Aviation access and green flows: The impact of aviation networks on firms’ green technology transfer

Aviation networks, serving as critical infrastructure connecting regions, significantly influence firms’ behavior concerning the transfer of green technologies. This study empirically explores the impact and mechanism of aviation networks on cross-regional green technology transfer by selecting matched data of Chinese listed companies and prefecture-level cities. The results reveal that aviation network centrality robustly enhances green technology transfers. Mechanism analysis shows that this positive effect is primarily driven by improved talent aggregation, marketization, green financing access, and corporate R&D investment. Heterogeneity analysis identifies that the facilitating role of aviation networks is notably stronger for large-scale firms, non-resource-based cities, and regions with lower environmental regulatory intensity. Further discussion finds that the green technology transfer promoted by the aviation network contributes positively to the green and high-quality development of the urban economy. These findings offer valuable policy insights into optimizing green resource allocation from the “flow space†perspective.