Search results

Air transport accounts for nearly 40% worth of the global trade cargo volume, where more than 50% of the air cargo is carried on passenger flights. Therefore, this paper aims to focus on identifying the influencing factors for both passenger and cargo demand-driven networks to smoothen the global supply chain.

The data for the study was collected through literature reviews and interviews with industry experts. The analytical hierarchy process was used to analyze the expert's opinions on the critical factors affecting air cargo demand growth. Regression analysis was conducted using the selected variables to develop a model to calculate air cargo demand growth.

According to the expert opinion, it was identified that facilities under airport capacities and facilities are mainly affected by the air cargo carried by combi carriers. The model was developed considering the air connectivity index and air cargo demand at destination variables.

The factors identified here are mainly related to the current situation in Sri Lanka. Applying this methodology to other economic zones will add new factors related to their economic contexts and could be generalized as the influencing factors for the growth of air cargo demand by finding more results.

Previous studies have been conducted using different factors and models to forecast air cargo demand, and those did not consider demand from combi and all-cargo carriers together. More than 98% of air cargo trades in Sri Lanka are happening through combi carriers. Hence, Sri Lanka will be a best case study to analyze the behavior of combi carriers.

The aging population, a higher proportion of older adults (aged 65+), is considered a global and severe problem, while the information systems (IS) literature on detecting the relationship between the aging population and the development of electronic commerce (e-commerce) is limited and insufficient. Hence, the main objective of this paper is to examine whether an aging population can moderate the effect of infrastructure constructions on e-commerce sales and whether an aging population can affect e-commerce sales.

To investigate the relationship between the aging population and e-commerce sales, this study proposes two potential influential mechanisms: moderating the effects of infrastructure development on e-commerce sales and direct influence. Subsequently, a sample of 31 Chinese provinces from 2013 to 2019 is utilized to conduct regression analyses in order to examine these hypotheses.

The findings suggest that the development of urban transportation infrastructure and network constructions can significantly contribute to the enhancement of e-commerce sales, and the influence cannot be affected by aging population. Furthermore, it is noteworthy that an aging population can have a positive effect on e-commerce sales.

The findings can inform future infrastructure constructions by assessing the potential of infrastructure projects to boost e-commerce sales and examining whether this effect varies in an aging population context.

The findings substantiate the pivotal role of older adults in the e-commerce industry. Moreover, the obtained results establish a positive relationship between an aging population and e-commerce sales, thereby offering diverse perspectives on existing theories.

Since conducting agile strategies provides sustainable passenger satisfaction and revenue by replacing applied policies with more profitable ones rapidly, the focus of this study is to evaluate agile attributes for managing low-cost carriers (LCCs) operations by means of resources and competences based on dynamic capabilities built on resource-based view (RBV) theory and to achieve sustainable competitive advantage in a volatile and dynamic air transport environment. LCCs in Turkey are also evaluated in this study since the competition among LCCs is high to gain market share and they can adapt quickly to all kinds of circumstances.

Two well-known Multi-Criteria Decision-Making Methods (MCDM) named as the Stepwise Weight Assessment Ratio Analysis (SWARA) and multi-attributive border approximation area comparison (MABAC) methods by employing Picture fuzzy sets (PiFS) are employed to determine weight of agile attributes and superiority of LCCs based on agile attributes in the market, respectively. To check the consistency and robustness of the results for the proposed approach, comparative and sensitivity analysis are performed at the end of the study.

While the ranking orders of agile attributes are Strategic Responsiveness (AG1), Financial Management (AG4), Quality (AG2), Digital integration (AG3) and Reliability (AG5), respectively, LCC2 is selected as the best agile airline company in Turkey with respect to agile attributes. SWARA and MABAC method based on PiFS is appropriate and effective method to evaluate agile attributes that has important reference value for the airline companies in aviation industry.

The findings of this study will support managers in the airline industry to conduct airline operations more flexibly and effectively to take sustainable competitive advantage in unexpected and dynamic environment.

To the author' best knowledge, this study is the first developed to identify the attributes necessary to increase agility in LCCs. Thus, as a systematic tool, a framework is developed for the implementation of agile attributes to achieve sustainable competitive advantage in the airline industry and presented a roadmap for airline managers to deal with crises and challenging situations by satisfying customer and increasing competitiveness.

This study aims to develop an inclusive, multidisciplinary, flexible and organizationally adaptable safety risk management framework, including diversity management, that will be implemented to ensure safety is and remains at the desired level. If the number of incidents and potential incidents that could lead to accidents and their impact rates are to be reduced operationally and administratively, aviation safety risks and sources of risk must be better understood, sources of risk identified, and the safety risk management framework designed in an organization-specific and organization-wide sustainable way. At this point, it is necessary to draw the conceptual framework well and to define the boundaries of the concepts well. In this study, a framework model that can be adapted to the organization is proposed to optimize the management of risks and provide both efficient and effective resource allocation and organizational structure design in its operations and management functions.

