Modelling the effects of capacity constraints on air travellers’ airport choice

This paper analyses the effects of limited capacity on air travellers’ airport choice. The analysis is based on a market-segment specific airport choice model that accounts for limited capacities. The region of Stuttgart in Germany serves as a case study to examine the impact of limited airport capacity on air travellers’ airport choice. Air travellers’ choice depends on the supply of flights and accessibility of the airports in their choice set as well as on their preferences and willingness-to-pay. To elaborate the effects of limited airport capacity, scenarios relating to the capacity situation at airports serving the air travel demand of the Stuttgart region are analysed. This paper reveals the mutual dependence among airports. Capacity constraints at one airport cause spill-over effects and thus influence air travel demand served at other airports. In some cases this may even lead to new capacity constraints elsewhere.     

Luxury-cruise travellers’ brand community perception and its consequences

This study examines the roles of brand community and brand differentiation in the context of the luxury-cruise market. Employing a brand community integration scale, an online survey was conducted with 300 luxury-cruise customers in the USA. The results of structural equation modelling provided six findings as follows: (1) three of the four dimensions of brand community, namely the relationship with the cruise brand, the cruise product, and other cruisers, had positive effects on brand distinctiveness; (2) brand distinctiveness had positive effects on emotional brand attraction; (3) emotional brand attraction had positive effects on active engagement and repurchase intentions; (4) the corporate social responsibility image moderated the link between the relationship with other cruisers and brand distinctiveness; (5) customers’ desire for unique products moderated the relationship between brand distinctiveness and emotional brand attraction; and (6) service-use self-efficacy moderated the relationship between emotional brand attraction and active engagement. The results provide a deeper theoretical and practical understanding of the luxury-cruise market.     

An analysis of an airport–airline relationship under a risk sharing contract

This paper analyzes a risk sharing incomplete contract under which an airline agrees to serve an airport in exchange for payment to/from the airport based on the difference between a realized and a target load factor. The key results are that we specified the relevant conditions on payments and utilities under which the incomplete contract can overcome the under-effort problem and achieve the efficient utility levels. These results are numerically illustrated by showing the impacts of the project prospect deterioration and the uncertainty increases on effort and utility levels.     

An exploratory examination of additional ground access trips generated by airport ‘meeter-greeters’

A significant share of airport passengers are accompanied to and/or from the airport by friends and relatives to wave them off or greet them when they land. At some airports the number of these ‘meeter-greeters’ can be substantial, which can have important ground access planning, economic and environmental implications for the airport operator. Yet this group have received comparatively little attention in either the academic or industry literature. Consequently, to some extent ‘meeter-greeters’ have remained something of a ‘hidden’ element of ground access user. In an attempt to address this, the paper uses secondary data analysis of the UK CAA Passenger Survey Report to explore ‘meeter-greeters’ at five UK airports; Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester, Stansted and Luton. Focus is given to assessing the scale of ‘meeter-greeter’ journeys and the role of a passenger's trip purpose (business/leisure) and resident status (resident/non-resident) in this process. A key finding from the analysis relates to the disproportionate impact of multi-person trips, where a number of different ‘meeter-greeters’ accompany a passenger to the airport. The implications of these findings are discussed and a number of recommendations for decision makers proposed. Namely, it is suggested that airport monitoring and assessment procedures should incorporate a measure of the additional trip generation by ‘meeter-greeters’ in order to present a more complete picture of the number of people accessing/egressing an airport.     

