Why passengers’ geo-demographic characteristics matter to airport marketing

Passengers’ preference and origin location data (home postcodes) can be extremely useful for marketing purposes, with the potential for more effective customer segmentation and targeting, yet traditional airport market research has often neglected these aspects. This paper utilises passenger survey data from the Gold Coast Airport in the state of Queensland, Australia, to perform a geo-demographic classification analysis in conjunction with census data. With geo-coded passenger preference data, the trip characteristics and airport decision preferences were cross-compared with demographic data with socio-economic variables. The results revealed distinctive contrasts in passenger origin location for short-haul domestic trips and long-haul international trips, in which passengers from afar are willing to travel longer distances to reach a second-tier airport to make use of cheaper airfares. One of the implications of this study is that low-cost carriers’ businesses (the airlines or the airports) should better target their customers by offering geographically targeted marketing.     

Analysing passenger behaviour towards the catering industry: Implications for airport management

This research note seeks to provide the most detailed analysis yet of passenger behaviour towards the airport catering industry. With the broadest sample to date among similar studies, namely 37,000 passengers surveyed at 8 different airports with 38 explanatory variables, a large number of conclusions have been drawn. The most important of these is that the factors that most influence a passenger's using a catering establishment during his/her stay at an airport are his/her physiological needs and social reasons. However, contrary to what was anticipated a priori, socioeconomic status only has a moderate influence, while having a wide range and variety of foodstuffs on offer does not result in passengers consuming more. It is also observed that low-cost airline passengers consume less than those of traditional airlines, probably due to the stress related to boarding with these types of airlines.     

Determinants of commercial revenues at airports: Lessons learned from Spanish regional airports

This paper examines the implications of passenger consumer behavior at airports, focusing specifically on the likelihood of merchandise being purchased at airport stores and food/beverages being consumed at airport catering facilities. Our results are of relevance to airport managers and local tourism policy managers. The variables that determine the amount spent once the passenger has made the decision to consume at the airport are also analyzed. A sample of over 20 000 passengers at seven different regional airports was used in our study.     

Airline schedule and network competitiveness: A consumer-centric approach for business travel

The aim of this paper is to undertake a comparative analysis of the competitiveness of airline schedules and networks from a business traveller perspective with a particular focus on Europe and travel to and from this continent. A unique and innovative customer-centric model is developed using a passenger survey and airline schedule data to overcome the shortcomings of traditional models that lack the passenger viewpoint. The results show that Austrian Airlines/Vienna airport and Swiss/Zurich airport have the highest quality connections, while the top five competing European hubs are served by the Lufthansa group. The findings provide a significant opportunity to airlines to grow their knowledge and understanding of their competitive position and their ability to offer scheduling convenience to passengers.     

Technology social practices by Millennials and Gen Z at airport departure terminals

Airports play a vital link in tourism mobilities in a competitive environment to satisfy passengers and increase non-aeronautical revenues. Drawing on the Social Practice Theory this paper seeks to explore the multi-layered use of technology by young adult travellers at departure terminals in airports. Guided by constructivist paradigm, seven focus group interviews over two time periods with 52 travellers were conducted that revealed differences in meanings, competencies and structures associated with process and discretionary technologies at airports. By focusing on practices rather than understanding individual behaviour the research reveals meanings associated with technology practices by young adults at airports, an alignment by young adults with process technologies and gaps with discretionary technologies at airports. Practically, this research provides airport management with a useful lens to increase satisfaction and revenues by re-imagining discretionary technologies in similar ways to process technologies at airport departure terminals.     

Residents’ perceptions of airport construction impacts: A negativity bias approach

Airports have significant implications for regional and local tourism development, so their impacts need to be assessed. Based on in-depth interviews with local residents, this study examined the effects of an airport development project in Mexico. Negativity bias theory was adopted as a theoretical framework to gain a fuller understanding of host communities' perceptions. In accordance with this theory, even though the economic impacts of the airport's construction are recognised as positive, its environmental and social effects on locals' everyday lives are perceived more negatively. As a result, most locals interviewed do not support the airport project. This is because, in line with negativity bias theory, when perceived negative impacts outweigh positive ones, a holistic evaluation that integrates negative and positive events will ultimately be unfavourable. Practical implications in terms of public consultation, perceived impacts and tourism development are discussed.     

The effect of airport atmospherics on satisfaction and behavioral intentions: testing the moderating role of perceived safety

International airports have been notable spaces due to their reinforced roles and the increase in the number of users. Nevertheless, there are not many studies on the relationships among the physical environment of the airport, perception of airport safety, customer satisfaction, and behavioral intentions. To fill this gap, this study has attempted to (1) examine the relationships among the physical environment of the airport, satisfaction, and behavioral intentions; (2) discover which element of physical circumstances has an influence on satisfaction; and (3) ascertain perceived airport safety as a moderator between satisfaction and behavioral intentions. The data were collected through wireless channels, using the snowball method. The findings disclosed that facility aesthetics is the strongest component of the physical surroundings of the airport in eliciting satisfaction, and satisfaction has a major impact on behavioral intentions. Despite the invalid moderation effect of perceived airport safety, safety was clarified as a direct driver of satisfaction through additional analysis.     