The qualitative research method – triple techniques – was deemed appropriate for this study, which aims to identify, examine, interpret and develop the situations of safety management models. In this context, document analysis, business process modeling technique and Delphi techniques from qualitative research methods were used via integration as the methodology of this research.

To manage dynamic civil aviation management activities and business processes effectively and efficiently, the risk management process is the building block of the “Proposed Process Model” that supports the decision-making processes of aviation organizations and managers. This “Framework Conceptual Model” building block also helps build capacity and resilience by enabling continuous development, organizational learning, and flexible structuring.

This research is limited to air transportation and aviation safety management issues. This research is limited specifically to a safety-based risk management framework for the aviation industry. This research may have social implications as source saving, optimum resource use and capacity building will make a contribution to society and add value besides operational and practical implementation.

This research may contribute to more safe operations and functions in the aviation industry.

Management and academia may gain considerable support from this research to manage their safety risks via a corporate-tailored risk management framework, both improving resilience and developing corporate capacity. With this model presented, decision-makers will have a guiding structure that can optimally manage the main risk types that may be encountered in the safety risk in the fields of suppliers, manufacturers, demand changes, logistics, information management, environmental, legal and regulatory. Existing studies in the literature are generally in the form of algorithms and cannot be used as a decision-making support tool. This model aims to fill the gap in the literature. In addition, added value may be created by applying this model to optimum management safety risks in the real aviation industry and its related sectors.

Reducing aircraft fuel consumption has become a paramount research area, focusing on optimizing operational parameters like speed and altitude during the cruise phase. However, the existing methods for fuel reduction often rely on complex experimental calculations and data extraction from embedded systems, making practical implementation challenging. To address this, this study aims to devise a simple and accessible approach using available information.

In this paper, a novel analytic method to estimate and optimize fuel consumption for aircraft equipped with jet engines is proposed, with a particular emphasis on speed and altitude parameters. The dynamic variations in weight caused by fuel consumption during flight are also accounted for. The derived fuel consumption equation was rigorously validated by applying it to the Boeing 737–700 and comparing the results against the fuel consumption reference tables provided in the Boeing manual. Remarkably, the equation yielded closely aligned outcomes across various altitudes studied. In the second part of this paper, a pioneering approach is introduced by leveraging the particle swarm optimization algorithm (PSO). This novel application of PSO allows us to explore the equation’s potential in finding the optimal altitude and speed for an actual flight from Algiers to Brussels.

The results demonstrate that using the main findings of this study, including the innovative equation and the application of PSO, significantly simplifies and expedites the process of determining the ideal parameters, showcasing the practical applicability of the approach.

The suggested methodology stands out for its simplicity and practicality, particularly when compared to alternative approaches, owing to the ready availability of data for utilization. Nevertheless, its applicability is limited in scenarios where zero wind effects are a prevailing factor.

The research opens up new possibilities for fuel-efficient aviation, with a particular focus on the development of a unique fuel consumption equation and the pioneering use of the PSO algorithm for optimizing flight parameters. This study’s accessible approach can pave the way for more environmentally conscious and economical flight operations.

The purpose of this research is to analyse the accessibility of Spanish beaches for blind people and their guide dogs as an inclusive tourist destination for national and international tourists.

This empirical research used a quantitative and qualitative methodology from public and private organizations, which intends to give voice to blind people to improve their quality of life.

This study presents a new and surprising contribution to the issue of accessibility of beaches for blind people and future studies related to this topic. Findings revealed that Spain has only nine adapted beaches for blind people, and most Spanish tourist destinations exclude blind people and its guide dogs from enjoying the beach and the sun and their facilities. In Spain there are in total 3,547 beaches; 10.3% of these are adapted beaches for people with reduced mobility, whereas only 0.25% are adapted beaches for blind people. Indeed, results also suggest that more efforts are required in response to the needs of blind people in tourism and transport activities by researchers, academics and government bodies.

The contribution of this paper is especially important for the management of the accessibility of Spanish beaches for blind people and their guide dogs by public and private organizations.

这项实证研究采用了来自公共和私人组织的定量和定性方法, 旨在让盲人发声以改善他们的生活质量。

本研究的目的是分析作为国内和国际游客包容性旅游目的地的西班牙海滩对盲人及其导盲犬的可达性。

这项研究对盲人的海滩可达性和与该主题相关的未来研究提出了新的和令人惊讶的贡献。 调查结果显示, 西班牙只有9个适合盲人的海滩, 大多数西班牙旅游目的地都将盲人及其导盲犬排除在享受海滩和阳光及其设施外。 西班牙共有 3,547 个海滩, 其中 10.3% 是适合行动不便人士使用的海滩, 而只有 0.25% 是适合盲人使用的海滩。 事实上, 结果还表明, 研究人员、学术界、政府机构、私营企业以及一个更加公平、团结和慷慨的社会需要做出更多努力来满足盲人在旅游和交通活动中的需求。

本文的贡献对于公共和私人组织管理盲人及其导盲犬在西班牙海滩的可达性尤为重要。

El objetivo de esta investigación es analizar la accesibilidad de las playas españolas para personas ciegas y sus perros guía como destino turístico inclusivo para turistas nacionales e internacionales.

