This groundbreaking book offers a critical and wide-ranging assessment of the global air transport liberalization process over the past 40 years. This compilation of world experts on air transport economics, policy, and regulation is timely and significant, considering that air transport is currently facing a series of new challenges due to technological changes, the emergence of new markets, and increased security concerns.
The last few decades have witnessed substantial liberalization trends in various industries and countries. Starting with the deregulation of the US airline industry in 1978, regulatory restructuring took place in further network industries such as telecommunications, electricity or railways in various countries around the world. Although most of the liberalization movements were initially triggered by the worrying performances of the respective regulatory frameworks, increases in competition and corresponding improvements in allocative and productive efficiency were typically associated with the respective liberalization efforts. From an academic perspective, the transition from regulated industries to liberalized industries has attracted a substantial amount of research reflected in many books and research articles which can be distilled to three main questions: (1) What are the forces that have given rise to regulatory reform? (2) What is the structure of the regulatory change which has occurred to date and is likely to occur in the immediate future? (3) What have been the effects on industry efficiency, prices and profits of the reforms which have occurred to date? Liberalization in Aviation brings together renowned academics and practitioners from around the world to address all three questions and draw policy conclusions. The book is divided into five sections, in turn dealing with aspects of competition in various liberalized markets, the emergence and growth of low-cost carriers, horizontal mergers and alliances, infrastructures, and concluding with economic assessments of liberalization steps so far and proposed steps in the future.
This title was first published in 2001. By giving long over-due detailed consideration to airline deregulation in countries other than the US, Dipendra Sinha makes a unique contribution to the literature on airline deregulation and transport economics.
In Africa, where poor roads, ports, and railways often constrain efficient transportation, air transport holds great potential as a lever for economic growth and development. Yet Africa has suffered several decades of inefficient air services. Uncompetitive flag carriers, set up by newly independent African states, offered primarily intercontinental flights, while the domestic air service market remained underdeveloped and underserved. The 1999 pan-African treaty on liberalization of access to air transport markets, the Yamoussoukro Decision, attempted to address these shortcomings. Yet a decade later, only partial liberalization has been achieved. 'Open Skies for Africa: Implementing the Yamoussoukro Decision' reviews progress made in carrying out the treaty and suggests ways in which the liberalization process can be encouraged. The book analyzes the completed and still-pending steps toward implementation of the Yamoussoukro Decision, both on a pan-African level and within various regions. Special focus is given to the challenges posed by the poor aviation safety and security standards that exist in most African countries. Finally, the book measures the impact that certain policy steps of the Yamoussoukro Decision have had and evaluates the economic significance of air transportation and its full liberalization in Africa. The book concludes that the process of liberalizing African air services must continue, and provides policy recommendations for the way forward.
As with the previous two editions, Evolution of International Aviation reviews the historical development of the international aviation system. From this foundation it then provides an updated and expanded account of the current state of the aviation and aerospace industry including profitability, consolidation, and merger activity. New to this edition, the book broadens the coverage of the industry segments - airlines, air cargo, and manufacturing - to include the emerging commercial space sector. Because this book is intended for both the interested amateur and the more serious student, references are provided in the text and at the end of each chapter to allow for further in-depth study. The third edition also adds to each chapter a set of learning objectives and a concluding series of questions for discussion.
This book offers an extraordinary wealth of information, from the ground up, of the law governing and regulating air transport today, with a strong emphasis on international aviation. A team of distinguished authors in the field of aviation law provide a cogent synthesis from which sound legal opinions and strategies of legal action may be confidently built. Among the many topics here in depth are the following: definition and classification of airspace; distinction between civil and state aircraft; air navigation and air traffic control services; airport charges and overflight charges; structure of ICAO; standard-setting functions and audit functions of ICAO; functions of the International Air Transport Association (IATA); policy and effects of deregulation and liberalization of air transport policy; the International Registry for Aircraft Equipment; air carrier liability regimes and claims procedure; measures to combat aviation terrorism, air piracy and sabotage; and the Open Skies Agreements. This publication cites significant legislation and court rulings, including from the United States and the European Union, where far-reaching measures on market access, competition and passenger rights have set trends for other regions of the world. The special case of Latin America has a chapter to itself. At a time when commercial aircraft have been used as lethal weapons for the first time, aviation law finds itself in the front line of responsibility for maintaining global aviation security.