A Conservation of Resources schema for exploring the influential forces for air-travel stress

Effective air-travel stress management is increasingly crucial in determining tourist satisfaction and travel choices, particularly in a time of intensive fear about virus, terrorism, and plane crashes. However, research about air-travel stress, particularly what and how various influential forces shape passenger stress levels, is still in its infancy. The current research proposes the adoption of Conservation of Resources (COR) theory as a holistic schema to identify through resource dynamics the potential influential forces for air-travel stress across leisure travel stages. The findings, based on surveying passengers at the gate of multi-country international and domestic airports, demonstrates the capability of COR schema to predict and explain the influences on air-travel stress from an array of personal and situational/trip-specific factors. The theoretical advances from COR-based cross-stage stress analyses, and the guidance for customized airline/airport stress-soothing service strategies are discussed.     

Multi-dimensional price elasticity for leisure and business destinations in the low-cost air transport market: Evidence from easyJet

This study investigates the price elasticity of demand in the European low-cost carrier (LCC) industry by analysing Internet fares for all easyJet flights departing from the Amsterdam Schiphol airport towards 21 European destinations between March and September 2015. Results suggest that the price elasticity of demand greatly varies across different dimensions, ranging from −0.535 for the business-oriented route of Hamburg to −1.915 for the leisure-oriented route of Split. Price elasticity is also found to be higher for reservations made more days in advance, for reservations and departures occurring on weekends, and for flights taking off during lunchtime and in the summer period. All results are consistent with the different behaviours of leisure and business passengers and the ongoing increase in the business component of the LCC passenger mix.     

Evaluating domestic bias on airline passengers’ ratings: The moderating effect of cultural value orientation

We explore differences in airline passengers’ online ratings toward domestic and foreign carriers. Using a dataset of more than 380,000 airline passenger reviews obtained from TripAdvisor, we show that on average passengers express higher satisfaction (as proxied by their overall rating) for airline service encounters with domestic carriers, exhibiting a form of domestic bias. Using Hofstede’s framework, we examine how cultural dimensions influence the strength of this bias and find support for the moderating impact (positive and negative) of passengers’ cultural dimensions on their provided ratings toward domestic airlines. The study has theoretical and practical implications for international marketing researchers and airline operational planners.     

Determinants of passenger loyalty in multi-airport regions: Implications for tourism destination

This study examines the drivers of passenger loyalty to the airport in a multi-airport region. For this purpose, partial least squares–structural equation modelling (PLS–SEM) was used to analyse survey data. The findings highlight the role of customer segmentation to define marketing and operational strategies, which should be used to strengthen the loyalty to the airport as well as to contribute to the improvement of the tourism destination image. In addition, this research offers an integrative approach to analyse passenger perceptions and attitudes regarding the airport experience. This integrative approach can also help airport managers to design and implement more effective performance measurement systems, which could be used to transform the airport environment in a tourism experience.     

Forecasting of Hong Kong airport's passenger throughput

Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) is one of the main gateways to Mainland China and the major aviation hub in Asia. An accurate airport traffic demand forecast allows for short and long-term planning and decision making regarding airport facilities and flight networks. This paper employs the Box–Jenkins Seasonal ARIMA (SARIMA) model and the ARIMAX model to forecast airport passenger traffic for Hong Kong, and projecting its future growth trend to 2015. Both models predict a steady growth in future airport passenger traffic at Hong Kong. In addition, scenario analysis suggests that Hong Kong airport's future passenger traffic will continue to grow in different magnitudes.     

The Impact of Brand Relationship and Attributions on Passenger Response to Service Failure

It is important for service companies to develop and maintain consistent and stable consumer loyalty. Although consumer brand relationship and attributions have been applied to various service industries, they have not been investigated in the airline industry where passenger emotions are considered critical. This study addresses the consequences of brand relationship quality, the mediating influence of emotions, and the moderating role of switching costs through structural equation modeling of data collected from passengers who had experienced flight delay. The results suggest that (1) airline relationship with passengers is an important and valuable asset, especially in the case of stability attributions, (2) negative emotions play a partial or full mediator role in the causal relationship between attributions and behavioral intentions, and (3) minimizing negative emotions is more effective than relying on switching costs for behavioral intentions. It can be concluded that the airline industry should try to manage passenger emotions more appropriately since passengers have an emotional attachment to their brands and passengers' negative emotions can be influential to repurchase intentions when service failures occur.     

