Global airlines

the long version

Global Airlines presents an overview of the changing scene in the airline industry discussing current issues of de-regulation, privatization and the emergence of transnational airlines. One of the leading academic authorities on the industry interprets the effects of mergers and alliances; code-sharing, franchising and block spacing; increasing concentration; and changing patterns in the configuration of route networks. Global Airlines surveys airline companies around the world and the services they operate. Recent trends such as the change from linear to hub-and-spoke systems and the resulting problems posed by traffic congestion are examined. Also debated are the pro- and anti-competitive consequences of recent developments such as liberalized markets, sophisticated computer reservations systems, and loyalty marketing schemes. The author examines the serious implications for the present bilateral system of negotiating traffic rights, as the 'flag carrier' concept becomes outmoded in favour of airlines as global entities. Readers are given a forward-looking analysis of the coming shape of the industry in the next decade. Global Airlines is for undergraduates in transport and tourism and postgraduate students on management courses with a service industry bias.