RESEARCH SEMINAR

G.A.R.S.
German Aviation Research Society
Call for Papers, August 2003
German Aviation Research Seminar

“The role of competition in the future

airport industry”
Subject
For many years airports were run as public utilities. However, over the past decade many airports have been privatised or
restructured as corporations making airports more commercially oriented. Since some airports possess considerable market
power, changes in ownership and incentives pose the danger that they will abuse it. This has been the rational for
regulation. The regulations have differed and these regulatory systems have achieved mixed results. However, competition
between airports is rising as the aviation market becomes more competitive. Low cost carriers have increasingly selected
secondary airports in a region. Airports develop strategies to improve their competitive position and develop their non-
aviation business. All this raises the question as to whether in future the airport industry will become an ordinary industry
regulated by workable competition?

Holdover the next twelve months several seminars on the issue of airport competition will be held. The series began with a
seminar on `Hubs’ in May (see http://userpage.fu-berlin.de/~jmueller/gars/index.htm ). A selection of papers will be
published by Ashgate in the GARS Series. Papers may be theoretical or applied, and may address the following topics:
- Structure of airport industry: Measurement of airport market power, concentration and fragmentation,
benchmarking of airport performance
- Natural monopoly or spatial competition of airports? Is the airport industry a bundle of local natural and/or legal
monopolies with little competition or a bundle of airports with overlapping catchments areas with monopolistic
competition? Econometric work on competition between airports. Access to airports and modal competition. Case
studies on high speed train effects. Defining the relevant market for airports
- Strategies of airports to increase or shelter their catchments area: Development of catchment area? Price
discrimination, barriers to entry. Airport alliances, Mergers. Competition from former military airports
- Hubs: Economics of hubs. Hub premiums. Case studies on competition between hubs Effects of LCC
- Complementarity of non-aviation and aviation: How effective is the complementarity to prevent airports from
abusing monopoly power. Management strategies of airports. Case study
- Competition and regulation: Complementary or substitutive policy measures to increase the efficiency of airports.
Pro and cons of cross-ownership restrictions. Political, environmental reasons for limiting market access (building
new airports). Case studies on the legal monopoly character, e.g. London or Berlin.

Keynote speakers and chairs of session

Peter Forsyth, Monash University, Melbourne Hans-Martin Niemeier, Univ. of Appl. Sc., Bremen
Marc Gaudry, University of Montreal David Starkie, Economics Plus London
David Gillen, University of California- Berkeley, Arnis Vilks, Handelshochschule Leipzig
Jürgen Müller, Berlin School of Economics Jaap de Wit, University of Amsterdam

Venue
The second Seminar will take place on November, 13th and 14th 2003 at Leipzig Airport.

Paper proposals
Please send an extended abstract (one page, about 300 Contact and further information
words, including a short CV) by October 9th, 2003, as
pdf- or word-file to Hans-Martin Niemeier. Information Hans-Martin Niemeier
on acceptance will be given by October 12th, the full Phone +49-40-8119377
version of the paper is due by November 3rd. HM.Niemeier@t-online.de
http://userpage.fu-berlin.de/~jmueller/gars/index.htm

Aerlines Magazine e-zine edition, Issue 24 1