Esta investigación utilizó una metodología cuantitativa y cualitativa apoyada con datos de organizaciones públicas y privadas, con la finalidad de dar voz a las personas ciegas para mejorar su calidad de vida.

Este estudio presenta una nueva y sorprendente contribución sobre la accesibilidad de las playas para personas ciegas y futuros estudios relacionados con este tema. Los resultados revelaron que España tiene solo 9 playas adaptadas para invidentes, la mayoría de los destinos turísticos españoles están excluyendo a las personas invidentes y sus perros guía para disfrutar de la playa y el sol, y de sus instalaciones. En España hay un total de 3.547 playas, el 10,3% son playas adaptadas para personas con movilidad reducida, mientras que solo el 0,25% son playas adaptadas para invidentes. De hecho, los resultados también sugieren que se requieren más esfuerzos en respuesta a las necesidades de las personas ciegas en las actividades de turismo y transporte por parte de investigadores, académicos, organismos gubernamentales, empresas privadas y una sociedad más justa, solidaria y generosa.

La contribución de este trabajo es especialmente importante para la gestión de la accesibilidad de las playas españolas para personas ciegas y sus perros guía por parte de organismos públicos y privados.

Railways are a well-known example of complex critical infrastructure, incorporating socio-technical systems with humans such as drivers, signallers, maintainers and passengers at the core. The technological evolution including interconnectedness and new ways of interaction lead to new security and safety risks that can be realised, both in terms of human error, and malicious and non-malicious behaviour. This study aims to identify the human factors (HF) and cyber-security risks relating to the role of signallers on the railways and explores strategies for the improvement of “Digital Resilience” – for the concept of a resilient railway.

Overall, 26 interviews were conducted with 21 participants from industry and academia.

The results showed that due to increased automation, both cyber-related threats and human error can impact signallers’ day-to-day operations – directly or indirectly (e.g. workload and safety-critical communications) – which could disrupt the railway services and potentially lead to safety-related catastrophic consequences. This study identifies cyber-related problems, including external threats; engineers not considering the human element in designs when specifying security controls; lack of security awareness among the rail industry; training gaps; organisational issues; and many unknown “unknowns”.

The authors discuss socio-technical principles through a hexagonal socio-technical framework and training needs analysis to mitigate against cyber-security issues and identify the predictive training needs of the signallers. This is supported by a systematic approach which considers both, safety and security factors, rather than waiting to learn from a cyber-attack retrospectively.

A major source of external funding for US airports comes from issuing municipal bonds. Credit rating agencies evaluate the bonds using multiple factors, but the judgments behind the ratings are not well understood. This paper examines if airport rate-setting methods affect the bond ratings of US airports.

Using a set of unbalanced panel data for 58 hub airports from 2010 to 2019, we examine the effect of the rate-setting methods and other airport characteristics on Fitch’s airport bond rating.

We find that compensatory airports consistently receive a very high bond rating from Fitch. The probability of getting a very high Fitch rating increases by ∼28 percentage points for a compensatory airport. Additionally, the probability of getting a very high rating is about 33 percentage points higher for a legacy hub.

The study uses Fitch bond ratings. Future studies could examine if S&P’s and Moody’s ratings are also influenced by airport rate-setting methods and legacy hub status.

The results uncover the linkage between bond ratings and their determinants for US airports. This information is important for investors when assessing airport creditworthiness and for airport operators as they manage capital project financing.

This is the first study to evaluate the effects of rate-setting methods on airport bond rating and also the first to document a statistically significant relationship between airports’ legacy hub status and bond ratings.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) reporting has been widely accepted as a vital tool for communicating with stakeholders on a range of social, environmental, and governance issues, but how companies define, interpret, apply, integrate, and communicate their CSR efforts and impacts in corporate reporting is anything but a straightforward task. The purpose of this chapter is to explore the concept of materiality in CSR reporting and demonstrate practical examples of good CSR and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) reporting practices. We chose the aviation industry because of its economic relevance, constant growth, and future expected changes in the aftermath of COVID-19. In addition, airlines affect many of the SDGs directly and indirectly with contending results. This chapter is timely because of the growing willingness by companies to integrate CSR and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) thinking into the corporate strategy and business operations using materiality assessment and enhancing their competitive advantage and ability to maintain long-term value and because ESG and ethical investing have become part of the mainstream investing. Thus, this chapter contributes to an understanding of the wide range of existing and new reporting frameworks and regulations and reinforces the importance of discussing how this diversity of approaches can affect the work toward worldwide comparability of CSR and sustainability reporting.