Senior Pleasure Tourists: Examination of Their Demography,Travel Experience,and Travel Behavior Upon Visiting the Bangkok Metropolis

The senior travel market has become an increasingly important area of interest to travel agents. This study examines senior travellers based on their travel experience, behavior, and overall experience on visiting Thailand, in terms of their age, marital status, and education. In this study, a sample of 384 senior foreign tourists responded to a survey carried out at the Bangkok International airport. Seniors are shown not to be a uniform conservative market, which has implications for product development. Profiles differed in the priority attached to travel experience factored into health, safety, language, itineraries, and general conditions in connection with travel. Travel behavior of seniors also differs in terms of types of tour, lodging preference, outdoor activity, mode of transportation, type of information used, and people travelled with. Recommendations based on these findings have strategic implications for travel companies and travel organizers.     

Managing Airline Passenger Satisfaction During a Delay: A Case Study Applying Consumerist Gap Concepts

Abstract

Delays occur quite commonly in airtransportation, due to the effects of weather, congestion, or technical problems. Lengthy delays often give rise to passenger complaints and demands for compensation. This paper firstly presents a general consumerist gap model of passenger satisfaction management, then applies its concepts to a batch of passenger correspondence which resulted from a very long delay. Passengers' letters to the airline were reviewed and analysed using con-sumerist gap approaches, following which discussions were held with senior airline managers to identify ways of improving responses to passengers during incidents such as the one presented in this case study.     

Day tour itineraries: Searching for the balance between commercial needs and experiential desires

Little research has been conducted examining the factors that influence the development of day tour itineraries. While the literature suggests that a combination of commercial, operational, political and experiential factors contribute to itinerary development, this article argues that it is the business model chosen that affects it the most. Essentially two business models predominate: commission-based and noncommission-based. This study examines the impact of the business model on the selection of day tour itineraries in the Macau Special Administrative Region of China. It finds that experiential values are traded off almost entirely in the itineraries of commission-based tours, while a better balance between experiential and operational considerations drives itinerary choices for noncommission-based tours.     

First-Class in-Flight Services and Advertising Effectiveness: Antecedents of Customer-Centric Innovativeness and Brand Loyalty in the United States (US) Airline Industry

In this study we consider the first-class passenger market to identify in-flight service-related triggers of customer-centric innovativeness, test the effect of customer-centric innovativeness on brand loyalty, and examine the moderating role of advertising effectiveness. A series of theory-based hypotheses was examined through structural equation modeling using empirical data collected from a sample of 205 first-class airline passengers in the United States (US). The results indicate that various experiential dimensions of in-flight service designs (including food, entertainment, physical environment, and flight attendant performance/physical appearance) in the first-class passenger market had significant effects on perceived firm innovativeness. In addition, advertising effectiveness moderated the effects of in-flight food services and flight attendant physical appearance on perceived firm innovativeness. These results clearly suggest that customer-centric innovativeness is a strong driver of brand loyalty in the first-class passenger market. The study provides a theoretical basis for future research and offers some effective management methods for enhancing first-class passengers’ loyalty in the airline industry.     

Airport subsidies and domestic inbound tourism in China

Since 2013, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) has subsidized small and medium-sized airports. The key objective of this study is to empirically validate the benefits and impacts of airport subsidies in facilitating domestic tourism development. This study contributes to the aviation and tourism literature and offers important insights to policymakers regarding airport subsidies and tourism promotion. The empirical results show that increases in airport subsidies increased airport passenger throughput and indirectly brought more tourists to the cities where airports are located. In addition, the airport subsidy scheme has had a stronger effect in boosting domestic tourist arrivals in inland regions compared with coastal regions. This study empirically finds that the government's airport subsidy scheme for small and medium-sized airports has been effective in supporting aviation and tourism development in ethnic minority areas, poor or remote regions with inconvenient land transportation.     

Meeting the needs of disabled air passengers: Factors that facilitate help from airlines and airports

With the number of impaired air passengers having increased globally, air service providers may have the potential to create a lucrative niche market. However, it is less clear what the service needs of these passengers are as well as providing facilities and services. This paper aims to explore the service needs of impaired air passengers and to identify factors affecting the facilities and services. The results of data from a sample of 180 respondents from among airline, airport and government staff are presented in this research. These results show that the top three items which travellers complained about in relation to airlines are the lack of provision of a user-friendly on-board restroom, wheelchair services and the distance between cabin seats and restroom on board. The results also show that female staff are more likely to be willing to help impaired passengers than male staff. In considering the factors comprising perceived needs, two factors, i.e. “Compensation and improvement schemes” and “Not suitable for taking a flight” appear to have significant effects. The managerial implications are also discussed.     

Identifying mobility service needs for disabled air passengers

One outcome of air transportation deregulation policies worldwide is the growing number of passengers, including people with a disability. Because social equality is recognized as a worthwhile objective, providing an environment at both the airport terminal and on-board aircraft that eases travel for those with various impairments is an objective airlines and airport authorities increasingly view as important, and which they monitor. In order to understand the disabled traveler’s wants and needs, this paper applied importance-performance analysis (IPA) to examine the perception of, and satisfaction with, air transportation services. Data from a sample of 130 respondents with lower extremity function impairment is presented in this research. The results show the service needs are different across three levels of disability categorized as minor, moderate, and severe.