The debate on the future of the aviation sector and the viability of its traditional business practices is the core of this book. The liberalization of the EU market in the 1990s has radically modi?ed the competitive environment and the nature of airline competition. Furthermore, the new millennium began with terrorist attacks, epidemics, trade globalization, and the rise of oil prices, all of which combined to push the industry into a “perfect storm”. Airline industry pro?tability has been an elusive goal for several decades and the recent events has only accentuated existing weaknesses. The main concern of ind- try observers is whether the airline business model, successful during the 1980s and 1990s, is now sustainable in a market crowded by low-cost carriers. The airlines that will respond rapidly and determinedly to increase pressure to restructure, conso- date and segment the industry will achieve competitive advantages. In this context, the present study aims to model the new conduct of the ‘legacy’ carriers in a new liberalized European market in terms of network and pricing competition with l- cost carriers and competitive reaction to the global economic crises.
Competition in air transport has been transformed by industry liberalization initiatives, resulting in the emergence of a wide array of new airline start-ups. Restrictions on low fares have been removed, uniform control requirements have been established, and legislation has facilitated the proliferation of low-fare carriers and competition. The new breed of independent low-fare airlines (LFAs) use market freedoms to shake up the industry's competitive dynamics and offer the customer the alternative of low prices and basic service. A successful low fare business model requires a ruthless and relentless focus on cost cutting and increased operational productivity, combined with an ability to generate and maintain a cash surplus and a cautious but steady fleet and route network expansion. The mastery of these techniques has made Southwest and Ryanair industry leaders, but others such as EasyJet also have a proven record of profitability and market growth, despite not always being the lowest cost or price providers. In this comprehensive and topical study the author systematically provides: · a step-by-step approach to understanding the conditions and choices shaping airline competitiveness, and an assessment of the nature of the low fare market · a comprehensive study of the low fare airline sector's evolution and growth and arguments as to why the European low fare industry is here to stay despite the inevitability of a shake out (reminiscent of the early 1980s in the USA). · unique insights into the success of low fare market leaders in Europe, North America and Australasia and an examination of the experience of US new entrants in the post-deregulations era, to discern strategic lessons for their counterparts; · critical perspectives on strategic management principles and practices in modern airline companies, discussing strategies for survival, and comparing competitive strategies for the main low fare airlines and their limitations; · key reasons for the robustness of the low fare business model during industry crises The book also determines the conditions and strategies that shape sustainable advantage for LFAs in highly competitive deregulated markets where established airlines seek to force out new entrants and considerable political interference remains. Moreover, the book considers why, during the airline industry crisis of late 2001, the market capitalizations of low fare leaders held steady in the wake of the US terrorist attacks, while the major carriers on both sides of the Atlantic were decimated. Cleared for Take-Off is essential reading for airline executives, aerospace manufacturers, regulatory and government transportation agencies, researchers or students of aviation management, transport studies, the travel industry and/or corporate strategy.
The aviation sector consists of various actors such as airlines, ground handling companies, and others all with conflicting priorities. In order to understand how these actors position themselves in an increasingly competitive market, The Air Transportation Industry: Economic Conflict and Competition analyzes all the market segments in detail, examining such issues as which industrial economic structure drives decisions, the main economic problems, the consequences for negotiations between different actors, impacts on the global aviation market, and much more. This book covers the entire aviation sector including strategies, regulation, resilience, privatization, airport slot management, and more. It examines how economic and strategic struggles underlie the current market structure, both for aviation as a whole and for the constituent actors as carriers, authorities, and handlers. It examines the ways market and nonmarket approaches impact the competitiveness of the air transport industry, offering a complete mapping of the economic actions between actors of the air transport industry. This volume will help readers gain insight into the possible strategic choices and the mutual competitive strength within the future aviation market. - Contains contributions from well-known aviation scholars - Includes numerous cases studies throughout that explore a wide range of topics - Focuses on applied knowledge, with clearly structured chapters examining topics from a global perspective - Addresses the ongoing consequences of COVID-19 on the air transportation industry, examining potential strategic responses in the event of subsequent pandemics
'Beyond Open Skies' offers a systematic comparative analysis of the legal and policy dimensions of airline deregulation by federal fiat in the United States and by supranational collaboration in the European Union. The book draws upon a variety of sources, including very recent developments in U.S. and EC international aviation law, policy, and diplomacy, to propose a genuine multilateral air transport system. It examines the potential of the 'open skies' initiative, in the aftermath of the new U.S./EC air transport agreement, to inspire a genuine globalization of the world's air transport industry in such crucial aspects as the following: cabotage; ownership and citizenship requirements; route selection; airline identity; capacity; pricing regimes; competition and public aid; regulatory harmonization; labor laws; provisions for charter and/or cargo transportation; fair operation of and access to computer reservations systems; authorization of code-sharing arrangements; alliances and antitrust immunity; and dispute resolution.