Does a reward program affect customers’ behavioural intention of visiting the airport? A case study of Singapore Changi Airport

An understanding of the behavioural intentions of customers in visiting airports may help airport management to boost airport retail revenue (i.e. non-aeronautical revenue) by increasing customer spending at the airports. This study aims to examine the connection between airport reward programs and customers' behavioural intentions of visiting the airport, attempting to bring some benefits and credits for implementing reward programs in the airport sector by using Singapore Changi Airport as a case study. Two types of customer behavioural intentions (i.e. time spent at the airport and various purposes of visiting the airport) were investigated in the study to examine the effects of Changi Airport's reward program (i.e. Changi Rewards). An on-line survey was conducted, and the participants' responses were analysed via a structural equation modelling approach. The results showed that the attractive benefits of Changi Rewards could have a positive influence on arousing customers' intentions to engage with the programme. In addition, customers' intentions to engage with the programme can have a positive effect on increasing passengers' time spent at the airport and inducing customers to visit the airport for leisure purposes. Managerial implications to the airport sector are discussed.     

Does travellers’ casual attribution affect pre-recovery emotions and behavioural intentions? A field study of airline travellers in Malaysia

This study examines the relationship between airline travellers' casual attribution, pre-recovery emotions, and negative behavioural intentions after a service failure and proposes a model for analysing direct effects of airline travellers' casual attribution of stability (failure frequency) and controllability (the extent to which the airline can control the failure) on negative behavioural intentions as well as its indirect effects through pre-recovery emotions. Data were gathered through a survey of airline travellers who experienced a failure in the past six months. The results indicate that both dimensions of casual attribution influenced pre-recovery emotions and negative behavioural intentions, and that pre-recovery emotions were significantly related to negative behavioural intentions. In addition, the results verify the mediating effect of pre-recovery emotions on the relationship between casual attribution and behavioural intentions. These results have important managerial implications.     

Antecedents of travellers’ repurchase behaviour for luxury cruise product

This study proposed and tested a theoretical model in which image congruence, affect, satisfaction, switching costs, and trust have an influence on travellers’ decision to repurchase a luxury cruise product by considering the moderating impact of conspicuousness. The model was evaluated using a quantitative approach. The original model included a satisfactory fit and prediction power. The results of the structural analysis revealed that the hypothesized associations between the study variables were generally supported, and such variables had a significant mediating role. In addition, conspicuousness of product use had a moderating impact on the affect–satisfaction–switching costs linkages. Moreover, the prominent role of satisfaction and trust was identified. The findings of this study extended our understanding of the complex of the relationships among study variables in forming luxury cruise passengers’ repurchase intention.     

British airways’ move to Terminal 5 at London Heathrow airport: A statistical analysis of transfer baggage performance

This paper investigates transfer baggage performance when British Airways’ occupancy of Terminal 5 at London Heathrow Airport took place. Operational data on transfer baggage performance are collated from BA performance scorecards and the Gini coefficient is used as a measure of consolidation of flight operations within a single terminal and in the investigation of correlation of consolidated flights in Terminal 5 with transfer baggage performance variation. The relationship between consolidation of operations in the terminal and improving transfer baggage performance is found to be significant. In addition, there is evidence of significant changes in transfer baggage performance on switch phases of flights as they were moved to Terminal 5 in steps. The exclusive use of a terminal gives improved performance.     

Network concentration and airport congestion in a post de-regulation context: A case study of Brazil 2000–2010

This paper empirically investigates the main drivers of airline network concentration in an air transport market subject to rapid growth. We consider the Brazilian air transport industry of the 2000s, in which network concentration rapidly increased and was followed by a period of massive flight delays and cancelations, which resulted in the “big blackout” of 2006–2007. We develop an econometric model of network concentration, accounting for demand, cost and competition variables that may affect the propensity of carriers to concentrate flights and passenger connections on a few airports of a network. The main focus of the paper is on the relation between networks leading to the problems of the blackout episode. We investigate the dynamic pattern of the evolution of concentration before and after the abnormal period of operations and find that concentration began to rise at least six quarters before, and persisted at a high level until two quarters after the blackout – and then plunged steeply toward the end of the decade. We believe that our analysis contributes to an improved understanding of the behavior of air transport systems subject to network concentration and congestion. With respect to methodology, we suggest and employ the use of alternative measures of network concentration to check the robustness and validity of our results.     

