Do scale and the type of markets matter? Revisiting the determinants of passenger air services worldwide

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Do scale and the type of markets matter? Revisiting the determinants of passenger air services worldwide

Dobruszkes, Frédéric / Vandermotten, Christian

Abstract Investigating the determinants of air traffic has become somewhat commonplace. However, previous papers have neglected to distinguish between domestic and international markets and to think about spatial units. This paper examines the factors of passenger air traffic for the whole world and considers both national and sub-national units. The study finds that the relevant factors partially diverge between domestic and international markets. It also appears that it is more valuable to consider sub-national spatial units than countries, notwithstanding econometric results. Indeed, the geography of residuals is much richer by sub-national units, while national units clearly mask centre-periphery patterns and/or significant disparities within large countries.

Highlights • The factors of passenger air traffic are investigated for the whole world. • Results depend on the market (domestic vs international). • Results depend on the scale of spatial units (countries vs sub-national units). • Considering sub-national spatial units instead of countries is much richer.