IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jadmsc/v13y2023i12p255-d1298261.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Strategic Response of European Airlines to Market Dynamics: A Comparative Analysis

Author

Listed:
  • Ugo Arrigo

    (Department of Business and Law, University of Milano-Bicocca, 20126 Milan, Italy)

  • Massimo Beccarello

    (Department of Business and Law, University of Milano-Bicocca, 20126 Milan, Italy)

  • Giacomo Di Foggia

    (Department of Business and Law, University of Milano-Bicocca, 20126 Milan, Italy)

Abstract

The airline market is constantly evolving and requires managers to adopt strategies to meet the changing demands and organizational requirements of the sector. As a result of its liberalization, the European market has transformed from a set of national protected sectors to a single sector. Although the market has grown over the last two decades, the industry has faced difficulties due to various economic, safety, environmental, and health issues, which have recently emerged. This study analyzes the airlines’ strategic responses to increased competition from the turn of the century to 2019, excluding the pandemic period, to focus on market dynamics driven by European competition policy. A five-pillar strategic framework highlighting common strategies and divergences between major European network carriers is outlined through a multi-case analysis of major European markets. The sample includes France, Germany, Italy, and Spain. Results have managerial implications that highlight the importance of strategic adaptability in an industry landscape that continues to evolve. Managerial implications fall into the following three categories: strategic positioning, cost optimization, and business diversification.

Suggested Citation

  • Ugo Arrigo & Massimo Beccarello & Giacomo Di Foggia, 2023. "Strategic Response of European Airlines to Market Dynamics: A Comparative Analysis," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-14, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jadmsc:v:13:y:2023:i:12:p:255-:d:1298261
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3387/13/12/255/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3387/13/12/255/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Lieshout, Rogier & Malighetti, Paolo & Redondi, Renato & Burghouwt, Guillaume, 2016. "The competitive landscape of air transport in Europe," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 68-82.
    2. Abate, Megersa & Christidis, Panayotis & Purwanto, Alloysius Joko, 2020. "Government support to airlines in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    3. Giacomo Di Foggia & Massimo Beccarello, 2021. "Market Structure of Urban Waste Treatment and Disposal: Empirical Evidence from the Italian Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(13), pages 1-12, July.
    4. Jankiewicz, Jacek & Huderek-Glapska, Sonia, 2016. "The air transport market in Central and Eastern Europe after a decade of liberalisation – Different paths of growth," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 45-56.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Avogadro, Nicolò & Cattaneo, Mattia & Paleari, Stefano & Redondi, Renato, 2021. "Replacing short-medium haul intra-European flights with high-speed rail: Impact on CO2 emissions and regional accessibility," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 25-39.
    2. Tolcha, Tassew Dufera, 2023. "The state of Africa's air transport market amid COVID-19, and forecasts for recovery," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 108(C).
    3. Jae-Eun Lee & Seol-A Kwon, 2021. "A Study on the Public’s Crisis Management Efficacy and Anxiety in a Pandemic Situation—Focusing on the COVID-19 Pandemic in South Korea," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(15), pages 1-17, July.
    4. Van Asch, Thomas & Dewulf, Wouter & Kupfer, Franziska & Cárdenas, Ivan & Van de Voorde, Eddy, 2020. "Cross-border e-commerce logistics – Strategic success factors for airports," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    5. Solaymani, Saeed, 2021. "Which government supports are beneficial for the transportation subsectors," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 235(C).
    6. Sun, Xiaoqian & Wandelt, Sebastian & Zhang, Anming, 2021. "Technological and educational challenges towards pandemic-resilient aviation," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 104-115.
    7. Bringmann, Katja & De Langhe, Katrien & Kupfer, Franziska & Sys, Christa & Van de Voorde, Eddy & Vanelslander, Thierry, 2018. "Cooperation between airports: A focus on the financial intertwinement of European airport operators," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 59-71.
    8. Santos, Luca J. & Oliveira, Alessandro V.M. & Aldrighi, Dante Mendes, 2021. "Testing the differentiated impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on air travel demand considering social inclusion," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    9. Sun, Xiaoqian & Wandelt, Sebastian & Zhang, Anming, 2023. "A data-driven analysis of the aviation recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 109(C).
    10. Sun, Xiaoqian & Wandelt, Sebastian & Zhang, Anming, 2021. "Vaccination passports: Challenges for a future of air transportation," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 394-401.
    11. Xue, Dabin & Liu, Zhizhao & Wang, Bing & Yang, Jian, 2021. "Impacts of COVID-19 on aircraft usage and fuel consumption: A case study on four Chinese international airports," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    12. Panayotis Christidis & Aris Christodoulou & Elena Navajas-Cawood & Biagio Ciuffo, 2021. "The Post-Pandemic Recovery of Transport Activity: Emerging Mobility Patterns and Repercussions on Future Evolution," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-17, June.
    13. Mutascu, Mihai & Sokic, Alexandre, 2023. "Air transportation under COVID-19 pandemic restrictions: A wavelet analysis," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 139(C), pages 155-181.
    14. Piyanee Akkawuttiwanich & Pisal Yenradee & Narudh Cheramakara, 2024. "Fuzzy QFD for LCC Strategic Decisions in Thailand: A Case Study of Nok Air and COVID-19 Recovery," International Journal of Knowledge and Systems Science (IJKSS), IGI Global, vol. 15(1), pages 1-26, January.
    15. Warnock-Smith, David & Christidis, Panayotis, 2021. "European Union-Latin America/Caribbean air transport connectivity and competitiveness in different air policy contexts," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    16. Pagliari, Romano & Graham, Anne, 2019. "An exploratory analysis of the effects of ownership change on airport competition," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 76-85.
    17. Tolcha, Tassew Dufera & Tchouamou Njoya, Eric & Bråthen, Svein & Holmgren, Johan, 2021. "Effects of African aviation liberalisation on economic freedom, air connectivity and related economic consequences," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 204-214.
    18. Warnock-Smith, David & Graham, Anne & O'Connell, John F. & Efthymiou, Marina, 2021. "Impact of COVID-19 on air transport passenger markets: Examining evidence from the Chinese market," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    19. Pagliari, Romano & Graham, Anne, 2020. "Airport competition within the Scottish lowlands region," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    20. Martins, António Miguel & Cró, Susana, 2022. "Airline stock markets reaction to the COVID-19 outbreak and vaccines: An event study," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 105(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jadmsc:v:13:y:2023:i:12:p:255-:d:1298261. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.