Can we explain airport performance? A case study of selected New York airports using a stochastic frontier model

This paper uses stochastic frontier models to assess whether technical efficiency at Newark Liberty International, New York John F. Kennedy International, and New York LaGuardia airports improved from June to August 2008 compared with the summers of 2000 and 2007. An airport is efficient if it can handle operations on-time by minimizing overall demand and maximizing available airport capacity. Granger-causality tests determined the factors that may cause changes in key components and indicators of airport performance. Compared with the other airports, JFK experienced the greatest improvement in technical efficiency. The Granger-causality tests stressed the significance of airport operations and en route factors in supporting efficiency.     

The growth of Arabian airlines from a German perspective – A study of the impacts of new air services to Asia

Airlines from Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman have gained significant market shares in international air transport. Traditionally travellers have chosen hubs like Amsterdam, Frankfurt, London or Paris as transfer points for trips to Asia. With the inauguration of non-stop services to places like Abu Dhabi, Doha or Dubai, new choices for air travellers have emerged. We analyse data derived from German air transport statistics on the effects of passenger flows between the airports of Düsseldorf and Hamburg to Asian destinations. They suggest that services introduced by Emirates stimulated passenger demand for Asian destinations, while incumbent hubs do not lose transfer passengers. Regarding travel times and connection quality of routings between secondary airports in Germany and Asian destinations, comparing routings of Emirates Airlines and Lufthansa suggests that due to geographic and scheduling constraints, services via Arabia do not constitute a perfect substitute for time-sensitive passengers.     

Micro-modelling of individual tourist’s information-seeking behaviour: a heterogeneity-specific study

Previous research done on tourists’ information-seeking behaviour has focused on aggregate-level information seeking. The aggregate-level study has significant disadvantage in decision-making since actual behaviour of tourists gets averaged out due to aggregation. Understanding the responses of individual tourist’s information seekers in different contexts can be better performed by individual-level study. This study emphasizes the importance of information-seeking behaviour in the context of personal differences between the tourists. Heterogeneity suggests that different tourists behave differently when seeking information. With data of 307 tourists, we first find tourists’ information-seeking behavioural dimensions. We then group the tourists into segments according to these behavioural dimensions, and then investigate the impacts of these behavioural dimensions considering individual-level heterogeneity through hierarchical Bayes estimation. We then compare these estimates with aggregate-level estimates to find out the improvement of prediction if inter-individual heterogeneity is considered.     

Examining the ‘relative image’ of tourism destinations: a case study

Many traditional destination image studies employ a non-comparative assessment approach. This study, however, suggests defining and measuring destination image in a comparative manner (termed ‘relative image’) for the purpose of destination positioning. Using a case study on American leisure travellers’ image of Mainland China, the author proposes and demonstrates the utility of a multi-step procedure of relative image assessment. The author concludes that by utilising competing destinations as a reference frame and replicating tourists’ actual decision-making process, relative image assessment may generate more relevant information and insights for destination marketers.     

Gender differences in a walking environment safety perception: A case study in a small town of Banská Bystrica (Slovakia)

BackgroundA safe environment has been widely accepted as one of the most important walkability predictors. However, the relation between perceived safety and walkability has not been well established.AimsThis paper focuses on quantitative aspects of the relation between perceived safety and walkability, as well as examining spatio-temporal patterns of fear-related areas, with a special emphasis on gender differences among adolescents.Data and methodsData regarding walkability perception and safety perception was collected during a mapping exercise in primary and grammar schools in Banská Bystrica city (central Slovakia), with a final sample of 303 adolescents (13–16 years old, 54% girls). In the experiment, pre-prepared reply forms and maps divided into a square fishnet were used.ResultsRegardless of the time of day, girls felt less safe in public spaces than boys did, especially in the city centre. In general, fear-related spaces for boys were more dispersed than for girls, whose perceived risky areas were more compact and spatially concentrated. Girls' perception of walkability was more affected by feeling safe than that of boys, with fewer gender differences at night.ConclusionsBy mitigating and even eliminating threats observed by girls, gender differences in the perception of barriers to walking can be reduced.     

