services on air fares, export flows, operating efficiency, and passenger demand for international flights. The influence of international airports on local metropolitan areas' economic development is also examined. Regulation of international air transportation, however, is not limited to the erosion of entry barriers. Companies providing international air transportation services also face restrictions on pollution emissions. This volume provides a more complete analysis of the economics of international air transportation by presenting research on the costs borne by air transportation companies due to pollution regulation in Europe, Australia and New Zealand.

An efficient air transport system is critical to countries attaining and sustaining healthy economies in an increasingly interconnected world economy. Competing successfully now means quick shipping over long distances at reasonable rates. Societies also prosper when people from different countries can travel around the world using efficient transport. This volume includes literature surveys and original empirical research examining airline efficiency in the twenty first century. Topics cover airline productivity, sources of airline efficiency, the cost and scope of operations in airline transport; airline productivity for different global regions; methodologies estimating productivity growth and efficiency. Further chapters on sources of airline efficiency examine fuel efficiency differences, efficiency in different stages of production, and the contributions of technological change, mergers, and low-cost carrier competition to efficiency. Chapters on the cost and scope of operations examine all-cargo carrier efficiency, gains from airline/high speed-rail cooperation, and airport economies of scope in passenger and freight operations.

Airports serve an essential role in domestic and international travel, facilitating the origination, termination, and connections of air flights. Airport services enhance regional, national, and global connections, increasing the mobility of people worldwide and enhancing local and regional economies. Although there is a large amount of literature that examines airline costs and productivity, consumer welfare from air travel, and the influence of economic regulation of airline services, there is much less literature that examines airports. This is important, as airport operations play a critical role in influencing airline travel. This volume examines the role that airports play in economic development and land values, the regulation and economic efficiency of airports, airport pricing and competition, and the role played by airports in influencing airline operations and networks.

Air transport service has become an indispensable source of long distance transport for businesses and leisure travelers and for high-value-low-volume products. The significance of this transport service as a driver of economic growth is made abundantly apparent when examining the interdependence of business and air transport growth in Asia. Given the key role this region plays as a contributor to growth in the global airline transport service sector and the distinctive features of the aviation market observed, it is important to understand the economics of this sector in Asia. This volume contributes to the understanding of air transport services in Asia by presenting new research in the following four key areas in airline economics: Competition and regulatory change, passenger demand and satisfaction, industry performance, and the interdependence of airlines companies and airports. Specifically, in this volume prominent researchers in the region have examined important issues such as low cost carrier growth in Japan, competition against full service hub carriers in the Middle East, aviation market liberalization in Central Asia, high-speed-rail and airline competition in China, air transport and tourism in Asia and Australia, airline performance and outsourcing, airports development, and airport-airline cooperation. These rigorous studies contributes to a better understanding of the aviation market in Asia, allowing better decisions to be made by industry leaders and government agencies. This book also serves as an excellent reference book for researchers in the transport and logistics industry, and postgraduate students in the disciplines of applied economics, industrial organization, corporate strategy and public policy.

In recent years, the European air transport industry has seen a number of important changes, with more on the horizon. This comprehensive work presents a multi-faceted analysis of the air industry in Europe, how it has developed in recent years, and how it is set to develop further into the future. The work brings together leading experts in the field from across the continent to address the burning issues affecting this significant sector of the European transportation arena. It begins with a scene-setting contribution that outlines the detail of the regulatory context within which the European airline sector operates. We then move on to look at some of the strategic responses to this evolving regulatory context. In this respect, the specifics of some relevant business models, the competitive context (particularly with respect to pricing and profitability), changes in the productivity of European airlines relative to the global industry and the issue of joint ventures in the transatlantic market are all dealt with in some detail. The focus then shifts to the analysis of more niche sectors within the European aviation sector, specifically the business aviation and air cargo markets. The volume finishes with more specific works which address key issues in today’s European airline market, namely the adoption of new propulsion technology and the ever-present environmental impacts associated with aircraft noise.

Billions of airline passengers, combined with conditions associated with airline travel and airports, create a conducive environment for the rapid spread of viruses. The COVID-19 pandemic impacted airlines, airports, and their operations significantly. Presently, the virus’s threat to global public health, although a continuing concern, is significantly diminished and recovery is building.As nations’ economies are returning to pre-pandemic environments, Airlines and the COVID-19 Pandemic assesses the pandemic’s diverse impacts on the aviation sector, how airlines reacted to the pandemic, worked with governments, and adapted its operations and business models.This 11th Volume of the Advances in Airline Economics series provides new insights on the multidimensional impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the aviation sector in general and airlines in particular.

Given the potential size of some of the markets involved and the comparative advantages in serving them, it is surprising to see a relative sparsity of airline activity in developing countries. Lack of suitable data, limited interest, and the comparatively small scale of aviation markets in many of these countries provide some of the explanations for this relative neglect.Airlines and Developing Countries works to address some of the key challenges that are confronting airlines and public policy makers, helping to fill a number of voids in our knowledge. The approaches of the various expert contributors offer a range of technical, empirical, historical, and institutional analyses that consider long-term patterns of economic development and look at how airlines have influenced this going back as far as the 1930s.

The first airport was built at College Park Maryland, USA in 1909. Since the initial construction of that structure the number of airports worldwide has grown to over 40,000. These facilities served over 8.7 billion passengers and handled over 102 million tonnes of cargo in 2023. Airports stimulate economic growth by creating direct, indirect and induced job opportunities and facilitating tourism and trade.The presence of a functioning airport is therefore a key component of regional development, however most of the literature on regional development fails to include this vital growth determinant. This volume contributes to the literature on regional development by examining the economic effect of airports on regional growth. Chapter contributions have an international focus with analyses including examination of regional development in Asia, Central and Eastern Europe, Western Europe, North America, as well as regional development in rural areas. Chapters also recognize the external costs associated with the growth in airport operations. These chapters on external costs will provide an international appraisal of the need for carbon-neutrality and sustainability.Airports and Regional Development provides a holistic approach toward the analysis of airports and regional development.