Carrier Network Structures and the Spatial Distribution of Air Traffic in the European Air Transport Market, 1996-2006

Abstract

This paper characterises and compares the spatial distribution of air traffic in the US and Europe across the network of airports for both continents for the period 1996 to 2006, using annual airline schedules from the Official Airline Guide databases. Several measures of traffic concentration are presented. By decomposing the overall spatial distribution of traffic, aspects of individual airline behaviour may be measured and contrasted, along with measures of multi-market contact among groups of carriers. European and US airlines are characterised in terms of their network strategies and the extent of network competition that they face.