Drivers and barriers of peer-to-peer accommodation stay – an exploratory study with American and Finnish travellers

The explosive growth of peer-to-peer (P2P) accommodation service presents a potential transformation in the competitive landscape of accommodation sector. This research explores the market characteristics and the factors that drive and hinder the use of P2P accommodation to better explain the phenomenon of collaborative consumption in the tourism and hospitality marketplace. Using responses from travellers residing in the United States and Finland, exploratory factor analyses revealed two factors that drive the use of P2P accommodation: social appeal (desire for community and sustainability) and economic appeal (cost savings). The barriers include issues of trust, efficacy and familiarity with the system, and cost. The empirical evidence from this study suggests several managerial implications for tourism and hospitality businesses and directions for future research.     

Measuring airport quality from the airlines’ viewpoint: an application of data envelopment analysis

The main objective of this paper is to develop a model to determine the relative efficiency and quality of airports. This factor seems to have a strong effect on the airlines’ choice of hubs. Previous studies of airport quality have used subjective passenger data whereas in this study airport quality is defined from the airlines’ viewpoint. Accordingly, we have solicited airlines’ evaluations of a number of European and non-European airports by means of a detailed questionnaire. Statistical analysis of the median score has shown that these evaluations vary considerably relative to quality factors and airports. The key methodology used in this study to determine the relative quality level of the airports is Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), which has been adapted through the use of principle component analysis. Of the set of West-European airports analyzed, Geneva, Milan and Munich received uniformly high, relative efficiency scores. In contrast, Charles de Gaulle, Athens and Manchester consistently appear low in the rankings.     

The impact of low-cost carriers on airport choice in the US: A case study of the Washington–Baltimore region

Previous research has shown that low-cost carriers (LCCs) may stimulate traffic at an airport by offering low fares. Using passenger survey data from the Washington–Baltimore region’s three airports, we find that the benefits of LCCs to airports extend beyond the traffic generated directly by the LCCs through their low fares. In addition, we find that the mere presence of an LCC at an airport can attract passengers, even to competing carriers. These “halo effects” from LCC presence increase the significance to airport managers of attracting LCCs in order to generate passenger demand.     

Urban heritage and cultural tourism development: a case study of Valletta’s role in Malta’s tourism

ABSTRACT

Despite significant potential for cultural tourism, the predominant form of tourism in Malta is sun and sea. This paper evaluates Malta’s potential for cultural tourism with a focus on Valletta, a fortified historic city that overlooks the Grand Harbour. Valletta’s rich urban heritage and historic narrative makes it ideal for the development of a more culture-oriented tourism. The paper explores how, over more than half a century of tourism activity in Malta, culture and heritage retained a secondary role. Since the mid-nineties, Malta’s tourism policy shifted with culture and heritage being given greater importance, even if the sun and sea tourism remained a priority. Public and private investment brought about changes in Valletta that made it more amenable to cultural activity and tourism. Although European Capital of Culture Valletta 2018 provides new opportunities for cultural tourism to Malta, it is unclear whether this will bring a lasting legacy for Malta’s tourism. This Valletta case study shows that, for destinations with an established form of tourism, the development of cultural tourism meets with difficulties, in spite the presence of a rich urban heritage.     

Visitors’ brand loyalty to a historical and cultural theme park: a case study of Hangzhou Songcheng,China

Conducting research on the factors affecting brand loyalty to theme parks is an important method for enhancing brand loyalty among tourists. This paper takes the Hangzhou Songcheng historical and cultural theme park as a case study. Hypotheses are proposed and structural equation model is constructed based on tourist perception theory. Findings show that theme park brand satisfaction is related to brand loyalty through brand attachment and historical and cultural performance. The quality of facilities and attractions has no significant correlation with perceived value and brand satisfaction. The service quality of attendants also has no significant correlation with tourist perceived value.